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The Colorado pikeminnow is from the Ptychocheilus Lucius group. It is a food source, and the early settlers prized it. The Colorado pikeminnow is also known as white salmon because it is migratory. In North America, the Colorado pikeminnow is the largest minnow. The maximum age that the Colorado pikeminnow lives up to is 12 years.
The Colorado pikeminnow spends their lives in freshwater and inhabits the medium and abundant waters. The fish is currently found in the San Juan and upper Colorado rovers.
The Colorado pikeminnow is found throughout the Colorado basin. It is found in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The habitat alterations are confined to the drainage of upper Colorado.
Types of fish that can be found
The Colorado pikeminnow is known as white salmon because of its migratory behavior. It has a torpedo-shaped body and a large and toothless mouth. The fish has olive green and silver-white belly and has a gold back.
Type of fishing that can be done at the location
Anglers do fishing of the Colorado pikeminnow. They use the rod and bait for fishing this fish species. The Colorado pikeminnow is an endangered species, and thus it is protected by the endangered species act. Sports fishing is common among the anglers. The America and the Europeans consider the Colorado pikeminnow as an important food fish. The Colorado pikeminnow was once widespread in the basin, and its numbers have declined now.
The size of the Colorado pikeminnow is 52.5 cms which is almost 20.7, and the longest reported length is 180 cm or 70.9 cms. The Colorado pikeminnow or squawfish is the largest cyprinid fish in North America. The reported weight on average is 45 kgs.
The range of the Colorado pikeminnow in the US is from the Colorado River drainage in Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, California, and Nevada. Because of the large dam construction in the Colorado river basin, the Colorado pikeminnow gets restricted mostly to Colorado and Utah. Two wild populations are today found in the upper Colorado River basin.
The Colorado pikeminnow inhabits the large and medium rivers. The young Colorado pikeminnow prefers the quiet backwaters. The adult species stay in the habitats that include the strongly flowing waters and the flooded bottoms or backwaters. They may also stay in the inundated lowlands.
The Colorado pikeminnow belongs natively to the Colorado River. The Colorado pikeminnow seeks white water in the river to spawn. The Colorado pikeminnow looks for river canyons that receive the freshwater input from the groundwater seepage from limestone or sandstone. The adult Colorado pikeminnow then returns to the original spawning site.
After it gets hatched the young pikeminnow move downstream and then to the backwaters and the shoreline areas. They then congregate in the receding backwaters that get formed in the late summer months. The young pikeminnow occurs mostly downstream from the area that is occupied by the adult pikeminnow.
The diet of the Colorado pikeminnow mostly consists of plankton and insects. The adults feed on fish primarily. The diet of the Colorado pikeminnow mostly includes smaller fishes. They also eat invertebrates and small insects.