10.5061/DRYAD.70H0B6B
Cutting, Kyle A.
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Ferguson, Jake M.
University of Minnesota
Anderson, Michelle L.
University of Montana Western
Cook, Kristen
University of Montana Western
Davis, Stacy C.
Montana State University
Levine, Rebekah
University of Montana Western
Data from: Linking beaver dam affected flow dynamics to upstream passage
of Arctic grayling
Dryad
dataset
2018
fish passage
Castor canadensis
beaver dam
Holocene
Thymallus arcticus
National Science Foundation
https://ror.org/021nxhr62
No.
2018-12-05T18:33:56Z
2018-12-05T18:33:56Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.4728
60920 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Beaver reintroductions and beaver dam structures are an increasingly
utilized ecological tool for rehabilitating degraded streams, yet beaver
dams can potentially impact upstream fish migrations. We collected two
years of data on Arctic grayling movement through a series of beaver dams
in a low gradient mountain stream, utilizing radio-telemetry techniques,
to determine how hydrology, dam characteristics, and fish attributes
impeded passage and movement rates of spawning grayling. We compared fish
movement between a “normal” flow year and a “low” flow year, determined
grayling passage probabilities over dams in relation to a suite of
factors, and predicted daily movement rates in relation to the number of
dams each fish passed and distance between dams during upstream migration
to spawning areas. We found that the average passage probability over
unbreached beaver dams was 88%, though we found that it fell below 50% at
specific dams. Upstream passage of grayling was affected by three main
characteristics: 1) temperature 2) breach status and 3) hydrologic
linkages that connect sections of stream above and below the dam. Other
variables influence passage, but to a lesser degree. Cumulative passage
varied with distance upstream and total number of dams passed in low
versus normal flow years, while movement rates upstream slowed as fish
swam closer to dams. Our findings demonstrate that upstream passage of
fish over beaver dams is strongly correlated with hydrologic conditions
with moderate controls by dam- and fish-level characteristics. Our results
provide a framework that can be applied to reduce barrier effects when and
where beaver dams pose a significant threat to the upstream migration of
fish populations while maintaining the diverse ecological benefits of
beaver activity when dams are not a threat to fish passage.
GraylingPassageAcceptedData file used for both grayling passage and
cumulative passage analysis.FishMovementAcceptedData file used for
movement velocity analysis.
Upper Missouri Watershed
Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge