Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Influence Of Redd Distribution And Microhabitat Availability On The Distribution And Abundance Of Young-Of-The-Year Trout In The Green River, Utah, Michael J. Buntjer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Redd distribution, redd density, and physical habitat were used to explain the distribution and abundance of young-of-the-year (YOY) brown trout (Salmo trutta) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the Green River, Utah. The importance of variables at both a microhabitat and macrohabitat scale were assessed using stepwise regression analysis. Availability of cover (rock and vegetation) and proximity to spawning sites were the most important variables used to explain the distribution and abundance of YOY brown trout and rainbow trout. In addition, YOY brown trout and rainbow trout occupied specific microhabitats and showed patterns of use for …

Desert Bighorn Sheep And Riverboat Interactions In Cataract Canyon, Utah, Mark C. Stanger

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

I studied desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni) behavior and habitat use in response to boating activities during 1985. The percent of total observed time in attention behavior before the boating season, during the boating season, and while riverboats were< 0.8 km from bighorn sheep groups was 1, 1.4, and 12.2, respectively. Estimated energy expenditure did not significantly differ for high riverboat pressures (2 > 0.2) or seasonal comparisons (2 > 0.1). Habitat use significantly differed for proximity to the river, which was probably related to the summer use of the river for drinking. Moderate, minor, and no responses to passing riverboats were observed 3, 39, and 58%, respectively. Responses to riverboats did not significantly differ according to time of day (2 > 0.15) or …

A Trophic Gradient Analysis Of Lake Powell During Spring Runnoff 1992, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Clyde Lay, Darren Carlise, Corey Huxol, Craig Schaugaard, Beau Clements, David Beauchamp

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Between 26 April and 2 May 1992, students in a utah state university aquatic ecology class visited Lake Powell to do a study of trophic gradients of the reservoir. The main axis of the reservoir was surveyed, as well as less detailed analyses of Moki and Escalante Canyons. The work was conducted in collaboration with personnel from the u.s. Bureau of Reclamation headed by Bill Vernieu, and from the u.s. Geological Survey (Dick Marzolf). Some of their data appear in the physical-chemical section of this report.

Each student was responsible for compiling a report on one of the following specific …

Snake River Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus Nerka) Habitat/Limnologic Research, Scott Spaulding, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Shoshone-Bannock Tribe

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

This report outlines long-term planning and monitoring activities that occurred in 1991 and 1992 in the Stanley Basin Lakes of the upper Salmon River, Idaho for the purpose of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) recovery. Limnological monitoring and experimental sampling protocol, designed to establish a limnological baseline and to evaluate sockeye salmon production capability of the lakes, are present:ed. Also presented are recommended passage improvements for current fish passage barriers/impediments on migratory routes to the lakes. We initiated O. Nerka population evaluations for Redfish and Alturas lakes; this included population estimates of emerging kokanee fry entering each lake in the spring …

Visual Feeding By Juvenile Bear Lake Sculpin, D. Neverman, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Young-of-the-year Bear Lake sculpin Cottus extensus feed throughout the day on benthic invertebrates and cease feeding at night when they migrate to the metalimnion. We investigated their reliance on vision by conducting feeding trials at different light levels in the laboratory. Feeding rate reached a maximum at intermediate light levels (near 10^16 photons sm^–2 ss^–1; approximately 1 lux) but decreased as light intensity increased beyond this range. At this maximum rate, the fish fed nine times faster than they were able to feed in the dark, showing that young Bear Lake sculpin rely heavily upon vision to feed. The light …

Lake Trout Spawning In Lake Tahoe: Egg Incubation In Deepwater Macrophyte Beds, D. A. Beauchamp, B. C. Allen, R. C. Richards, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, C. R. Goldman

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Although most populations of lake trout Salvelinus namaycush spawn over rocky shoals, use of these substrates by lake trout has not yet been found in Lake Tahoe. Large cobble substrate exists at depths less than 20 m, and steep, fractured, rocky substrate can be found in isolated areas from the surface down to at least 100 m, but no evidence of spawning activity in these areas has been found. Instead, at least a portion of the population spawns on deepwater mounds (40–60 m deep) over beds of the macrophyte Chara delicatula. This is the first known report of lake trout …