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Habitat and Hydrology Condition Indices for the Upper Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers
Citation:
TAYLOR, D. L., D. W. BOLGRIEN, T. R. ANGRADI, M. S. PEARSON, AND B. H. HILL. Habitat and Hydrology Condition Indices for the Upper Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers. ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 29:111-124, (2013).
Impact/Purpose:
Habitat and hydrology indices were developed to assess the conditions in reaches of the impounded Upper Mississippi River, the Fort Peck and Garrison reaches of the Upper Missouri River, the Missouri National Recreational River, and the channelized Lower Missouri River, and the Ohio River. Data were obtained from field sampling, air photo interpretation, and U.S. Geological Survey hydrologic records. Habitat and hydrology attributes were incorporated into four habitat indices (channel complexity, substrate quality, littoral cover, and riparian condition) and one hydrology index. The lock and low-head dam sequences on the impounded Mississippi and the Ohio influenced both hydrological patterns and the resident fish community, with conditions recovering with increased distance below dams, until hydrology was once again altered by impoundment from a downriver dam. Channel complexity and hydrology indices displayed the highest correlations with a multimetric fish index possibly because these indices integrated habitat condition over a larger scale than the transect- and site-scaled littoral cover and riparian indices. Data limitations prevented the calculation of a littoral cover and a channel complexity index for the upper Missouri and Ohio Rivers, respectively.
Description:
Habitat and hydrology indices were developed to assess the conditions in reaches of the impounded Upper Mississippi River, the Fort Peck and Garrison reaches of the Upper Missouri River, the Missouri National Recreational River, and the channelized Lower Missouri River, and the Ohio River. Data were obtained from field sampling, air photo interpretation, and U.S. Geological Survey hydrologic records. Habitat and hydrology attributes were incorporated into four habitat indices (channel complexity, substrate quality, littoral cover, and riparian condition) and one hydrology index. The lock and low-head dam sequences on the impounded Mississippi and the Ohio influenced both hydrological patterns and the resident fish community, with conditions recovering with increased distance below dams, until hydrology was once again altered by impoundment from a downriver dam. Channel complexity and hydrology indices displayed the highest correlations with a multimetric fish index possibly because these indices integrated habitat condition over a larger scale than the transect- and site-scaled littoral cover and riparian indices. Data limitations prevented the calculation of a littoral cover and a channel complexity index for the upper Missouri and Ohio Rivers, respectively.
URLs/Downloads:
Habitat and Hydrology Condition Indices for the Upper Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers