Stream ecosystems are widely recognized as providing high levels of biodiversity and ecosystem services worldwide. However, they are also one of the most degraded ecosystem types due to historic and ongoing impacts from agricultural, navigation, mining, and upstream anthropogenic use. Using beaver (Castor canadensis) to restore stream ecosystems throughout North America is becoming more common place. Additionally, beaver dam analogs (BDAs) or human built beaver dams are now increasingly being used to improve stream health by reconnecting streams to their floodplains. We wished to understand if BDAs could be used to improve habitat for native Bonneville Cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki utah) by increasing floodplain connectivity, stabilizing temperature regimes, and reducing fluctuations in dissolved oxygen by using a Before-After Control Impact framework at multiple sites across East Canyon Creek, UT.
Results/Conclusions
In our first year of study prior to the BDA restoration we determined that Cutthroat trout were almost entirely absent from the system (< 1% biomass). Brown trout and warmer water species such as Utah sucker were dominate. Continued monitoring will determine if this restoration approach can have the desired results for increasing Cutthroat trout prevalence along with other ecosystem level responses such as increasing floodplain connectivity, stabilizing temperature regimes, and reducing fluctuations in dissolved oxygen