Small-Bodied Fish Surveys Demonstrate Native Fish Dominance Over 300 Kilometers of the Colorado River Through Grand Canyon, Arizona

The Colorado River in Grand Canyon is highly regulated, with hypolimnetic releases that are generally unfavorable for endemic native fishes. However, both long-term drought and changes in dam operations have led to changes in river conditions, including the addition of approximately 125 km of riveri...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Western North American naturalist 2020-07, Vol.80 (2), p.146-156
Main Authors: Kegerries, Ron B., Albrecht, Brandon, McKinstry, Mark C., Rogers, Ron J., Valdez, Richard A., Barkalow, Adam L., Gilbert, Eliza I., Mohn, Harrison E., Healy, Brian, Smith, Emily Omana
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Arizona
Brown, M.L
Canyons
Carp
Catfish
Contraction
Creeks & streams
Current distribution
Cyprinella lutrensis
Cyprinus carpio
Dams
Dominance
Drought
Ferries
Fish
Fish populations
Fishes
Ictalurus punctatus
Introduced species
National parks
Nonnative species
Publishing industry
Rivers
Sampling
Seining
Studies
Trout
United States
Water temperature
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Summary:The Colorado River in Grand Canyon is highly regulated, with hypolimnetic releases that are generally unfavorable for endemic native fishes. However, both long-term drought and changes in dam operations have led to changes in river conditions, including the addition of approximately 125 km of riverine environment due to the contraction of Lake Mead. Through sampling of small-bodied fish, we were able to describe the Grand Canyon fish community and define the current native fish distribution from near Bright Angel Creek downstream to Pearce Ferry. Beginning in 2014 and continuing through 2018, we sampled the fish community via seining and documented a fish community that was dominated (>95%) by native fish through approximately 300 km of river. Nonnative species that were once commonly captured, such as Red Shiner Cyprinella lutrensis, Common Carp Cyprinus carpio, and Channel Catfish Ictalurus punctatus, were rarely encountered in Grand Canyon during this more recent sampling, which makes the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park a rare contemporary example of native fish populations regaining dominance over invasive fishes in the desert southwest.
ISSN:1527-0904
1944-8341
DOI:10.3398/064.080.0202