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| Columbia Environmental Research Center |
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| CERC Home / About CERC / What's New / Staff / Research / Missouri River / Passive Samplers / Publications / Databases / Webs Hosted / Links |
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Carl Korschgen, Branch Chief
The primary mission of the River Studies Branch is to carry out basic and applied research in support of ecosystem-level management of large rivers, streams, floodplain wetlands, and federal lands by providing scientific understanding of riverine ecology, linkages to habitat dynamics, and effects of anthropogenic disturbances.
Research conducted by River Studies is designed to provide the understanding needed to support national programs related to:
recovery and maintenance of federal trust and endangered species,
effective ecosystem rehabilitation and management,
development and application of methodologies related to the ecological assessment of aquatic ecosystems, and
biological interactions involving invasive species.
River Studies also provides the tools and resources that are needed for distributing and presenting relevant scientific information to the public. Research encompasses a range of approaches, including development of new theory, application of simulation models, field-scale experimentation, and the monitoring and validation of ecological indicators. The branch collaborates with other disciplines within USGS, federal and state agencies, academia, and conservation groups to improve the scientific basis for management of fish and wildlife resources, and improvement in the quality of aquatic systems.
Missouri River InfoLINK InfoLINK is an Internet-based Missouri River information clearinghouse. The InfoLINK was created for these stakeholders who want to understand how the river functions and make informed decisions about the river's future use and management. The InfoLINK web page includes maps that provide a visual perspective of Missouri River basin information. Current projects include coordinating information for the Manitou Bluffs Project (Missouri River Communities Network in mid-Missouri) and the Coordinated Resource Management Program (citizen's group in Bismarck, ND) and planning the Missouri River Natural Resources Conference. Contact: Jeanne Heuser
Pallid Sturgeon
Recovery of the Missouri River's endangered pallid sturgeon is a difficult task
that requires a scientific under-standing of the complex interactions between
the ecological requirements of a very rare species and the physical processes of
a large river ecosystem. Reproduction, survival and successful recovery of this
species depend upon the seasonal availability of the appropriate habitat and
environmental conditions. Contact: Aaron
DeLonay
Exotic Species in the Missouri River Bighead and silver carp are large Asian species that escaped in the early nineties from fish culture operations and are expanding in range and in numbers within the Mississippi and Missouri River drainages. Since October 2002, CERC scientists have been using telemetry and fishing with nets to determine habitat selection and behavior of bighead and silver carp in the lower Missouri River and its tributaries. A variety of habitat characterization techniques are being used to characterize the habitats selected by the fish, including water quality measurements, bathymetry, substrate classification, and acoustic Doppler current mapping. Contact: Duane Chapman
Comparison of
Black Carp and Grass Carp for Identification Purposes
video
on silver carp filmed by Missouri Department of Conservation
Missouri River Benthic Macroinvertebrates Aquatic macroinvertebrates inhabiting different habitat and substrate types in the Missouri River are being studied for the purpose of developing community-level biological indicators useful for evaluating ecosystem health, and to provide ecological information on food quantity and availability for benthic feeding fishes. This project is designed to identify and validate indicators related to water quality, anthropogenic effects of large metropolitan areas, and overall biotic integrity. Data will be useful for both state and federal agencies, and the development of biocriteria, to aid in providing a biological basis for river restoration efforts and measuring the status of large river health. Contact: Barry Poulton
River-Corridor Habitat Dynamics Research, Lower Missouri River studies physical river habitat in a heavily engineered river. The project is designed to improve understanding of habitat loss and creation and to provide a stronger scientific basis for rehabilitation. Click on the image to the left to read more about it. Contact: Robert Jacobson
Visualization of Flow Alternatives, Lower Missouri River This report presents a visual, statistical presentation of five modeled flow-management alternatives and two reference alternatives for four selected sites on the Lower Missouri River at Sioux City, IA; Nebraska City, NE; Kansas City, MO; and Boonville, MO (Fig. 1). The flow-management alternative data have been generated by the COE using the Missouri River system Daily Routing Model (COE, 1998b). The Daily Routing Model calculates a water balance and routes water through six dams in the system, providing modeled outflows at 14 sites. Flow-management alternatives presented in this report are limited to those under consideration in the August 2001 Master Manual RDEIS (COE, 2001) and two reference alternatives, the Current Water Control Plan (CWCP) and a run of river scenario (ROR), explained in "Modeled Alternatives." Contact: Robert Jacobson
Missouri Environmental Assessment Program (MoREAP) MoREAP is a proposed long-term monitoring and research program for the Missouri River focusing on the fish and wildlife and their habitats. It was developed in partnership with the Missouri River Natural Resources Committee and included scientists from many Federal and state agencies. The blueprint is complete and research being conducted that will aid in protocol development. When implemented, the 15 year project will evaluate the effect of management changes in the Missouri River on fish and wildlife.
Ozarks Stream Geomorphology Project studies the effects of land use and climate change on Ozarks streams and their ecology. The project is designed to provide land managers with information that will help conserve aquatic habitat in the context of environmental change. Contact: Robert Jacobson
Urban Stream Biological Assessment Studies In conjunction with USGS-Water Resources Discipline, research is being conducted within several watersheds adjacent to the Kansas City metropolitan area that are rapidly increasing in urbanization. These projects are utilizing state-of-art bioassessment methods for examining benthic community endpoint metrics and their responses to wastewater effluents and land use changes. Contact: Barry Poulton
Coordination and Partnerships---River Studies staff actively participate in several natural resource organizations. Current activities include representing federal agencies other than USDA on the Missouri Watershed Information Network (MoWIN), participating in the Missouri River Natural Resources Committee, the Missouri River Basin Association, Missouri River Federal Agencies Roundtable, the Midwest Natural Resources Roundtable-Missouri River focus area, and the Missouri Resource Assessment Partnership (MoRAP). Branch staff also represent USGS in providing expertise and advisement to the research arm of the US Environmental Protection Agency, and state natural resources agencies that are responsible for water quality compliance under the Clean Water Act.
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