Habitat Assessments

The Kootenai River white sturgeon ( Acipenser transmontanus ) and other native fish species are culturally important to the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho, but their habitat and recruitment have been affected by anthropogenic changes to the river. The Tribe has undertaken a large-scale restoration project and needs objective information on which to base restoration decisions.

Rooted aquatic plants (macrophytes) are essential components of freshwater ecosystems. Macrophyte beds provide shelter for fish and other aquatic life. Their leaves and stems also provide algae with surfaces to colonize, which, in turn, drives the aquatic food webs and dissolved oxygen cycles. However, too much of a good thing can create problems. When growth conditions are favorable, macrophytes...

Nutrient enrichment can affect the ecological health of a stream. For example, excessive aquatic plant growth caused by increased nutrients can reduce dissolved oxygen necessary for other aquatic life. Topics of particular interest in this study area include: seasonal patterns among nutrients, flows, algae and plants in streams rooted aquatic plant vs. algae growth stream metabolism and nutrient...

Historically, Idaho has been home to many productive underground and open-pit mining operations. These activities have also produced water quality problems in some areas. One such example is the Blackbird Mine in central Idaho. Following mining operations from the 1940s through the 1960s, Panther Creek and its tributaries were severely damaged by runoff from the Blackbird Mine. Water-quality...