2022 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Virtual Conference
March 13 - 15, 2022
6/05/2017 | 9:45 AM - 10:00 AM | LONG TERM RESPONSE OF FISHES TO EXPERIMENTAL HYDROPEAKING | 302C
LONG TERM RESPONSE OF FISHES TO EXPERIMENTAL HYDROPEAKING
Peaking hydroelectric operations, generally considered harmful to biota, can be altered to mitigate effects, yet knowledge of whether environmental operational restrictions are protective is limited. We used a BACI design to test if removing operational restrictions on ramping rates (rate of change of flow) impacted the relative abundance, biomass and diversity of fishes. Electrofishing was conducted over 14 years on paired experimental regulated (Magpie) and reference (Batchawana) rivers, during Magpie ramping rate restrictions (2002-2004), and when no restrictions existed (2005-2015). Fish relative biomass was greater closer to the dam on the Magpie (2-10 km), but relative density showed no longitudinal effect (to 20 km). Neither metric showed downstream trends on the reference river. Overall the BACI interactions for relative biomass and density were significant in fast habitat, but only relative density was significant in the slow habitat. Results implicate that the change in dam operations had a greater effect on relative biomass and density of fish in fast habitat closer to the dam, but further from the dam, relative density was still affected. Relationships between flow metrics and fish relative density, biomass and diversity will be explored.
- C02 Fish and Other Aquatic Vertebrates
- C14 Hydroecology
- S31 Moving forward in flow ecology: identifying and testing key hypotheses
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Presenters/Authors
Karen Smokorowski
(), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Karen.Smokorowski@dfo-mpo.gc.ca;
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Evan Timusk
(), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Evan.Timusk@dfo-mpo.gc.ca;
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Michael Power
(), University of Waterloo, m3power@uwaterloo.ca;
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