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<br />CSy <br /> <br />be conducted to determine other possible factors that could be limiting <br />recruitment. The information obtained from pilot studies at demonstration <br />sites will provide useful information for selecting other future sites for <br />restoration. <br /> <br />1. Select flood plains as experimental monitoring units that cover a <br />variety of features and have natural or managed access to the <br />river. Provide mainstem flow connections to currently blocked <br />historical off-channel habitats, e.g., gravel pit ponds by <br />mechanical excavation. Monitor water levels and area flooded <br />(using aerial photos); monitor short- and long-term changes in <br />flood plain and adjoining channel geomorphology. <br /> <br />2. Utilize existing (or create) drainable flood plain ponds with <br />inflow/outflow control from which all non-native fishes can be <br />eradicated and excluded. Stock with larvae collected from natural <br />reproduction ,(Green River). Rear them to a size that allows <br />individual tagging (e.g., PIT tags) and release them into Green <br />and Colorado rivers. <br /> <br />3. Study the annual and seasonal use of non-native fish in gravel pit <br />ponds with different configurations and slopes. Compare non- <br />native and native fish use in two ponds adjacent to each other and <br />that are both connected to the river--one that is 'bathtub' shaped <br />and that will hold water year round and one that is slightly <br />graded toward the mainstem river but will hold water seasonally. <br />Determine if a gravel pit pond gently graded toward the mainstem <br />river will adequately fill during spring high flows and drain <br />during recession of flows in the summer. Determine which pond <br />configuration and bottom shape will reduce or eliminate non-native <br />fish that are thought to adversely impact endangered fishes. <br /> <br />IV. Description of past performance on this or similar project. <br /> <br />In the Upper Colorado River, there has been little resear-ch and <br />management activities aimed at reconnecting historic flood plain <br />habitats to the mainstem river to benefit endangered fishes. <br />Moreover, from the literature, it appears that there has been few <br />attempts to restore historic flood plain habitat in other river <br />systems. Therefore, many of the strategies proposed for restoring <br />flood plain habitats in the Upper Colorado River Basin will be <br />untested; initially, some may not work, but certainly an adaptive <br />management approach must be used to determine those strategies <br />that will be best suited for the particular site and its <br />configuration. <br /> <br />In the Green River, Old Charley Wash (Wood's Bottom) was <br />reconnected to the mainstem and is a pilot project currently <br />underway to test the hypothesis regarding flooded bottom land <br />restoration for razorback sucker. Wydoski and Wick (1994) have <br />developed an issue paper, "Enhancement of Flooded Bottomlands and <br /> <br />2 <br />