Author :
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ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 81 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (727 download)
Book Synopsis Dworshak Kokanee Population and Entrainment Assessment 2005-2006 Annual Report by :
Download or read book Dworshak Kokanee Population and Entrainment Assessment 2005-2006 Annual Report written by and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 81 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During this contract, we continued testing underwater strobe lights to determine their effectiveness at repelling kokanee Oncorhynchus nerka away from Dworshak Dam. We tested one set of nine strobe lights flashing at a rate of 360 flashes/min in front of turbine 3 while operating at higher discharges than previously tested. The density and distribution of fish, (thought to be mostly kokanee), were monitored with a split-beam echo sounder. We then compared fish counts and densities during nights when the lights were flashing to counts and densities during adjacent nights without the lights on. On five nights between January 31 and February 28, 2006, when no lights were present, fish counts near turbine 3 averaged eight fish and densities averaged 91 fish/ha. When strobe lights were turned on during five adjacent nights during the same period, mean counts dropped to four fish and densities dropped to 35 fish/ha. The decline in counts (49%) was not statistically significant (p = 0.182), but decline in densities (62%) was significant (p = 0.049). There appeared to be no tendency for fish to habituate to the lights during the night. Test results indicated that strobe lights were able to reduce fish densities by at least 50% in front of turbines operating at higher discharges, which would be sufficient to improve sportfish harvest. We also used split-beam hydroacoustics to monitor the kokanee population in Dworshak Reservoir during 2005. Estimated abundance of kokanee decreased from the 2004 population estimate. Based on hydroacoustic surveys, we estimated 3,011,626 kokanee (90% CI ± 15.2%) in Dworshak Reservoir, July 2005. This included 2,135,986 age-0 (90% CI ± 15.9%), 769,175 age-1 (90% CI ± 16.0%), and 107,465 age-2 (90% CI ± 15.2%). Poor survival of kokanee from age-1 to age-2 continued to keep age-2 densities below the management goal of 30-50 adults/ha. Entrainment sampling was conducted with fixed-site split-beam hydroacoustics a minimum of two days per month for a continuous 24 h period when dam operations permitted. The highest fish detection rates from entrainment assessments were again found during nighttime periods and lowest during the day. Fish detection rates were low during high discharges throughout the spring and summer and highest during low discharges in September and November. High discharge during drawdowns for anadromous fish flows in July and August again resulted in low detection rates and susceptibility to entrainment. Index counts of spawning kokanee in four tributary streams totaled 12,742 fish. This data fits the previously developed relationship between spawner counts and adult kokanee abundance in the reservoir.
