Dibble, K.L. and L.A. Meyerson. 2016. Detection of decreased quantities of actively spawning female Fundulus heteroclitus in tidally restricted marshes relative to restored and reference sites. Biological Invasions 18: 2679-2687.
Kimberly Lellis Dibble
Biography
My main area of expertise pertains to fish physiology and the use of biochemical indicators to assess the condition of fish, but I also use quantitative methods to examine environmental drivers that influence trout recruitment and adult size in tailwaters across the Intermountain West. I quantify fish lipid reserves in the laboratory to answer questions pertaining to the health of non-native and native fish residing downriver of Glen Canyon dam. Currently, I'm using lipids to examine temporal patterns of fish energy acquisition and tradeoffs between energy storage, growth, and reproduction in fishes inhabiting five reaches of the Colorado River. I am also interested in the short and long-term population-level effects of fall-timed experimental floods on the growth and condition of age-0 trout. To that end, I'm using lipid classes (triacylglycerides, free fatty acids, phospholipids, etc.) combined with recent daily growth rate from otoliths to compare pre- and post-flood indices to overwinter survival and recruitment rates the following spring. In addition, I'm working with colleagues in the laboratory to develop a non-lethal tool to more accurately measure the condition of native, endangered fishes captured in the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers.
Science and Products
Date published: March 10, 2021
Status: Active Is timing really everything? Evaluating Resource Response to Spring Disturbance Flows
Glen Canyon Dam has altered ecological processes of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Before the dam was built, the Colorado River experienced seasonable variable flow rates, including springtime flooding events. These spring floods scoured the river bottom and enhanced natural processes that sustained the Colorado River ecosystem. Since the dam’s construction in 1963, springtime floods have...
Contacts: Theodore Kennedy, Ph.D., Paul Grams, Ph.D., Joel B Sankey, Ph.D., Helen C Fairley, Emily Palmquist, Kimberly Lellis Dibble, Lucas Bair, Michael Runge, Ph.D., Kirk Young
Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center
Date published: December 23, 2016
Status: Active Understanding Factors Influencing Rainbow Trout Growth in the Colorado River
Rainbow trout is a desirable sport fish that has been introduced in many locations around the world. Although introductions of rainbow trout and other nonnative fishes provide recreational fishing opportunities, they also pose threats to native fish populations. The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program has tasked scientists and managers with identifying management options that allow...
Date published: July 6, 2017
DATA RELEASE - Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis for an Endangered Desert Fish
These data were used to examine the effectiveness of a non-lethal tool (Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis) to estimate the physiological condition of endangered and threatened fishes in the Colorado River Basin. Humpback chub, bonytail, and roundtail Chub were subjected to different feeding trials to elicit a response in physiological condition.
Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center
Year Published: 2021
Climate change effects on North American fish and fisheries to inform adaptation strategies
Climate change is a global persistent threat to fish and fish habitats throughout North America. Climate-induced modification of environmental regimes, including changes in streamflow, water temperature, salinity, storm surges, and habitat connectivity can change fish physiology, disrupt spawning cues, cause fish extinctions and invasions, and...
Paukert, Craig; Olden, Julian D.; Lynch, Abigail; Brashears, Dave; Chambers, R. Christopher; Chu, Cindy ; Daly, Margaret; Dibble, Kimberly L.; Falke, Jeffrey A.; Issak, Dan; Jacobson, Peter C.; Jensen, Olaf P.; Munroe, Daphne
Year Published: 2021
Water storage decisions will determine the distribution and persistence of imperiled river fishes
Managing the world’s freshwater supply to meet societal and environmental needs in a changing climate is one of the biggest challenges for the 21st century. Dams provide water security, however, the allocation of dwindling water supply among reservoirs could exacerbate or ameliorate the effects of climate change on aquatic communities. Here,...
Dibble, Kimberly L.; Yackulic, Charles; Kennedy, Theodore; Bestgen, Kevin R.; Schmidt, John C.Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2021
Net-spinning caddisfly distribution in large regulated rivers
Most of the world's large rivers are dammed for the purposes of water storage, flood control, and power production. Damming rivers fundamentally alters water temperature and flows in tailwater ecosystems, which in turn affects the presence and abundance of downstream biota.We collaborated with more than 200 citizen scientists to collect 2,194...
Metcalfe, Anya; Muehlbauer, Jeffrey; Kennedy, Theodore; Yackulic, Charles; Dibble, Kimberly L.; Marks, Jane C.Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2018
Warm water temperatures and shifts in seasonality increase trout recruitment but only moderately decrease adult size in western North American tailwaters
Dams throughout western North America have altered thermal regimes in rivers, creating cold, clear “tailwaters” in which trout populations thrive. Ongoing drought in the region has led to highly publicized reductions in reservoir storage and raised concerns about potential reductions in downstream flows. Large changes in riverine thermal regimes...
Dibble, Kimberly L.; Yackulic, Charles B.; Kennedy, Theodore A.View Citation
Dibble, K.L., Yackulic, C.B., and Kennedy, T.A., 2018, Warm water temperatures and shifts in seasonality increase trout recruitment but only moderately decrease adult size in western North American tailwaters: Environmental Biology of Fishes, early view available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10641-018-0774-7.
Year Published: 2018
Pulsed flows, tributary inputs, and food web structure in a highly regulated river
1.Dams disrupt the river continuum, altering hydrology, biodiversity, and energy flow. Although research indicates that tributary inputs have the potential to dilute these effects, knowledge at the food web level is still scarce.2.Here we examined the riverine food web structure of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam, focusing on organic...
Sabo, John; Caron, Melanie; Doucett, Richard R.; Dibble, Kimberly L.; Ruhi, Albert; Marks, Jane; Hungate, Bruce; Kennedy, Theodore A.View Citation
Sabo, J.L., Caron, M., Doucett, R., Dibble, K.L., Ruhi, A., Marks, J.C., Hungate, B.A., and Kennedy, T.A., 2018, in press, Pulsed flows, tributary inputs and food web structure in a highly regulated river: Journal of Applied Ecology, v. (online), http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2664.13109/full.
Year Published: 2017
Does bioelectrical impedance analysis accurately estimate the condition of threatened and endangered desert fish species?
Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a nonlethal tool with which to estimate the physiological condition of animals that has potential value in research on endangered species. However, the effectiveness of BIA varies by species, the methodology continues to be refined, and incidental mortality rates are unknown. Under laboratory conditions we...
Dibble, Kimberly L.; Yard, Micheal D.; Ward, David L.; Yackulic, Charles B.Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
View Citation
Dibble, K.L., Yard, M.D., Ward, D.L., and Yackulic, C.B., 2017, Does Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis Accurately Estimate the Physiological Condition of Threatened and Endangered Desert Fish Species?: Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, v. 146, no. 5, p. 888-902, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00028487.2017.1302993.
Year Published: 2016
Flow management for hydropower extirpates aquatic insects, undermining river food webs
Dams impound the majority of rivers and provide important societal benefits, especially daily water releases that enable on-peak hydroelectricity generation. Such “hydropeaking” is common worldwide, but its downstream impacts remain unclear. We evaluated the response of aquatic insects, a cornerstone of river food webs, to hydropeaking...
Kennedy, Theodore A.; Muehlbauer, Jeffrey D.; Yackulic, Charles B.; Lytle, D.A.; Miller, S.A.; Dibble, Kimberly L.; Kortenhoeven, Eric W.; Metcalfe, Anya; Baxter, Colden V.View Citation
Kennedy, T.A., Muehlbauer, J.D., Yackulic, C.B., Lytle, D.A., Miller, S.W., Dibble, K.L., Kortenhoeven, E.W., Metcalfe, A.M., and Baxter, C.V., 2016, Flow Management for Hydropower Extirpates Aquatic Insects, Undermining River Food Webs: Bioscience, online, http://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2016/04/30/biosci.biw059.
Year Published: 2015
Flow management and fish density regulate salmonid recruitment and adult size in tailwaters across western North America
Rainbow and brown trout have been intentionally introduced into tailwaters downriver of dams globally and provide billions of dollars in economic benefits. At the same time, recruitment and maximum length of trout populations in tailwaters often fluctuate erratically, which negatively affects the value of fisheries. Large recruitment events may...
Dibble, Kimberly L.; Yackulic, Charles B.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Budy, Phaedra E.Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
View Citation
Dibble, K.L., Yackulic, C.B., Kennedy, T.A., and Budy, P., 2015, Flow management and fish density regulate salmonid recruitment and adult size in tailwaters across western North America: Ecological Applications, 1-37 p., http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/14-2211.1
Year Published: 2000
Evaluation of potential anesthetics for the freshwater mussel Elliptio complanata
Lellis, W.A.; Plerhoples, T.A.; Lellis, K.A.Attribution: Leetown Science Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian
View Citation
Evaluation of potential anesthetics for the freshwater mussel Elliptio complanata; 2000; Article; Journal; Journal of Shellfish Research; Lellis, W. A.; Plerhoples, T. A.; Lellis, K. A.
Pre-USGS Publications
Dibble, K.L., M. Tyrrell, and P.S. Pooler. 2015. Factors that drive restoration of nekton communities in impaired salt marshes of Northeastern North America. Estuaries and Coasts 38(4): 1304-1316.
Dibble, K.L. and L.A. Meyerson. 2014. The effects of plant invasion and ecosystem restoration on energy flow through salt marsh food webs. Estuaries and Coasts 37(2): 339-353.
Dibble, K.L., P. Pooler, and L.A. Meyerson. 2013. Impacts of plant invasions can be reversed through restoration: a regional meta-analysis of faunal communities. Biological Invasions 15(8): 1725-1737.
Dibble, K.L. and L.A. Meyerson. 2012. Tidal flushing restores the physiological condition of fish residing in degraded salt marshes. PLoS ONE 7(9): e46161. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0046161.
Chambers, R.M., L.A. Meyerson, and K.L. Dibble. 2012. Ecology of Phragmites australis and responses to tidal restoration. In C. Roman and D. Burdick (Eds.), Tidal Marsh Restoration: A Synthesis of Science and Management. Island Press, Washington, DC.
Anthony, A., J. Atwood, P. August, C. Byron, S. Cobb, C. Foster, C. Fry, A. Gold, K. Hagos, L. Heffner, D. Q. Kellogg, K. Lellis-Dibble, J. J. Opaluch, C. Oviatt, A. Pfeiffer-Herbert, N. Rohr, L. Smith, T. Smythe, J. Swift, and N. Vinhateiro. 2009. Coastal lagoons and climate change: ecological and social ramifications in U.S. Atlantic and Gulf coast ecosystems. Ecology and Society 14(1): 8.
Lellis-Dibble, K.A., K.M. McGlynn, and T.E. Bigford. 2008. Estuarine fish and shellfish species in U.S. commercial and recreational fisheries: economic value as an incentive to protect and restore estuarine habitat. NOAA Technical Memorandum, NMFS-F/SPO-90.
Johnson, M.R., C. Boelke, L.A. Chiarella, P.D. Colosi, K. Greene, K. Lellis-Dibble, H. Ludemann, M. Ludwig, S. McDermott, J. Ortiz, D. Rusanowsky, M. Scott, and J. Smith. 2008. Impacts to marine fisheries habitat from nonfishing activities in the northeastern United States. NOAA Technical Memorandum, NMFS-NE-209. 339 pp.
Lellis, K.A. 2005. Living Shorelines: a technique used to protect, enhance, restore, and create natural habitat for aquatic species. The Coastal Society Bulletin 27(3): 1, 6-7.