2011-12-22_PERMIT FILE - X201123500 ‎(2)‎

• Permit No: X201123500
• IBM Index Class Name: PERMIT FILE
• Doc Date: 12/22/2011
• Doc Name: Additional Information to application
• From: Line Energy
• To: DRMS
• Email Name: JDM
• Media Type: D
• Archive: No

Vegetation and Wildlife Baseline Survey Report
Linc Energy Little Snake River Project
populations of these species are mainly attributed to impacts of water development (e.g., dams
and reservoirs) on natural temperature and flow regimes, creation of migration barriers, habitat
fragmentation, the introduction of competitive and predatory non - native fishes, and the loss of
inundated bottom lands and backwater areas.
Their critical habitat includes the mainstem Green, Yampa, and White Rivers and their low
elevation drainages. The last sighting of any of these fish species in the Little Snake River was
of a single Colorado pikeminnow in 1990. Habitat for these species is not present within the
project area. These fish species are not likely to be found in the main stem Little Snake River
and its tributaries.
Colorado Pikeminnow. The Colorado pikeminnow is the largest member of the minnow family
and occurs in swift, warm waters of Colorado Basin rivers. The species was once abundant in
the main stem of the Colorado River and most of its major tributaries throughout Wyoming,
Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, and Mexico. It was known to occur
historically in the Green River of Wyoming at least as far north as the city of Green River. In
1990, one adult was collected from the Little Snake River in Carbon County, Wyoming (Baxter
and Stone 1995). Subsequent survey attempts to collect Colorado pikeminnow from this area of
the Little Snake River failed to yield any other specimens.
Bonytail. Habitat of the bonytail is primarily limited to narrow, deep, canyon -bound rivers with
swift currents and white water areas (Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program
1999). With no known reproducing populations in the wild today, the bonytail is thought to be
the rarest of the endangered fishes in the Colorado River system. The bonytail historically
inhabited portions of the upper and lower portions of the Colorado River Basin. Today, in the
Upper Colorado River Basin, only small, disjunct populations of bonytail are thought to exist in
the Yampa River in Dinosaur National Monument, in the Green River at Desolation and Gray
canyons, in the Colorado River at the Colorado /Utah border, and in Cataract Canyon.
Humpback Chub. Habitat of the humpback chub is also limited to narrow, deep, canyon -bound
rivers with swift currents and white water areas. The humpback chub was historically found
throughout the Colorado River system and its tributaries, which are used for spawning. It is
estimated that the humpback chub currently occupies 68 percent of its original distribution in
five independent populations that are thought to be stable (Upper Colorado River Endangered
Species Recovery Program 2011).
Razorback Sucker. The razorback sucker is an omnivorous bottom feeder and is one of the
largest fishes in the sucker family. Adult razorback sucker habitat use varies depending on
season and location. This species was once widespread throughout most of the Colorado River
Basin from Wyoming to Mexico. Today, in the Colorado River Basin, populations of razorback
suckers are only found in the upper Green River in Utah, the lower Yampa River in Colorado,
and occasionally in the Colorado River near Grand Junction (Upper Colorado River Endangered
Fish Recovery Program 2011).
Page 11
Habitat Management, Inc. December 2011