Mark L. Wildhaber

Effects of Lowhead Dams on Riffle-Dwelling Fishes and Macroinvertebrates in a Midwestern River

Abstract Many studies have assessed the effects of large dams on fishes and macroinvertebrates, but few have examined the effects of lowhead dams. We sampled fishes, macroinvertebrates, habitat, and physicochemistry monthly from November 2000 to October 2001 at eight gravel bar sites centered around two lowhead dams on the Neosho River, Kansas. Sites included a reference site and a treatment site both upstream and downstream from each dam. Multivariate analysis of variance indicated that habitat, but not physicochemistry, varied immediately upstream and downstream from the dams, with resultant effects on macroinvertebrate and fish assemblages. Compared with reference sites, upstream treatment sites were deeper and had lower velocities and downstream treatment sites were shallower and had higher velocities; both upstream and downstream treatment sites had greater substrate compaction than reference sites. Macroinvertebrate richness did not differ among site types, but abundance was lowest at downstream tre...

Spatiotemporal Patterns of Fish Assemblage Structure in a River Impounded by Low-Head Dams

Abstract We studied spatiotemporal patterns of fish assemblage structure in the Neosho River, Kansas, a system impounded by low-head dams. Spatial variation in the fish assemblage was related to the location of dams that created alternating lotic and lentic stream reaches with differing fish assemblages. At upstream sites close to dams, assemblages were characterized by species associated with deeper, slower-flowing habitat. Assemblages at sites immediately downstream from dams had higher abundance of species common to shallow, swift-flowing habitat. Temporal variation in assemblage structure was stronger than spatial variation, and was associated with fish life history events such as spawning and recruitment, as well as seasonal changes in environmental conditions. Our results suggest that low-head dams can influence spatial patterns of fish assemblage structure in systems such as the Neosho River and that such assemblages also vary seasonally.

Age Estimation for Shovelnose Sturgeon: A Cautionary Note Based on Annulus Formation in Pectoral Fin Rays

Abstract Numerous studies have examined the age and growth of shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus, but only one study attempted to validate age estimation techniques. Therefore, our objective was to use marginal increment analysis to validate annulus formation in pectoral fin rays of shovelnose sturgeon collected from the Missouri River. We also compared the precision of age estimates between two different readers. Marginal increment distance indicated that for most of the populations an opaque band was laid down in pectoral fin rays during the summer. However, opaque bands were formed throughout the year in some individuals, which could be problematic when using fin rays for age estimation. The agreement of age estimates by two readers for shovelnose sturgeon was only 18%, and differences in ages between the two readers increased for older fish. The presence of split annuli, false annuli, spawning bands, imbedded rays, and deteriorating sections made individual growth rings difficult to separ...

Relations between Benthic Community Structure and Metals Concentrations in Aquatic Macroinvertebrates: Clark Fork River, Montana

ABSTRACT We sampled macroinvertebrate communities at six sites on the upper Clark Fork River, Montana, to determine relations between macroinvertebrate community structure and metals in invertebrates and the best benthic community metrics to use for ranking sites based on the relative severity of the effects of metals. Concentrations (μg/g) of six metals in invertebrates were determined: Al (range = 591–4193), As (2.7–34.1), Cd (0.13–8.38), Cu (26–1382), Pb (0.54–67.1), and Zn (212–1665). Concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and total metals were significantly correlated with at least one benthic metric. Copper (r = 0.88–0.94) and total metals (r = 0.90–0.97) provided the most highly significant correlations. Based on longitudinal site comparisons of metals in invertebrates, benthic community structure, and differences between proportionally scaled ranks, five benthic metrics provided the best indicators of relative impact: taxa richness, Ephemeroptera-Plecoptera-Trichoptera (EPT) richness, chironomid richne...

Natural and Anthropogenic Influences on the Distribution of the Threatened Neosho Madtom in a Midwestern Warmwater Stream

Abstract We attempted to discern the contributions of physical habitat, water chemistry, nutrients, and contaminants from historic lead–zinc mining activities on the riffle-dwelling benthic fish community of the Spring River, a midwestern warmwater stream that originates in Missouri and flows into Kansas and Oklahoma. The Spring River has a fish community that includes the Neosho madtom Noturus placidus, a species federally listed as threatened. Although anthropogenic factors such as contaminants limited populations and densities of fishes, an integrated assessment of natural and anthropogenic factors was necessary to effectively estimate the influence of the latter. Fish populations in the Spring River, especially Neosho madtoms, seem to be limited by the presence of cadmium, lead, and zinc in water and in benthic invertebrate food sources and by physical habitat. The population density and community structure of fish in the Spring River also seem to be related to water chemistry and nutrients. Concurren...

Zero-Inflated Modeling of Fish Catch per Unit Area Resulting from Multiple Gears: Application to Channel Catfish and Shovelnose Sturgeon in the Missouri River

Abstract Fisheries studies often employ multiple gears that result in large percentages of zero values. We considered a zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) model with random effects to address these excessive zeros. By employing a Bayesian ZIP model that simultaneously incorporates data from multiple gears to analyze data from the Missouri River, we were able to compare gears and make more year, segment, and macrohabitat comparisons than did the original data analysis. For channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus, our results rank (highest to lowest) the mean catch per unit area (CPUA) for gears (beach seine, benthic trawl, electrofishing, and drifting trammel net); years (1998 and 1997); macrohabitats (tributary mouth, connected secondary channel, nonconnected secondary channel, and bend); and river segment zones (channelized, inter-reservoir, and least-altered). For shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus, the mean CPUA was significantly higher for benthic trawls and drifting trammel nets; 1998 and 1997; tri...

A Conceptual Life-History Model for Pallid and Shovelnose Sturgeon

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Acute toxicity of an acid mine drainage mixing zone to juvenile bluegill and largemouth bass

Abstract The toxicity of an acid mixing zone produced at the confluence of a stream that was contaminated by acid mine drainage (AMD) and a pH-neutral stream was investigated in toxicity tests with juvenile bluegill Lepomis macrochirus and largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. Fish mortalities in instream cages located in the mixing zone, below the mixing zone, and upstream in both tributaries were compared to determine relative toxicity at each site. In all tests and for both species, significantly higher mortality was observed in the mixing zone than at any other location, including the acid stream, which had lower pH (2.9–4.3). The mixing zone was defined chemically by rapid precipitation of dissolved aluminum and iron, which arrived from the low-pH stream, and by the presence of white precipitates, which were attached to the substratum and which extended below the confluence. Possible seasonal changes in mixing zone toxicity were investigated by conducting field tests with bluegill in June, July, and...

A LONGITUDINAL ASSESSMENT OF THE AQUATIC MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITY IN THE CHANNELIZED LOWER MISSOURI RIVER

We conducted an aquatic macroinvertebrate assessment in the channelized reach of the lower Missouri River, and used statistical analysis of individual metrics and multimetric scores to identify community response patterns and evaluate relative biological condition. We examined longitudinal site differences that are potentially associated with water qualityrelated factors originating from the Kansas City metropolitan area, using data from coarse rock substrate in flowing water habitats (outside river bends), and depositional mud substratein slack water habitats (dike fields). Three sites above rivermile (RM) 369 in Kansas City (Nebraska City, RM = 560; St. Joseph, RM = 530; Parkville, RM = 377) and three below (Lexington, RM = 319; Glasgow, RM = 228; Hermann, RM = 94) were sampled with rock basket artificial substrates, a qualitative kicknet method, and the Petite Ponar. We also compared the performance of the methods used. A total of 132 aquatic macroinvertebrate taxa were collected from the lower Missouri River; one third of these taxa belonged to the sensitiveEPOT insect orders (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Odonata, and Trichoptera). Rock baskets had the highest mean efficiency (34.1%) of the methods, and the largest number of taxa was collected by Ponar (n = 69) and kicknet (n = 69) methods. Seven of the 15 metrics calculated from rock basket data, and five ofthe nine metrics calculated from Ponar data showed highly significant differences (ANOVA, P < 0.001) at one or more sitesbelow Kansas City. We observed a substantial reduction in net-spinning Trichoptera in rock habitats below Kansas City (Lexington), an increase in relative dominance of Oligochaeta in depositional habitats at the next site downstream (Glasgow), and lower relative condition scores in rock habitat at Lexingtonand depositional habitat at Glasgow. Collectively, these data indicate that some urban-related impacts on the aquatic macroinvertebrate community are occurring. Our results suggest that the methods and assessment framework we used in this studycould be successfully applied on a larger scale with concurrentwater and sediment chemistry to validate metrics, establish impairment levels, and develop a specific macroinvertebrate community index for the lower Missouri River. We recommend accomplishing this with longitudinal multi-habitat sampling at a larger number of sites related to all potential sources of impairment, including major tributaries, urban areas, and point sources.

Hazard Ranking of Contaminated Sediments Based on Chemical Analysis, Laboratory Toxicity Tests, and Benthic Community Composition: Prioritizing Sites for Remedial Action

Abstract The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) organized a research program to assess the extent of and possible methods for managing contaminated sediments. As part of this program, we developed a method by which multiple forms of information on sediment contamination (i.e., chemistry, laboratory toxicity, and benthic community composition) could be combined to rank the relative hazard to aquatic life of a series of sediment samples. The process that was developed incorporates chemistry and bioavailability into the ranking as toxic units in pore water based on U.S. EPA Ambient Water Quality Criteria (AWQC). Laboratory toxicity is incorporated into the ranking process as mean response relative to control response. Benthic community information is incorporated into the ranking process through the use of relative tolerance to pollution among benthic invertebrate taxa, from which the mean tolerance to pollution of the benthic community is calculated. The three resulting ranks are then averaged to produce a relative ranking of risk to aquatic life among sediment samples. Our results demonstrate that, as long as a moderate list of laboratory toxicity test results are included in the ranking process (i.e., tests from a fish, a zooplankter, a benthic invertebrate, a phytoplankter, and a microbe), the resultant rankings among samples does not significantly change with inclusion of more laboratory toxicity test results. Without any benthic community structure information, with only laboratory toxicity test results from Microtox, ® and with only a short list of chemicals, relative ranking among sites changes drastically. Our results demonstrate the general utility of the ranking process as one way of assessing the relative hazard among many sites when resource limitations necessitate prioritization of sites for remediation.