Understanding habitat conditions, lake conditions, and fish community dynamics is critical to protecting and restoring Lake Roosevelt’s fishery.

Our work includes:

Creel Surveys

Angler interviews help us estimate total catch and the economic value of the fishery. We also evaluate the contribution of hatchery and net pen rainbow trout, redband trout and kokanee to the fishery.

Fish Tracking

Rainbow trout are marked with floy tags, and kokanee with various fin clips. Scientists utilize fish tags, finclips, and acoustic tracking to determine effective release strategies for hatchery fish and to monitor wild fish movements and habitat use.

Fish Surveys

Hydroacoustics, electrofishing, gill netting, and trapping help assess fish condition, age, diet, growth, behavior, migration patterns and adult spawning activities. This information is used to manage for healthy fish populations in the Lake Roosevelt ecosystem.

Lake Studies

Water quality work includes investigations of temperature, dissolved oxygen, plant nutrients and zooplankton populations. These water quality indicators are critical to the fisheries health.

Modeling

A computer model was adapted to simulate the effect of potential changes to flow, lake elevation or other variables on reservoir conditions. The model can simulate changes to temperature, oxygen, nutrients, and other conditions that may affect the fishery.