Publications

A goal of many segregated salmonid hatchery programs is to minimize potential interbreeding between hatchery- and natural-origin fish. To assess this on the Klickitat River, Washington, USA, we used radiotelemetry during 2009–2014 to evaluate spatiotemporal spawning overlap between hatchery-origin and natural-origin steelhead Oncorhynchus mykiss and spring Chinook Salmon O. tshawytscha...

Freshwater ecosystems are some of the most affected by biological invasions due, in part, to the introduction of invasive carp worldwide. Where carp have become established, management programs often seek to limit further range expansion into new areas by reducing their movement through interconnected rivers and waterways. Lock and dams are important locations for non-physical deterrents...

A telemetry study was conducted during March–October 2022 to evaluate behavior and movement patterns of adult smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) in the forebay of Bonneville Dam, on the Columbia River in Washington and Oregon. This study was a follow-up to a previous study conducted at the site during August–December 2020. In 2022, a total of 41 smallmouth bass were collected, tagged...

ObjectiveDewatering of fine sediments in rivers and streams can kill many thousands of larval lampreys (order Petromyzontiformes) that are burrowed in these habitats. The larval life stage for lampreys lasts 3–10 years, and because larvae often aggregate in large numbers, negative impacts from dewatering could potentially deplete local populations and affect multiple year-classes. Larval...

The Asian clam, Corbicula fluminea, is an invasive freshwater bivalve that has established populations across the globe and is known to have deleterious effects on natural and human systems. Yet, despite being present in the Columbia River (CR) for nearly a century, little is known about this invader's basic biology and ecology in this large river system. Thus, we undertook a field study...

A flexible spill program in the federal Columbia River power system increased the total dissolved gas (TDG) water quality standards (i.e., the gas cap) from 120% to 125%. Spill is used to pass juvenile salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) over dams, but it can generate elevated TDG, and exposed fish can develop gas bubble trauma (GBT) or experience mortality. Juvenile salmon are monitored for GBT...

Juvenile salmonids migrate hundreds of kilometers from their natal streams to mature in the ocean. Throughout this migration, they respond to environmental cues such as local water velocities and other stimuli to direct and modulate their movements, often through heavily modified riverine and estuarine habitats. Management strategies in an uncertain future of climate change and altered...

Declines in populations of Pacific Lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) have raised concerns by the Columbia River tribes, who then initiated efforts to protect and restore them throughout their historical range. The Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) devised a restoration plan for lamprey in the Columbia River Basin which highlights the significance of lamprey to the...

ObjectiveHuman-induced dewatering of freshwater habitats causes mortality of larval lampreys (family Petromyzontidae). Salvage by electrofishing at dewatering events is assumed to reduce this mortality, but to our knowledge this assumption remains unassessed.MethodsWe estimated mortality of salvaged larval lampreys (Lampetra spp. and Pacific Lamprey Entosphenus tridentatus) within 24 h...

Condit Dam was removed from river kilometer (rkm) 5.3 of the White Salmon River, Washington, in 2011 and 2012 after blocking upstream passage of anadromous fish for nearly 100 years. The dam removal opened habitat upstream and improved habitat downstream with addition of cobble and gravel to a reach depauperate of spawning and rearing habitat. We assessed juvenile anadromous salmonid...

Invasion risk assessments of habitat suitability provide insight on early detection effort allocation; however, sufficient data are rarely available to inform assessments. We explored tradeoffs of leveraging big data from the National Water Quality Portal (WQP), a standardized water quality database in the United States, to inform calcium- and pH-based risk assessments of invasive mussel...

In 2020, a new spill program was implemented to aid the downstream passage of juvenile salmonids at mainstem dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers. Under this program, the total dissolved gas (TDG) cap was increased to 125% and monitoring of native nonsalmonids for gas bubble trauma (GBT) became a requirement. The primary objective of this work was to measure the incidence and severity...