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<br />and Parks, pers. comm. 1992). These velocities are commonly found throughout <br />the species' range. . <br /> <br />. Pallid sturgeon collected from the Missouri River above 'Garrison Reservoir in <br />North Dakota during spring and fall seasons of 1988 to 1991 were found in deep <br />pools at the downstream end of chutes and sandbars, and in the slower currents <br />of near-shore areas (A. Sandvol, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pers. comm. <br />1992). These areas may have been provid~ng good habitat for energy <br />conservation.and feeding. <br /> <br />Turbiditv: Pallid sturgeon historically occupied turbid river systems. <br />Turbidity levels where pallid sturgeon have been found in South Dakota range <br />from 31.3 Nephelometric turbidity units (NTU) to 137.6 NTU (J. Erickson, pers. <br />comm. 1992). <br /> <br />Water Deoth: The range of water depths ,where pallid sturgeon were frequently <br />found in South Dakota are 2 to 6 m (7 to 20 ft) (J. Erickson, pers. comm. <br />1992). In Montana, pallid sturgeon wer. captured from depths that ranged from <br />1.2 to 3~7 m(3.9 to 12.1 ft) in the summer, but they were captured in deeper <br />waters during winter (P. Clancey, pers.comm. 1992). During late summer in <br />North Dakota, pallid sturgeon were captured at depths that ranged from 2.1 to <br />. 7.6 m (6.9 to 24.9 ft) (A. Sandvol, pers. comm. 1992). One pallid sturgeon <br />collected on the Yellowstone River in July 1991 was captured at a depth of <br />1 to 2 m (3.3 to 6.6 ft) (Watson and Stewart 1991). One pallid sturgeon <br />collected in the lower Platte River in May 1989 was captured at a depth of <br />1.5 m (4.9 ft) (M. Harberg, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, pers. comm. 1992). <br /> <br />Substrate: Pallid sturgeon are most fr~quentlY caught over a sand bottom, <br />which is the predominant bottom substrate within the species' range on the <br />Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. The pallid sturgeon collected on the <br />Yellowstone RiVer in July 1991 by Watson and Stewart (1991) was over a bottom <br />of mainly gravel and rock, which is the predominant substrate at that capture <br />site. <br /> <br />Temperature: Pallid sturgeon inhabit areas where the water temperatures range <br />from OoC to 300C (320F to 860F), which i~ the range of water temperature on the <br />Missouri and Mississippi RiVers. Ther~ is no information to indicate <br />temperature preference or the effects df temperature on the species. Curtis <br />(1990) found no relation between surfa~e water temperatures and depth used by <br />shpvelnose sturgeon on the Mississippi ,River and no indication that shovel nose <br />sturgeon were moving into deeper, cool~r water (if available) as water <br />temperature increased. <br /> <br />~ifeHistory <br /> <br />Reproductive Bioloav: Little is knowniabout reproduction or spawning <br />activities of pallid sturgeon. Even b~sic parameters such as spawning <br />locations, substrate preference, water'temperature, or time of year have not <br />been documented. No spawning beds have been located and larval pallid <br />sturgeon have not been recorded by investigators. (There is presently no <br />information available that distinguishes larval pallid sturgeon from larval <br /> <br />8 <br /> <br />.~~",...~",._. <br />