Critical habitat for Arkansas River Shiner (Notropis girardi).

Critical Habitat for Arkansas River Shiner (Notropis girardi) On June 30, we proposed a critical habitat designation for the threatened Arkansas River basin population of this small fish. The proposal covers approximately 1,160 miles (1,865 kilometers) of rivers and 300 feet (91 meters) of the adjacent riparian zone along portions of the Arkansas River in Kansas, Cimarron River in Kansas and Oklahoma, Beaver/North Canadian River in Oklahoma, and Canadian/ South Canadian River in New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. Conservation of riparian zones is important to allow for natural flooding patterns, channel changes, nutrient sources, buffering from sediment and pollutants, and side channels and backwater habitats for larvae and juvenile fish.