Publications
Fish Resources within the Tenderfoot
Experimental Forest Montana: 1991-95
Bradley B. Shepard
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife
and Parks
Department of Biology
Montana State University
Bozeman, Montana
59717-0001
and
Susan C. Ireland and Robert G. White
Montana Cooperative Fishery Research
Unit
Department of Biology
Montana State University
Bozeman, Montana 59717-0001
Final Report to:
USDA, Forest Service, Rocky
Mountain Research Station
316 East Myrtle Street
Boise, Idaho 83702
Contract:INT-92682-RJVA
(Part 1)
May 1997
Executive Summary
The Montana Cooperative Fishery
Research Unit at Montana State University was contracted by the USDA
Forest Service's Intermountain Research Station (contract INT-RJVA-92682)
to collect baseline fish resource information for Tenderfoot Creek and its
tributaries within the Tenderfoot Creek Experimental Forest (TCEF). These
data were collected from 1992-1995. The westslope cutthroat trout
population inhabitating the upper Tenderfoot Creek drainage (within the
TCEF) consists of a hybrid swarm of westslope cutthroat and rainbow trout.
These Oncorhychus spp. are distributed downstream from Spring
Park Creek. they make up a progressively larger component of the fish
community down to the lower boundary of the Experimental Forest, where
they comprised 35-50% of the salmonid community. Brook trout were the only
fish species found in the upper portion of the Tenderfoot Creek drainage
above Spring Park Creek where channel gradient was relatively low (about
3% compared to over 5% for the channel down to the TCEF boundary). The
estimated biomass of Oncorhynchus spp. ranged from 0.11 to 4.75
g/m² where they were present and the estimated biomass of brook trout
ranged from 0.33 to 6.23 g/m². Mottled sculpins inhabit the lower portion
of Tenderfoot Creek up to a falls located about 0.2 km below Pack Creek
that was identified as a barrier to upstream fish movement. None of the
tributaries to Tenderfoot Creek within the Experimental Forest, except Sun
Creek, support fish populations. Sun Creek supports only broko trout.
Cascade/riffle habitat types were dominant in Tenderfoot Creek. Pools
comprised a very small proportion (<3%) of the stream channel. We found
few Oncorhynchus spp. young-of-the-year that suggests very limited
recruitment. We observed numerous young-of-the-year brook trout,
suggesting their recruitment may be relatively high.
Boise Lab
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