Geology topics

Evan M. Lindroth

Publications and source records attributed to Evan M. Lindroth.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2024

Reproduction of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) in the Maumee River, Ohio: Part 1—Spawning area identification using bidirectional drift modeling

Control of invasive grass carp ( Ctenopharyngodon idella ) populations in the Western Lake Erie Basin merits adaptive management guided by the best available science. Presently (2024), capture of mature grass carp in rivers during spawning season is most efficient, so knowing when and where grass carp are spawning is essential information for natural resource agencies. Using bidirectional drift modeling and grass carp ichthyoplankton samples captured in the Maumee River during the 2017–2019 spawning seasons, this study identified 12 probable grass carp spawning areas in the lower 96.5-kilometers of the Maumee River. These spawning areas were located both above and below the Grand Rapids/Providence low-head dams. Three areas showed evidence of multiyear use, while nine had multi-event use. Spawning activity had no definitive diel variation and occurred at an average photoperiod of 15.15 h. The maturation metric ADD15, or annual degree days above 15 degrees Celsius, generally exceeded the 655 threshold for spawning; however, some spawning occurred when ADD15 ≤235, indicating spawners likely matured in a warmwater discharge. The probable spawning areas were generally characterized by mean velocities between 0.4 and 2.1 m per second (with locally higher velocities possible), areas of high turbulence produced by dam spillways or bedrock outcroppings, channel constrictions, confluences, islands, and bridges with piers in the water. Spawning suitability indices (SSI), based on velocity, varied considerably between spawning areas and SSI models. These results could be used to inform control efforts and predict potential grass carp spawning locations in other rivers under threat of invasion.

Ohio↗

USGS2022

The role of hydraulic and geomorphic complexity in predicting invasive carp spawning potential: St. Croix River, Minnesota and Wisconsin, United States

Since they were first introduced to the United States more than 50 years ago, invasive carp have rapidly colonized rivers of the Mississippi River Basin, with detrimental effects on native aquatic species. Their continued range expansion, and potential for subsequent invasion of the Great Lakes, has led to increased concern for the susceptibility of as-yet uncompromised lotic and lentic systems in the central United States. Because invasive carp eggs and larvae must drift in the river current for the first several days following spawning, numerical drift modeling has emerged as a useful technique for determining whether certain river systems and reaches have the potential to support suspension-to-hatching survival of invasive carp eggs, a critical first step in recruitment. Here we use one such numerical modeling approach, the Fluvial Egg Drift Simulator (FluEgg), to estimate bighead carp ( Hypophthalmichthys nobilis ) egg hatching success and larval retention in a 47.8-kilometer (km) reach of the multi-thread St. Croix River, Minnesota and Wisconsin, United States. We explore three approaches for obtaining the hydraulic data required by FluEgg, parameterizing the model with either (a) field hydraulic data collected within the main channel during a high-flow event, or hydraulic data output from a one-dimensional hydrodynamic model with both (b) steady, and (c) unsteady flows. We find that the three approaches, along with the range of water temperatures and discharge used in simulations, produce vastly different predictions of streamwise transport and in-river egg hatching probability (0% for field data, 0 to 96% for steady-state hydraulic modeling, and 1.8 to 65% for unsteady modeling). However, all FluEgg simulations, regardless of the source of hydraulic data, predicted that no larvae reach the gas bladder inflation stage within the study reach where nursery habitat is abundant. Overall, these results indicate that the lower St. Croix River is suitable for invasive carp spawning and egg suspension until hatching for a range of discharge and water temperatures. These results highlight the role of complex channel hydraulics and morphology, particularly multi-thread reaches, and their inclusion in ecohydraulic-suitability modeling to determine susceptibility of river systems for invasive carp reproduction. Our work also emphasizes the scientific value of multi-dimensional hydrodynamic models that can capture the spatial heterogeneity of flow fields in geomorphically complex rivers. This work may help to guide management efforts based on the targeted monitoring and control and improve invasive carp egg and larvae sampling efficiency.

Minnesota, Wisconsin↗

USGS2021

Historical hydrologic and geomorphic conditions on the Black River and selected tributaries, Arkansas and Missouri

The Black River flows through southeast Missouri and northeast Arkansas to its confluence with the White River in Arkansas. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates Clearwater Dam on the Black River and a series of dams in the White River Basin primarily for flood control. In this study, the hydrology and geomorphology of the Black River are examined through an analysis of annual mean and peak discharges at streamgages, a specific stage analysis of stage and discharge at streamgages, and an examination of bathymetric data and aerial imagery. Five streamgages on the Black River were analyzed, in addition to four streamgages on Black River tributaries and one streamgage on the White River, located just downstream from the Black River confluence. The analyses indicated that regulation of discharges at the flood-control dams caused a decrease in the magnitude and variability of the peak discharges at several of the analyzed gages on the Black and White Rivers. Conversely, peak discharges on the Black River have been increasing since water year 2000, though this is not matched by an increase in peak discharges on the White River for the same time period. The specific stage analyses and the available morphologic data generally did not indicate pronounced changes in stage-discharge relations at streamgages on the Black River, with the exception of the gages nearest to Clearwater Dam.

Arkansas, Missouri↗