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<br /> <br />Page 4 -- Squawfish <br />Equally important to the recovery of the fish are improvements to the <br /> <br />'r <br />river habitat itself, Kaeding said. <br />Members of the recovery program are working to determine and maintain the <br />best water flows for the fish wherever feasible. <br />Biologists are conducting research to determine to what extent non-native <br />sport fish prey upon endangered fish and compete with them for space and food. <br />To lessen negative effects on the native fish, state agencies consult with the <br />Fish and Wildlife Service before stocking any warm-water non-native fish in <br />the Upper Colorado River Basin. Trout, however', are still stocked; ~t"ley live <br />'in colder stretches of water and are not. considered cOOlpetitorswith the <br />endangered fiSh. <br />Researchers also are studying the results of stocking hatchery-raised <br />Colorado squawfish in Kenney Reservoir near Rangely, monitoring population <br />sizes of ::mdangeredand non-native fish, refining techniques for raising <br />Colorado squawfish in hatcheries and studying competition between native and <br />non-native fish. <br />U~til they have more answers, many biologists avoid making sweeping <br />, conclusions about the releof hatchery fish in the species' recovery. <br />"We don't have all the answers, but we're optimistic that what we're <br />learning will lead to rapid recovery of the fish," Bennett said. <br /> <br />-30- <br />