R I O Hs Rio Grande Silvery Minnow Index of Habitat Health

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R I O Hs - Rio Grande Silvery Minnow Index of
Habitat Health

• Joel D. Lusk and Cyndie Abeyta
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Bosque Hydrology Group Water Quality Summit
  Meeting
• October 25, 2004

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Water Quality the Silvery Minnow

• Water Quality is the ecological quality of the
  Rio Grande necessary for the silvery minnow to
  survive
• Chemical Factors
• Flow Regime
• Biotic Factors
• Physical Habitat
• Energy Sources

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Integrity of Silvery Minnow Habitat
CHEMICAL VARIABLES
FLOW REGIME

HABITAT STRUCTURE
BIOTIC FACTORS
ENERGY SOURCE
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Chemical Factors of RGSM Habitat

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Flow Regime of RGSM Habitat

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Biotic Factors of RGSM Habitat

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Physical Features of RGSM Habitat

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Chemical Factors of RGSM Habitat

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Integrity of Silvery Minnow Habitat
CHEMICAL VARIABLES
FLOW REGIME

HABITAT STRUCTURE
BIOTIC FACTORS
ENERGY SOURCE
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Integrated Water Quality Study

• Our Water Quality Assessment worked with Fishery
  Resources, Water Resources, and others to measure
  these qualities of the Middle Rio Grande in
  2002-03.

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RIOHs - Ranking Chemical Quality

• Compare measured chemicals to
• Water quality criteria
• Sediment quality criteria
• Tissue quality criteria
• Regional nutrient guidelines
• Temperature regimes
• Dissolved oxygen regimes
• Provide rank to all comparisons
• 5 good, none exceed of criteria
• 3 fair, few exceed of criteria
• 1 poor, many exceed criteria

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RIOHs - Ranking Physical Quality

• Riverscape Quality
• Riparian Width
• River Width
• Width to Depth Ratio
• Shoreline Complexity Index
• Silvery minnow habitat quality
• Depths lt 20 cm
• Velocity lt 30 cm/sec
• Nonfluvial Mesohabitats (pools, etc.)
• Provide 5-3-1 ranks to all comparisons

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RIOHs - Ranking Biological Quality

• Fish Health Assessment
• Condition Factor
• Normality Index
• Severity Index
• Feeding Index
• Fish Community Metrics
• Presence of silvery minnow
• Number of native fish species
• Energy Sources
• Gross Primary Productivity

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RIOHs 4 Site Chemical Example
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RIOHs 4 Site Physical Example
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RIOHs 4 Site Biological Example
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RIOHs Example Results of 4 Sites
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RIOHs Impact Analysis Percent and Type of
Impairment
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RIOHs Rio Grande Silvery Minnow Index of
Habitat Health

• RIOHs is an index to assess the ecological
  integrity of silvery minnow habitat
• RIOHs integrates landscape, habitat, fish health,
  productivity, and chemical factors Can be
  expanded! (algae?).
• RIOHs identifies impaired sites and prioritizes
  how to restore them
• RIOHs can help link Science, Management, and
  Outreach for Recovery.