Fish Passage…Now Boarding

What did the fish say when it ran into the wall? Dam. Getting fish past dams that power electrical grids, under highways or around irrigation systems is no easy task. It requires a blend of biology, engineering and hydrology to build a passage that fish will swim through. A collaborative effort among the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Bozeman Fish Technology Center (BFTC) and Montana State University (MSU) is working to do just that!

USFWS fish passage engineer Bill Rice, fishery research biologist Kevin Kappenman, and biological technician Jason Ilgen recently finished the heavy lifting of installing a state-of-the-art flume, the newest tool at the BFTC fish passage test bed facility. This flume is the only one in the nation owned and operated by USFWS and will be used to study the ability of fish to navigate fish passage structures.

Check it out in today’s Field in Five. 

A fishway that creates turbulence (you know how it feels to be bounced out of an airplane seat), won’t work because it turns out fish don’t like it either. Fish won’t enter a poorly designed fishway or might not be able to swim through it. Don’t worry, MSU team researchers Dr. Matt Blank and Dr. Katey Plymesser are the pilots of fishway design and are working to develop engineering design criteria to ensure the fish have a smooth ride. 

Now that the flume design and installation are complete, the fish passage is ready for its first passengers and additional research can continue. Maintaining habitat connectivity for aquatic species is critical for USFWS efforts to recover threatened and endangered species. Irrigation diversions can often become traveling barriers for aquatic species. The Montana fish passage research team and MSU graduate students have started research to develop a small fish ladder that can help species such as Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) and Westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi) travel over these irrigation systems in streams.  

But sometimes barriers are needed to protect our nationally treasured aquatic species. In Spring 2021, Kappenman and a team of researchers including Jeff Falke at the U.S. Geological Survey and University of Fairbanks Alaska Co-op will begin a study to analyze the leaping ability of northern pike (Esox lucius). The goal of the study is to provide criteria for barrier development that will prevent the spread of pike and other invasive species. 

With this collaborative effort among USFWS and its partners, a new legacy begins. Beyond answering fish passage design questions now, the team is also looking towards the future. This research will help train future engineers, biologists and ecologists as USFWS continues to further its mission of “working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. "

So many people helped make this project a success. Thank you to Bill Rice and the principle investigators/advising team Dr. Katey Plymesser, Dr. Matt Blank, Kevin Kappenman and Dr. Joel Cahoon for your support throughout this process. The entire Ecological Services staff and administrative assistant Sharri Lunde at the Bozeman Fish Technology Center helped ensure that the flume was completed. A special thanks to Jason Ilgen and Matt Toner for all their extra work to keep the study running. Thanks to Dr. Al Zale and the USGS Montana Cooperative Fishery Research Unit for help administering the funding for this project in partnership with the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Want to learn more? Stay updated and follow the team’s current research at  https://www.montana.edu/ecohydraulics/ .