Protocol Title: Long-Term Ecological Monitoring of Fish Assemblages in Rivers
Parks where protocol will be implemented
- Mount Rainier National Park
- North Cascades National Park Service Complex
- Olympic National Park
Importance / Issues
The decline of Pacific salmonids on the West Coast has been attributed to overharvest, displacement by non-native fish, influence of hatchery fish on wild fish, and habitat degradation. Of the 41 salmonid stocks on the Washington coast and Puget Sound, 26 were categorized as being at high risk of extinction, 8 at moderate risk, and 7 of special concern. In the NCCN, a total of four fish species are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act including Puget Sound chinook, Puget Sound steelhead, Puget Sound/Coastal bull trout, and Ozette sockeye salmon.
Monitoring Objectives
Determine trends in:
- juvenile and adult fish species composition
- timing of migration
- relative abundance with an emphasis on key species that have ecological, cultural, or harvest significance
- fish growth
- extent of non-native and hatchery salmonids in park waters
Potential Measures
The general approach is to sample five km reference reaches of each river in an area located immediately upstream from the park boundary. Snorkel surveys will be conducted at repeated intervals from June to September throughout the five km reference reach. The reference reaches of rivers outlined in this protocol are comprised of main stem and side channel habitats with multiple types of habitat units (ie-pools, riffles, glides) throughout each reference reach. This protocol relies on a combination of snorkel and electrofishing methodologies to maximize detection of trends in juvenile and adult fish assemblages in OLYM rivers
Management Applications
This protocol is designed to provide an understanding of reference conditions and trends in fish assemblages. Information derived from this monitoring will provide information that is critical to the successful management and conservation of native fishes in national parks. This protocol will allow park managers to detect trends in high priority management issues such as number of fish species increasing and decreasing in abundance, the extent of non-native and hatchery fish invasions and whether fish species become extirpated from park rivers. The protocol also provides information on magnitude of abundance of each fish species, timing of migration of adult fishes, and growth of juvenile salmonids.
Protocol Development and Status
The protocol will be written by NPS and USGS and is scheduled for peer review in November, 2007. Products associated with protocol development include: 1) a contract with a statistician to the design the sampling frame; 2) a peer reviewed study plan and final protocol that outlines monitoring objectives, sampling design, power to detect trend and methods for monitoring fish communities in large rivers in the NCCN; 3) peer review of the final protocol; 4) establishment of long term monitoring sites in OLYM.
Status and Trends
Not available yet
Contacts
Sam Brenkman, Olympic National Park
Link to NCCN Fish Assemblages References