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The status of Kootenai River white sturgeon. Kootenai River White Sturgeon Investigations. 2005). Conservation aquaculture: An adaptive approach to prevent extinction of an endangered white sturgeon population (Acipenser transmontanus). Integrated Rule Curves (IRC) for dam operation specified in the White Sturgeon Recovery Plan (USFWS 1999) were designed to balance resident fish needs in the reservoir and river with anadromous salmon recovery actions in the lower Columbia Basin (Marotz et al.

The resulting shape of the discharge hydrograph is under examination by white sturgeon and ecosystem restoration researchers. Experimental flows were designed to correspond with the release of more natural water temperatures. (September 6, 1994). 75 pp. 2004). Alden, W. C. 1953. Population structure and mtDNA diversity in North American white sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus): An empirical expansive gene flow model. Figure 2. The First Endangered White Sturgeon Population (Acipenser transmontanus): Repercussions in an Altered Large River-floodplain Ecosystem.

Dunnigan, J., B. Marotz, J. Deshazer, L. Garrow and T. Ostrowski. Hypothesized recruitment failure route (bold) for Kootenai sturgeon. A bottleneck in spawner numbers will occur as the wild population dwindles and hatchery-reared fish released beginning in 1992 are not yet recruited to the spawning population. 0000011169 00000 n Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the Bonneville Power Administration. Fish and Wildlife Service). 2004). Discharge targets requiring the use of the spillway should be managed to eliminate gas supersaturation and associated gas bubble trauma in riverine species. 1985.

0000000016 00000 n Chapter 2 (pages 41-66) in: Anders, P.J. 2002.

1999. Great Lakes Fisheries Commission Tech. Updated growth, condition, and survival analyses are ongoing to track the effects of hatchery releases. Apperson, K.A. Trends in estimated population size, size composition, and projected future numbers of Kootenai sturgeon (Paragamian et al. Current habitat restoration effort focus on two areas: 1) to provide suitable substrate for improved incubation success where sturgeon currently spawn, resulting in increased larval survival from spawning to hatching; and 2) to create suitable habitat (depth and turbulence, at minimum) in upstream areas where egg attachment and larval survival may occur over appropriate substrate if sturgeon volitionally migrate to these areas. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Idaho, Aquaculture Research Institute, Center for Salmonid and Freshwater Species at Risk. The Kootenai sturgeon population is landlocked and confined to about 270 river kilometers (168 miles) in Montana and Idaho in the U.S., and in British Columbia, Canada, from Kootenai Falls (~ 50 river kilometers downstream of Libby Dam) to Corra Linn Dam at the outlet of Kootenay Lake (Figure 3). Kootenai sturgeon currently spawn within a 19-kilometer reach of the Kootenai River, primarily from Bonners Ferry, Idaho, downstream to the lower end of Shorty’s Island (USFWS 1999; Paragamian et al 2001) in the designated critical habitat reach (Figure 3); substrates in this reach are primarily sand and silt, with the exception of cobble and gravel in the uppermost 2-3 km of the reach, as well as upstream of Bonners Ferry. Portland, Oregon. Anders, P. J., D. L. Richards, M. S. Powell. The current (2006) abundance estimate is approximately 450 adults. 88-65.

River and stream investigations. Pages 329-352 In Ecosystem Approaches for Fisheries Management. White sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) movement patterns and habitat utilization in the Kootenai River system, Idaho, Montana and British Columbia. On a larger scale, a five year experimental nutrient addition program began adding nutrients to the Kootenai River in 2005 to improve nutrients, food availability, and biological productivity in Idaho upstream of the Moyie River. 120 0 obj <> endobj 0 ACOE 1999.

Figure 4. Conte, F. C, S. I. Doroshov, P. B. Lutes, E. M. Strange. 2002), a suite of factors has been reported to explain prolonged white sturgeon recruitment failure in the Kootenai River (Figure 4; USFWS 1994, 1999; Duke et al. Federal Register 65(183): 56916-56922 (September 20, 2000).

2004). Other major restoration actions could include placement of spawning substrate to improve embryo survival and placement of structures to improve channel hydraulics (velocity, scour, and turbulence) in order to encourage spawning. The horizontal dashed line in the plot at right indicates the 1949 baseline phosphorus level (data from British Columbia Ministry of Environment).
Portland, Oregon. Moscow, Idaho Initial empirical research suggested that reduced spring flows, unnatural flow fluctuations, and altered thermal regime caused by Libby Dam construction and operation may interrupt sturgeon spawning behavior and recruitment (Anders 1991; Apperson and Anders 1990, 1991). Note the vertical axis scale change between the two plots. Although female white sturgeon have been reported to spawn every two to eleven years (Conte et al. 153 pp. Region 1, USFWS, Portland, Oregon. Conservation Biology of White Sturgeon. 1985) to back-calculate the timing of Kootenai sturgeon spawning events in the Kootenai River that were found to spawn at lower temperatures than other white sturgeon populations (8.6 to 12.9o C; Paragamian et al. In 1998, the USFWS began to request that water be withdrawn as close to the surface as physically possible in an attempt to warm the discharge. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Annual Report 2001-2002. In order to breed and reproduce the white sturgeon resort to calmer and fresher waters. 2001; Anders 2002). 56 pp. 2000. Chapter 1 (Pages 1-33) in: Anders, P.J. White sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) movement patterns and habitat utilization in the Kootenai River system, Idaho, Montana and British Columbia.

Bonners Ferry, Idaho.

Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the Bonneville Power Administration. Don Chapman Consultants Inc., Redmond, WA. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Giorgi, A. The Kootenai River basin in British Columbia, Montana, and Idaho. 1991.
Montanta Fish, Wildlife & Parks Survival rates of hatchery-produced juveniles averaged about 60% during the first year at large, and about 90% during all subsequent years. USFWS policy regarding controlled propagation of species listed under the Endangered Species Act. Contract No.

), North American Sturgeons. Libby, Montana Surveys of Juvenile White Sturgeon and Their Habitat in the Lower Fraser River, 2008-09 EA3009 Page 3 1.1 Sampling Rationale The nets used were the same as those used in Year 1. Figure 1. AK-SG-99-01, 1999. Biological response of fish resulting from flood control spill operations of Libby Dam during June, 2006. The USFWS BiOp (USFWS 2000) specified a tiered strategy for flow augmentation from Libby Dam to simulate a natural spring freshet. 2002. A new approach for system flood control, developed by technical modelers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE 1999) was implemented on an interim basis beginning in 2003, and is being considered for permanent implementation via Environmental Impact Statement proceedings in 2006. Ultimately, recovery of Kootenai sturgeon depends on re-establishing natural recruitment, minimizing additional loss of genetic variability, and successfully mitigating biological and habitat alterations that continue to suppress the population and its needed supporting habitat conditions and ecological processes. Subsequent recaptures of hatchery fish in an annual monitoring program indicate that significant numbers have survived introduction and grow well after an initial period of adjustment to the natural environment (Ireland et. The primary spawning habitat of Sacramento-San Joaquin White Sturgeon is a short reach of middle Sacramento River, with some additional spawning occurring in the San Joaquin River, so the species is vulnerable to habitat loss and climate change that might degrade or destroy those areas. Biological Description of White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus). Journal of Applied Ichthyology (15):157-163.

0000012241 00000 n 1988; PSMFC 1992), empirical evidence suggests that female Kootenai sturgeon exhibited spawning periodicities of 4 or 5 years (Paragamian et al. 2003. 1993; Anders 2002; Coutant 2004). Recent winter flows have not been as great but remain on average well above pre-dam flows. 1993. At this rate, without intervention, the wild population will disappear around 2030 to 2040, with a 50% reduction in abundance approximately every 8 years (Paragamian et al. Pages 211-222 In: W. VanWinkle, P. Anders, D. Dixon, and D. Secor, eds. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; determination of endangered status for the Kootenai River population of white sturgeon-Final Rule. Some impacts of man on Kootenay Lake and its salmonids. Figure 3. bull trout, westslope cutthroat trout, Kamloops rainbow trout and Kokanee salmon). Navigational aid infrastructure including light components will be installed on top of the dolphin. Flow augmentation should be balanced with reservoir management to protect important fish species above the dam and elsewhere in the Kootenai River system and its tributaries (e.g. Work to date on the development of the VARQ flood control operation at Libby Dam and Hungry Horse Dam. anders@spcramer.com, Susan C. Ireland Kootenai River White Sturgeon Conservation Aquaculture Program, 1990-2005. Kootenai River white sturgeon investigations and experimental culture. The pie chart identifies the contributions from various release periods to the 2004 population (KTOI 2005).