Fisheries Survey of the Lower Muddy River Below the Wells-siding Diversion Dam [Draft Report]
Golden M and Holden P. 2005. Fisheries Survey of the Lower Muddy River Below the Wells-siding Diversion Dam [Draft Report]. Southern Nevada Water Authority. Logan, UT
Historical collections below the Wells-siding Diversion indicate that native fishes are, at best, rare in the lower Muddy River (Deacon and Bradley 1972, Cross 1976). The August 2003 Nevada Department of Wildlife collection of Virgin River chub (Gila seminuda) immediately below the Wells-siding Diversion created some speculation as to the status of native fishes below the diversion. Presently, the Southern Nevada Water Authority is investigating options to develop water rights on the lower Muddy River. We surveyed the lower Muddy River from the Wells-siding Diversion to the Overton Wildlife Management Area to determine the distribution and abundance of native fishes in this area. We found both Virgin River chub and speckled dace (Rhinichthys osculus) below the Wells-siding Diversion in May 2004. All but one of the Virgin River chub were young-of-the-year. We collected a 1-year-old Virgin River chub 6.75 miles (10.9 km) below the Wells-siding Diversion. We did not collect any native fishes during surveys conducted in July and September 2004. Water levels were generally lower in July and September 2004 than in May 2004. Habitat, flow, and temperature appeared suitable for Virgin River chub at many of our sampling stations below the Wells-siding Diversion during all of the sampling trips. Additionally, the areas where we could sample were limited by time and accessibility constraints, so there may be more suitable habitat that we were not able to sample. We recommend a more intensive survey of the fish fauna of the lower Muddy River to determine whether native fishes persist year-round below Wellssiding Diversion. Additionally, we recommend installing thermographs at selected locations below Well-siding Diversion and investigating the magnitude of native fish entrainment into the canal that leads to Bowman Reservoir.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Golden, Michael; Holden, Paul
- Date of Issue
- 2005-03
- Publisher
- Southern Nevada Water Authority
- Units
- LAKE
- Keywords
- Absence (Biodiversity), Distribution (Biodiversity), Fish, Moapa dace (Moapa coriacea), Moapa White River springfish (Crenichthys baileyi moapae), Overton Wildlife Management Area Nevada, Presence (Biodiversity), Sampling, speckled dace (Rhinichthys osculus), Taxa Links To References, Virgin River chub (Gila seminuda), Wildlife Studies