Results Part IV: Additional Investigations 



Results part IV includes a series of primarily restoration-related studies, which 

 include: 1) tributary inventories: Little Fish Creek and Snowbank Creek; 2) habitat 

 assessments for the upper Blackfoot River; 3) movements and habitat use of fluvial native 

 fish in the upper Blackfoot Watershed; 4) bull trout redd surveys and winter water 

 temperatures assessments in spawning sites; 5) whirling disease status; 6) Coopers Lake 

 and Nevada Reservoir fisheries assessments; and 6) modifications of a turbulent fountain 

 fish screen for use in small high gradient streams. 



Fisheries inventories on Little Fish Creek and Snowbank Creek 



Elevation (ft) X 1000 



Little Fish Creek 



Little Fish Creek is a 1'' 

 order tributary stream to the 

 lower Blackfoot River. Draining 

 the southern slopes of Lost Horse 

 Mountain, it flows northwest 

 through a checkerboard of State, 

 BLM. Plum Creek, and private 

 land before entering the 

 Blackfoot River at river mile 32.8 

 with an estimated base flow of ~1 

 cfs. Stream gradients range ft-om 

 760Vmile at the headwaters to 

 1907mile near the mouth (Figure 

 38). In 2003, we established 



Stream Mileage 



Figure 38. Longitudinal profile for Little Fish Creek. 



Catch per 100 fset 



three survey sections on Little Fish Creek (miles 0.3, 0.9 and 3.8). 



The upper most survey section (mile 3.8) is a moderately entrenched, cobble 

 dominated, high gradient A3-type channel, beneath a mixed over-story of Douglas fir, 

 ponderosa pine, larch and aspen. The riparian under-story supports a diverse community 

 of rocky mountain maple, red osier 

 dogwood, alder, forbs and grasses 

 cumulatively providing shade and wood 

 for fish habitat. Both lower survey 

 sections are moderately entrenched 

 gravel-dominated B4-type channels 

 supporting an over story of ponderosa 

 pine, larch, and aspen, an under-story of 

 alder and red osier dogwood above a 

 ground layer of forbs and grasses. Based 

 on visual observations, instream sediment 

 levels appear to be elevated in 

 downstream reaches. 



Problems influencing fish 



Location (stream mite) 



Figure 39. CPUE for WSCT at three locations 

 on Little Fish Creek in 2003. 



53 



