Aquatic ecosystem health
Modifications to dams in the Red River watershed have had multiple benefits, including enhanced fish passage for species of cultural and ecological significance. This has created an information gap regarding how fish are responding to continuous access to areas of the river that were previously only intermittently available. With its telemetry network having been expanded in a past IWI project, fish movements in the Red River watershed can now be assessed at multiple spatial scales. To do so, the International Red River Watershed Board (IRRWB) will undertake a collaborative fish telemetry project and provide additional insight into how frequently fish are moving through areas that have been modified to facilitate fish passage.
This project has multiple objectives. First, it will improve spatial resolution of the telemetry array near dams to evaluate timing of fish passage, with a main focus on the Drayton Dam area. Second, it will continue monitoring broad scale fish movement on the expanded telemetry array, with target species including Bigmouth Buffalo, Lake Sturgeon, Walleye, and Freshwater Drum. In doing so, the project will evaluate the success of the new fish passage structure at Drayton Dam and understand the factors that dictate fish passage using telemetry arrays both upstream and downstream of the dam.
This project will build a shared scientific understanding of fish passage in the Red River watershed by creating data that will inform management decisions and improve planning of future passage projects in the context of ecologically and culturally important species. The project monitoring of Lake Sturgeon will also contribute to ongoing work on their propagation and reintroduction in the watershed.
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