Species present on the refuge include Pumpkinseed, Largemouth Bass, and Yellow Perch. It was anticipated that any movement of sturgeon could be tied to environmental conditions. America and eastern Siberia. Fish and Game studies indicated white sturgeon were spawning downstream of Bonners Ferry, but the habitat was unsuitable as a nursery area for white sturgeon eggs. Regardless of the flows, these reference points were always in the same location. In Idaho, burbot are only found in the Kootenai River drainage. Therefore, researchers are analyzing alternative ways to flush sediments and provide Better habitat was upstream of Bonners Ferry. mouths easily vacuum up whatever food they come across. Survival of the species and public acceptance of recovery actions require shifting emphasis from to benefit spawning and egg development, recruitment has not improved. evidenced by reduced numbers and growth rates of resident trout, and whitefish. We also sued the Army Corps of Engineers to force it to change the dam's operation to allow the sturgeon to survive. The Kootenai River population of the white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) was listed as endangered on September 6th, 1994.. White sturgeon are found from California to Alaska, and their inland populations, like the Kootenai River population, are landlocked. a high spring peak to a gradually descending hydrograph, and from the spawning period to survival sides, and has a rounded tail. from Kootenay Lake in British Columbia. Kootenai River extending from Kootenai Falls, Montana, located 31 RM below Libby Adjacent to the refuge runs the Kootenai River which is home to the endangered white sturgeon and the threatened burbot. current mortality rate of 9 percent per year, fewer than 500 adults remained in Eggs are broadcast above the substrate. Although burbot can spawn in lakes and rivers, the population entering Idaho is primarily a spawning population from Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, which leaves the lake in the late fall and early winter to spawn in the Kootenai River or tributary streams in Idaho. Torpedo-shaped bodies help them swim effortlessly in brisk river currents, and In rivers, burbot spawn in low velocity areas in main channels or inside channels behind deposition bars. between recruitment success and failure. sturgeon ran along the Pacific Coast from the Aleutian Islands to central California, spawning This would give the river the power to clean the spawning locations and expose the cobble and gravel before sturgeon spawned, without flooding. Unfortunately, the modeling also indicated that the only flows from Libby Dam suitable to scour and clean those cobbles and gravels were so high they would compromise public safety and impact agriculture. Both native and non-native fish inhabit the waters surrounding the refuge. The Service also recommends increasing the discharge mouth pointed upward for surface feeding. cottids, the torrent sculpin is a benthic species characterized by large, This content may contain outdated or currently inaccurate information. approximately 7,000 white sturgeon in the late 1970s to 760 fish in 2000. Using the telemetry information, researchers found that female sturgeon were predictable in their movements, but the males were not. In a second study, 70 sturgeon were fitted with transmitters over five years. With this information, the USGS scientists were able to make models of the river and predict how it would respond to various flows. Current population estimates of burbot entering Idaho in the fall and winter average <25/year. enormous sizes feeding on the abundant runs of salmon, steelhead, pacific lamprey, and freshwater mussels. last period of glaciation at least 10,000 years ago. It was also learned that there was cobble and gravel buried under the sand in those same locations. The U.S. FWS's Threatened & Endangered Species System track information about listed species in the United States Fish and Game researchers were slowly beginning to understand the biological mystery of white sturgeon. of less than 2 kcfs exceeds Montana's water quality standard of 110 percent gas supersaturation. Sturgeon fossils over 200 Valley back into British Columbia, where it flows through Kootenay Lake and 2005). Working with you to conserve the natural resources across all of Idaho, The Fish Between the Falls - a documentary. last 14 years of intensive monitoring (using techniques proven suitable The Endangered Species Act
Young wild sturgeon are rare in the Kootenai River. The Idaho Fish and Wildlife Office works with many threatened and endangered species. Sensitive Kootenai River white sturgeon (Kootenai sturgeon) occur in Idaho, Montana, and British Columbia, Canada, and are restricted to approximately 167.7 River Miles (RM) of the Kootenai River extending from Kootenai Falls, Montana, located 31 RM below Libby Dam, Montana, downstream through Kootenay Lake to Corra Linn Dam at the outflow from Kootenay Lake in British Columbia. declining for at least forty years and natural reproduction has been insignificant since 1974. After the water temperature in the spring increased to about 47 degrees, spawning took place and eggs were found over sand substrates in specific locations year after year. several times in Montana between 1990 and 1992. In the first study, adults were transported above Bonners Ferry for two years to the better spawning habitat. Researchers questioned why white sturgeon would spawn in an area with unsuitable nursery habitat (sand) when the preferred habitat would be cobble and gravel. PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The purpose of the project is to aid in the restoration and conservation of Kootenai River white sturgeon listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act.