Monitoring fluvial bull trout migration and movements in

Monitoring fluvial bull trout migration and movements in the Lemhi River Subbasin, Idaho: integrating PIT tag technology with radio telemetry 2015 PIT Tag Workshop Kevin Poolea and Jeff Di. Luccia Idaho Department of Fish and Game a. Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission Salmon, Idaho

STUDY AREA • • Lemhi River Subbasin 3, 289 km 2 2, 140 stream km 251 cfs (mean annual flow) High elevation topography Ø 3, 900 – 12, 195 ft

LEMHI SUBBASIN WATER DEVELOPMENT • Heavily diverted by irrigation • 2 out of 31 tributaries connected Ø Hayden Creek Ø Big Springs Creek • USFWS identified critical habitat 700 gravity diversions Source: Idaho Dept. of Water Resources, 2014 Lemhi Subbasin Tributary Status: 2008 Connected

LEMHI CONSERVATION PROGRAM (LCP) Tributary Reconnection Restoring Perennial Stream Flows Habitat Restoration

IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS Little Springs Creek Complete Restoration Canyon Creek Functional Reconnection § Screening (ongoing) Kenney Creek Functional Reconnection Big Timber Creek § Diversions/Screens Bohannon Creek § Additional Flow Hawley Creek § Flow § Barriers/Screens

HABITAT ACTION EFFECTIVENESS MONITORING ISEMP: Integrated Status & Effectiveness Monitoring Program IMW: Intensively Monitored Watershed

PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE Presence of fluvial sized Bull Trout: • Lemhi mainstem • Hayden Creek • Big Timber Creek • Kenney Creek ?

RADIO TELEMETRY 2003 -2005: Upper Salmon River migration study (Schoby and Curet 2007) • 15 radio tagged 2006: Lemhi Subbasin migration study (Lamperth et al. 2006) • 32 radio tagged

RADIO TELEMETRY Migration Results Hayden Creek Prespawn Migration Upper Salmon River Study: 2005 Upper Salmon River Study • Mean Length (mm): 466 ± 82 (330 -680) Lemhi River Subbasin Study • Mean Length (mm): 493 ± 89 (352 -696) Lemhi River Subbasin Study: 2006

RADIO TELEMETRY Movement Results Bull Trout Movements Upper Salmon River Study • • None detected entering or leaving Lemhi Subbasin Winter habitat: mainstem Lemhi River Subbasin Study • Detected entering or leaving Lemhi Subbasin • Winter habitat: mainstem Lemhi and Salmon River

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY 13 of 31 tributaries monitored Three Upper Salmon River arrays - 2008 – Present: PIT tag arrays Support habitat actions - -- - • • -- - -- 2007: PIT tagging initiated - • • • --

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Tagging Results 3247 tagged Bull Trout Mean Length (mm): 196 ± 92 (56 -740) (n=2899) (n=343)

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Tagging Results 90%

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Detection Results 1018 (31%) Bull Trout detected (n=608) (n=409)

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Migration Results Hayden Creek Prespawn Migration Mean Length (mm): 435 ± 80 (300 -700)

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Movement Results Tributaries/Reaches Hayden Creek Mainstem Lemhi Kenney Creek Pattee Creek

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Movement Results Hayden Creek • 704 (38%) detected leaving Hayden • 64 detected leaving Lemhi subbasin Ø Overwintered in upper Salmon River • 17 detected in tributaries Ø Kenney Creek Ø Little Springs Creek Ø Wimpy Creek

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Movement Results Mainstem Lemhi • 55 (41%) detected leaving mainstem • 30 detected leaving Lemhi subbasin Ø Overwintered in upper Salmon River • 42 detected in Hayden Creek • Four detected in other tributaries Ø Kenney Creek Ø Big Timber Creek

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Movement Results Kenney Creek • 14 (5%) detected leaving Kenney • One detected leaving Lemhi Subbasin • One detected In Hayden Creek

PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY Movement Results Pattee Creek • One (5%) detected elsewhere Ø No PIT tag array • Detected in Hayden Creek

DISCUSSION Expanding Our Knowledge RADIO TELEMETRY PIT TAG TECHNOLOGY

DISCUSSION Management Implications • Integrating technologies is beneficial • Fluvial Bull Trout utilizing greater extent • Interchange of Bull Trout populations • Supports and directs future adaptive management: Ø Lemhi River Subbasin Ø Bull Trout

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Through the years, all of the: • IDFG Fisheries Biologists, Technicians, and Bioaides • PSMFC Fisheries Biologists and Technicians

Any Questions? It’s hard to work with this view!

LITERATURE CITED Lampert, J. , C. Claire, and J. Lutch. 2007. Fluvial bull trout Salvelinus confluentus migratory dynamics and life history in the Lemhi River subbasin, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Report 07 -11, Boise. Murphy, P. and M. Horsmon. 2003. Kenney Creek fisheries report. Idaho Department of Fish and Game Anadromous Screen Program, Salmon. Murphy, P. and M. Horsmon. 2004. Big Timber Creek fisheries report. Idaho Department of Fish and Game Anadromous Screen Program, Salmon. Schoby, G. P. and T. Curet. 2007. Seasonal migrations of bull trout, westslope cutthroat trout, and rainbow trout in the upper Salmon River basin, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Report 07 -12, Boise. (USFWS) U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2002. Chapter 17, Salmon River Recovery Unit, Idaho. 194 pages in U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Bull trout Salvelinus confluentus draft recovery plan. Portland, Oregon.