Undergraduate Research

Chinook salmon have declined throughout much of their range in the Pacific Northwest. The Big Creek drainage in the Middle Fork Salmon River offers some of the least anthropogenically disturbed rearing habitat for age-0 Chinook salmon, and thus some of the highest quality rearing habitat available for any anadromous salmonid. The purpose of the proposed research project is to identify microhabitat use and selection by age-0 Chinook salmon at eight sites in Big Creek, Idaho. Water depth, water velocity, substrate, temperature cover, and nearest competitor distance are the microhabitat variables this study will encompass. Microhabitat selection will be determined by statistically comparing microhabitat use to microhabitat availability. Ultimately, identifying habitat preference for age-0 Chinook salmon will help fisheries managers in the conversation, restoration, and quantification of suitable rearing habitat for juvenile Chinook salmon throughout their range.