spawning |

Fly casting tournament a successful fund raiser for Pierce Creek Reconnection Project

Posted by admin on May 16, 2011 | No Comments

From the Ted Trueblood Chapter of Trout Unlimited –

More than 130 people took part in the inaugural Ted Trueblood Chapter Fly Casting Tournament May 14 at Eagle Island State Park.

The event was a fundraiser for the Pierce Creek reconnection project on the South Fork Boise River and also served as a fund and friendly competition event for fly fishing enthusiasts across the Treasure Valley. KBOI TV sports reporter Troy Oppie came out to the event and his story was aired Saturday night seen in the video below.

Tagged Pierce Creek, spawning

Bureau of Reclamation and USGS Study

Posted by admin on September 6, 2010 | Comments Off

The Bureau of Reclamation and the US Geological Survey are teaming up on a study of the South Fork Boise River. Work began in the past few months with the goal of a better understanding of the spawning habitats.

Agency scientists are starting by gathering existing data, conducting sample location reconnaissance, and developing a sampling design for the project. The reason for this step is, “to provide statistical rigor to future sampling efforts, develop a consistent sampling plan, and determine the appropriate level of spatial and temporal sampling.”

Tagged flows, spawning

REDD ALERT!

Posted by admin on May 22, 2008 | Comments Off

REDD ALERT!

River flows on the South Fork Boise River will be 600 cfs during opening weekend. Great for wading anglers, but there are nearly 200 redds carved in the streambed which are the future of this fishery.

Anglers, please be careful and stay away from the side channel areas of smaller gravel as well as gravel that is brushed clean, both likely areas of trout redds.

For more information check out this post: http://www.westfly.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=399801&page=1#Post399801

Tagged spawning

Time to Volunteer

Posted by admin on April 28, 2008 | Comments Off

It’s time to pitch in and help out this river we all love. We’ve launched an effort involving local angler groups and agencies (F&G, Boise NF, BuRec) to look into improving the SFB fishery. The first step is to understand what happens in this fishery since the trout have access downstream to Arrowrock Reservoir and thus the Middle Fork, North Fork and beyond. Migration of trout and Bull trout has already been documented.

We have an immediate need for volunteers for some of the following planned projects:

Tributary Flow Surveys
No recent data exists to support potential enhancement of tributaries to make them more accessible for spawners. We have a method to monitor flow rates but need volunteers to go by the river to take some quick, easy measurments from April 30 to mid-June. See some recent pictures of tributaries below.

Main Stem & Tributary Redd Survey
A Boise NF biologist did a thorough redd count in the main river from the dam to Danskin in 2007 and plans to repeat that next month. We have added counting redds in the tributaries for sometime around 5/31 and could use some strong volunteers.

Genetic Study and Fish Sampling Day – July 12
The center piece of the 2008 conservation research will be a genetic study to understand the origins of the fish that make up the South Fork fishery. The local TU chapter received an Embrace-a-Stream grant to underwrite part of the cost of this project. We are also looking for contributions to sponsor fish and sponsors will get a report back on that fish’s genetic history. We will sample fish (non-lethally) from the South Fork Boise below Anderson Dam, and the tissue samples will be used to profile the local rainbow trout population and compare it to an existing library of genetic profiles for wild rainbow trout populations throughout the headwaters of the North, Middle and South Fork of the Boise River. With this data, the biologists can determine where the resident fish originate and then we can determine if spawning enhancements in those location could help the fishery.

The sampling event will be on July 12. We need volunteers to FISH in the name of science or provide driftboats, cooking and shuttles for the weekend event. This looks to be a family event so all are welcome. We can include an informal competition as part of the event as well – should be a really fun day.

Tagged Genetics, spawning

Tributary spawning survery

Posted by admin on April 8, 2008 | No Comments

A number of small tributaries drain directly into the South Fork Boise River, but their contribution for spawning and rearing habitat is poorly understood. Potential tributary enhancement projects could be effective, but the first step is learning whether fish are presently using the tributaries and the water conditions, whether the culverts inhibit or prevent fish passage, and habitat present in those tributaries.

The Boise National Forest has identified the culverts on four South Fork tributaries as barriers to Aquatic Organism Passage, typically referring to fish but can be other biologically important species. Culverts installed typically prior to the 1990’s like those on the SFB tributaries, are not designed for fish passage since they typically move water faster than the stream itself. While fish swim against a current at higher speed in shallow water, their passage through the culvert when moving upstream from the river to the tributary can be restricted due to water velocity, length of the culvert and depth of water.

Tagged spawning, tributaries