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!::;~ ''r, .~J SYSTEMATIC DATA COLLECTION AND RESEARCH (SDCR) The SDCR element of the Flaming Gorge Investigat,ion is a package of closely related research and monitoring programs which will be conducted annually throughout the five years of the Flaming Gorge Flow Investigations. The SDCR is composed of four elements which directly assess effects of the yearly and seasonal operation of Flaming Gorge Dam on annual reproduction and recruitment of fishes in the Green River system. The four elements i~clude, reproduction, survival of Age Q fish to fall, overwinter survival of young fish, and l.inks between recruitment of young fish and recruitment to adult stocks. The Interagency Standardized Monitoring Program (ISMP) provides for collection of adult and young-of-the-year fish, but concurrent, long-term information on annual migrations and spawning success is also required to provide information on the interaction between native and non-native fish populations and hydrologic events. SDCR studies were designed to supply additional information not available from the ISMP. Research programs within SDCR include collection of long-term data on spring movements and migrations to spawning locations, spawning, larval drift, and age-Q and age-l recruitment. Data collected in the SDCR portion of the Flaming Gorge investigations is important in that it provides a consistent year to year index of fish abundance and population structure against which environmental changes such as altered flows can be measured. SDCR provides a tool by which the overall effect of reconunended flows on the native and non-native fish fauna can be measured. Ass"1IIT'ltions Considered in Planninq the SDCR Effort Framework of the SDCR effort needs to be sufficiently simple to allow for continuity over time, flexibility as information is gathered, and collection of sound, quantifiable data covering important life-history stages. Consideration was given to the ability to link new data with existing data and information generated from ISMP and other studies. A critical issue is the need to establish links between reproduction, recruitment of young fish, recruitment to adult stocks, status of populations, and how hydrologic conditions affect life-history parameters. Because state of knowledge of the life history of Colorado squawfish is relatively high, compared to razorback sucker and humpback chub, SDCR studies should initially focus on Colorado squawfish. As knowledge of the life history of razorback sucker and humpback chub increases, the SDCR effort could be modified/expanded to include these species. There are two main Colorado squawfish spawning areas in the Green River system (i.e., lower Yampa Canyon and Desolation- Gray Canyon), and representative sampling in reaches downstream of each spawning area is needed to provide an A3