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<br />. . . ...
<br />
<br />Looking back: nativ~C()lorado ro.v~rbasin fish
<br />
<br />(Used with permiSSIon' from
<br />"Growing Wi/d, " a Utah Division of '
<br />WiidlifeResources newsletter for
<br />teachers.)" , , '
<br />'Close your ey~s and imagine what
<br />your city ortown!o~ked like 200 years
<br />ago, There were no house,s, no cars, no
<br />street I ights, no grocery stores:
<br />, Native Americans living in the West
<br />got their food from the land, They
<br />grew gardens and had small farms for
<br />vegetables, They hunted'in the woods "
<br />and fields nearth,eir homes. For mariy,
<br />fishing also, was an' import~t w~yof
<br />gathering food, ,
<br />When Angio-European, settlers
<br />. arrived'in the' moUntain 'valleys. of the
<br />Colorado River basin during the mid-
<br />-1800s, they found' native people mak-
<br />ing a living by usi~g 'the vast, natural
<br />resources of the region, ,Historical
<br />records are replete with notations ofa
<br />,,::ariety offish being ~sed. Nets, hooks,
<br />, setlinesand traps were,usedinatiempt
<br />'to tap into the, weaith of aquatic life
<br />found in the cool, clean waters of the
<br />basin. , '. . ' ,
<br />. While' fishing may not have been.
<br />widely practiced throughout drier'parts
<br />. of the region; evidence exists to sug- .
<br />. gest thilt 'for those, living around the
<br />'Iarger'lakes and rivers; fisliingwas .a
<br />major part -of their subsistence,
<br />As' picmeers inundated the'region,
<br />settlements began to spring up, gener,
<br />ally around major waterWays. Taking a
<br />lesson from, their native predecessors~ .
<br />these settlers used the native fish of the
<br />, ' ,
<br />area to supplement the meager Iiarvest
<br />of " their agricultunil' - elfoTts. '
<br />Throughout their respective ,ranges,
<br />sqUliV;;fish, chubs,' suckers and native
<br />'trout became prized.
<br />, Whole c~mmunities wouid gather to
<br />net the native fish. Many were eaten at
<br />,the fish-fry that became the capstone .
<br />,of such events, Other fish were taken
<br />',home and canned or otherwise pre-
<br />served for the long winter months
<br />ahead, Young boys even reported earn-
<br />ing spen'ding money by selling the
<br />
<br />
<br />. .- :. . : _ ... . . . _ . .-,...:. Photo. courtesy of Wanda Staley
<br />John .Robbins displays nine Colorado squaWfish caught in the Greim River
<br />near Islimd Park in th'e late 1920s. . . . .
<br />
<br />now:endangeredfish to local marketS ' one of the . wodd's. most turbulent
<br />and restaurants. . . rivers. The fish, including Colorado
<br />Afterthe Depression oftlie I 93,Os, squawfish, razorback sucker, bonytail
<br />~any people'moved into the .cities to . and Iiumpback chub, had thrived in the
<br />get -jo,bs, People ,became less depen-. turbid and highly mineralized waters
<br />. dent on the land, Now they went fish-' and. had become specially adapted to
<br />ing for fun insteadofforfood. these extreme conditions. . '
<br />. Many dams were ,built to 'proyide Then.came the construction of
<br />, warer and electricity for the growing. Hoover Dam, GlenCariyon, Flaming
<br />cities: New kinds offish>such as rain- . Gorge and a series of other massive
<br />'bo~trout,bass and catfish, were intro-'. water coiltrol projects that greatly
<br />duced into tIle lakes, rivers andieser- . reduced :water flow of this might river,
<br />. voii-s as sport-fish: . radically aJtering, the river environ-
<br />,As people becamelessreliant onthe ment,' .
<br />native fish~ a corresponding change in . The no longer warm, swift and tur-
<br />attitude toward the natives ~e2an\e evi-' bid waters had become cold and clear
<br />_ :denl. 'Interest in native fish faded in ~ unsuitable for successful survival.
<br />favor or exotic trout' that had been, and spawning of native fish, but great
<br />,introduced into many waterways.' As' habitat for 'some 40 exotic trout and
<br />exotics became . increasingly pojJUlar,' other game fish that subsequently were
<br />subsistence fisliing gave way to sport- ,introduced, Many exotic fish species,
<br />fishing: . . including large and smallmouth bass,
<br />In addition, with, development of the ,various sunfish specie~,: channel cat-
<br />West,'many rivers w'ere dammed to fish 'and carp, are predatory and feed
<br />store water for irrigation, power, and' ,
<br />industry, The Colorado River was once See GOOD OLD DAYS, Page 15
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