These tabular data were compiled to estimate abundance from paired physical capture and antenna detection data in closed, open, and robust design mark-recapture models. These data represent humpback chub capture histories in the Little Colorado River (LCR) and in the juvenile chub monitoring (JCM) reach of the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, Arizona. The dataset includes multistate capture histories that describe both physical captures and antenna detections. The 'LCR chub' dataset was collected from long-term monitoring efforts by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in the lower 13.56 river km of the LCR (2009-2020), as well as a summer sampling trip conducted by US Geological Survey (2013-2020). Also, the LCR chub dataset includes data from the juvenile chub monitoring (JCM) reach, which was located 63.4-65.0 river miles downstream of Lees Ferry (2009-2016) and expanded from river mile 62.8-66.0 from 2017-2020. Data from the JCM reach was collected as part of the Near Shore Ecology (NSE) project by the University of Florida (2009-2011) and by US Geological Survey (2012-2020). These data can be used to help inform more complex models, such as models that use robust design to estimate temporary emigration from the study area.