Sediment infilling benefits rainbow trout passage in a baffled channel

Fish are thought to exploit low velocity recirculation zones in the wakes of baffles to take refuge from challenging hydraulic conditions in baffled culverts. Here, we investigate how sediment deposition in the wakes of baffles affects passage and behaviors of juvenile rainbow trout in a baffled experimental flume. High temporal resolution 3D fish tracking provided detailed kinematics of adopted trajectories. Stereoscopic particle image velocimetry permitted a finely resolved description of the flow over a clear baffle configuration and the same configuration with sediment wedges placed in their wakes. Controlled station-holding, suggestive of flow-refuging, only occurred when sediment wedges were blocking the baffles’ recirculation region. Also, maximum distances of ascent were higher, and slower ground-speeds were employed in the sediment condition. The results of this study suggest the turbulent recirculatory wakes of the clear bed condition caused postural instabilities and were in many ways detrimental to passage performance. Additional research is required to understand the relationships existing between baffle height, hydrodynamic recirculatory wake metrics, sediment deposition and the behavioral responses of fish interacting with weir baffle wakes.