		\| Background \| Hypotheses \| Bibliography \| Maps \| Home

Stream Temperature Information in KRIS Big River

KRIS Web Background Pages: Temperature

There is a wealth of temperature data available for the Big River, thanks to inexpensive automated temperature sensing probes. These devices make it possible to collect hourly data for months with a limited number of site visits. The large amount of regional temperature information is a powerful tool for analyzing salmonid stream conditions. The Forest Science Project ( Lewis, 1999) has provided protocols for data collection.

The Hawthorne Timber Company (HTC), Mendocino Redwood Company and Jackson Demonstration State Forest have collected water temperature data in the KRIS Big River project area, which includes coastal tributaries such as Caspar Creek and Hare Creek. Most temperature data sets in KRIS have been previously trimmed, to remove outliers, such as temperatures recorded before and after the device is placed in the water. Hourly data were assimilated into large tables with location columns using the KRIS Hobo Import program. Then the KRIS Build Table functions were used to make tables of floating weekly average temperature for all locations. This allows comparisons across locations and at a single location over several years.

The primary type of temperature chart in KRIS Big River compares floating weekly average temperatures. The floating weekly average charts use a conservative reference of 16.8 degrees C as the stress threshold for coho salmon. Welsh et al. (2001) found that when floating weekly average temperatures exceeded 16.8 degrees C, coho salmon were absent in streams of the Mattole River. Hines and Ambrose (1998) found that when the floating weekly maximum temperature exceeded 18.3 degrees C, coho were absent in streams of the Ten Mile, Noyo, and Big River watersheds. Welsh et al. (2001) found the same result for floating weekly maximum temperature in the Mattole River.

Hypothesis #3 in KRIS Big River is concerned with temperature analysis.

The floating weekly average water temperature of Laguna Creek is shown at left. Laguna Creek is a small tributary near the coast in the Lower Big River sub-basin. The temperature did not exceed 16.8 degrees in either of the years measured, which means that temperature would not be limiting to coho salmon. Data provided by the Hawthorne Timber Company. The Little NF Big and tributaries of JDSF in the NF Big exhibit this type of regime.

The chart at left shows the floating weekly average water temperature of Russian Gulch for three years, during which time conditions were always optimal for coho salmon. Other coastal tributaries such as Hare Creek and Caspar Creek also tend to maintain an optimal temperature regime for coho salmon. They are all in the fog zone, maintain fairly good canopies and are at least in part incised, which provides topographic shading. Data provided by JDSF.

The floating weekly average water temperature of Daugherty Creek (Site 79-4) exceeded 16.8 degrees in all four years measured. This stream was formerly an optimal nursery for coho salmon and may be influenced by alteration of riparian conditions upstream. See Hypothesis #3 for an explanation of this linkage. The mainstem South Fork Big River, Upper Big River and portions of the upper North Fork sub-basin exhibit similar temperature patterns to Daugherty Creek.

References

Brett, J.R. 1952. Temperature tolerance in young Pacific salmon, genus Oncorhynchus. J. Fish. Res. Board of Canada. 9(6):265-323. http://www.humboldt.edu/~fsp/tim/1952article.html

Hines, D.H. and J.M. Ambrose. 1998. Evaluation of Stream Temperature Thresholds Based on Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) Presence and Absence in Managed Forest Lands in Coastal Mendocino County, California. Georgia Pacific Corporation, Ft. Bragg, CA. 14 p plus Appendices.

Lewis, T. 1999 . Regional Stream Temperature Monitoring Protocol. Forest Science Project, Humboldt State University. Arcata, CA. 29 pp.

McCullough, D. 1999 . A Review and Synthesis of Effects of Alterations to the Water Temperature Regime on Freshwater Life Stages of Salmonids, with Special Reference to Chinook Salmon. Columbia Intertribal Fisheries Commission, Portland, OR. Prepared for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 10. Published as EPA 910-R-99-010.

Welsh, Hartwell, PhD. Personal Communication, USDA Forest Service, Redwood Science Lab, Arcata, CA.

Welsh, H.H., G.R. Hodgson, M.F. Roche, B.C. Harvey. (2001). Distribution of Juvenile Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in Relation to Water Temperature in Tributaries of a Northern California Watershed Determining Management Thresholds for an Impaired Cold-water Adapted Fauna. In review for publication in the North American Journal of Fisheries Management. 21:464-470, 2001.

	The floating weekly average water temperature of Laguna Creek is shown at left. Laguna Creek is a small tributary near the coast in the Lower Big River sub-basin. The temperature did not exceed 16.8 degrees in either of the years measured, which means that temperature would not be limiting to coho salmon. Data provided by the Hawthorne Timber Company. The Little NF Big and tributaries of JDSF in the NF Big exhibit this type of regime.
	The chart at left shows the floating weekly average water temperature of Russian Gulch for three years, during which time conditions were always optimal for coho salmon. Other coastal tributaries such as Hare Creek and Caspar Creek also tend to maintain an optimal temperature regime for coho salmon. They are all in the fog zone, maintain fairly good canopies and are at least in part incised, which provides topographic shading. Data provided by JDSF.
	The floating weekly average water temperature of Daugherty Creek (Site 79-4) exceeded 16.8 degrees in all four years measured. This stream was formerly an optimal nursery for coho salmon and may be influenced by alteration of riparian conditions upstream. See Hypothesis #3 for an explanation of this linkage. The mainstem South Fork Big River, Upper Big River and portions of the upper North Fork sub-basin exhibit similar temperature patterns to Daugherty Creek.