Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Nearshore fish community responses to large scale dam removal: implications for watershed restoration and fish management

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Aquatic Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The nearshore is a critical zone for northeast Pacific Ocean fish communities, including ecologically and culturally important salmon species. The largest dam removal in the world was recently completed on the Elwha River, with the goal of restoring fisheries and ecosystems to the watershed. The nearshore Elwha fish community was monitored monthly from January 2008 to November 2015 before, during and after dam removal. As of September 2015, approximately 2.6 million m3 of sediment material had increased the area of the Elwha delta to over 150 ha. Newly formed nearshore habitats were quickly colonized by fish communities during the dam removal period but the communities were similar in total species richness and Shannon diversity before and after dam removal, and were similar to a nearby reference site (Salt Creek estuary). Select fish species, including ESA-listed Pacific salmon and trout Oncorhynchus spp., and eulachon Thaleichthys pacificus, and non-native, American shad (Alosa sapidissima), appeared quickly in these new habitats. Hatchery releases of Chinook, O. tshawytscha, coho, O. kisutch, and steelhead, O. mykiss (over 3 million total fish annually to the lower river), dominated the Elwha estuary catch from April through August of each year before, during, and after dam removal. Chum salmon catch rate, size, and duration of estuary occupancy declined during and after dam removal. Overall catches of chum salmon fry prior to, during, and after dam removal were significantly negatively correlated with Chinook salmon catches but significantly, and positively, correlated with coho salmon. When assessed at the Elwha estuary separately, chum abundance was significantly positively correlated with Chinook, coho, and steelhead abundance. These patterns indicate overlap, and likely interaction between these respective groups of hatchery and wild fish. Continued hatchery releases may therefore further challenge chum salmon recovery and should be considered when planning for watershed recovery.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Barton K. (2012) Package “MuMIn: Multi-model inference” for R, R Package Version 1.6.6 (http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=MuMIn), Accessed 21 Sept 2012.

  • Bates D, Maechler M, Bolker B, Walker S (2015) Fitting linear mixed-effects models using lme4. J Stat Software 67:1–48. doi:10.18637/jss.v067.i01

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bolker BM, Brooks ME, Clark CJ, Geange SW, Poulsen JR, Stevens MHH, White JSS (2009) Generalized linear mixed models: a practical guide for ecology and evolution. TREE 24:127–135

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cordell JR, Toft JD, Gray A, Ruggerone GT, Cooksey M (2011) Functions of restored wetlands for juvenile salmon in an industrialized estuary. Ecol Eng 37:343–353

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Draut AE, Ritchie AC (2015) Sedimentology of new fluvial deposits on the Elwha River, Washington, USA, formed during large-scale dam removal. River Res Apps 31:42–61

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DOI (U.S. Department of the Interior) (2005) Elwha River ecosystem restoration implementation, final supplement to the final Environmental Impact Statement. NPS D-377A. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Olympic National Park, Port Angeles

  • Duffy EJ, Beauchamp DA, Sweeting RM, Beamish RJ, Brennan JS (2010) Ontogenetic diet shifts of juvenile Chinook salmon in nearshore and offshore habitats of Puget Sound. Trans Amer Fish Soc 139:803–823

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • East AE, Pess GR, Bountry JA, Magirl CS, Ritchie AC, Logan JB, Randle TJ, Mastin MC, Minear JT, Duda JJ, Liermann MC (2015) Large-scale dam removal on the Elwha River, Washington, USA: River channel and floodplain geomorphic change. Geomorphology 228:765–786

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act (Public Law 102–495), 3 Jan 1992

  • ESRI (2010) ArcGIS Desktop: Release 10, Redlands, CA: Environmental Systems Research Institute

    Google Scholar 

  • Foley MM, Duda JJ, Beirne MM, Paradis R, Ritchie A, Warrick JA (2015) Rapid water quality change in the Elwha River estuary complex during dam removal. Limnol Oceanogr 60:1719–1732

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fresh KL (2006) Juvenile Pacific salmon and the nearshore ecosystems of Puget Sound. Puget Sound Nearshore Partnership. Technical Report 2006-06. Published by Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle, Washington. Available at http://www.pugetsoundnearshore.org/.

  • Fresh KL, Schroder SL (1987) Influence of the abundance, size, and yolk reserves of juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) on predation by freshwater fishes in a small coastal stream. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 44:236–243

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerhard D (2014) Simultaneous small sample inference for linear combinations of generalized linear model parameters. Commun Stat Simul Comput. doi:10.1080/03610918.2014.895836.

    Google Scholar 

  • Healey MC (1979) Detritus and juvenile salmon production in the Nanaimo estuary: I. production and feeding rates of juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). J Fish Res Board Can 36:488–496

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Healey MC (1982) Juvenile Pacific salmon in estuaries: the life support system. In: Kennedy VS (ed) Estuarine Comparisons. Academic Press, New York, pp 315–341

    Google Scholar 

  • Hocking M, Reimchen T (2009) Salmon species, density and watershed size predict magnitude of marine enrichment in riparian food webs. Oikos 118:1307–1318

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hocking MD, Reynolds JD (2011) Impacts of salmon on riparian plant diversity. Science 331(6024):1609–1612

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hurteau LA, Mooers, AØ, Reynolds JD, Hocking MD (2016) Salmon nutrients are associated with the phylogenetic dispersion of riparian flowering-plant assemblages. Ecology 97:450–460

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Olympic National Park (2015) http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/elwha-faq.html

  • McHenry M, McCoy R, Haggerty M (2004) Salt Creek watershed: an assessment of habitat conditions, fish populations and opportunities for restoration. North Olympic Salmon Coalition, Port Townsend

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller B, Simenstad CA, Cross JN, Fresh KL, Steinfort SN (1980) Nearshore fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages along the Strait of Juan de Fuca including food habits of common nearshore fish. Final report of three years sampling 1976–1979. Fisheries Research Institute College of Fisheries University of Washington Seattle, Seattle

    Google Scholar 

  • Naish KA, Taylor JE, Levin PS, Quinn TP, Winton JR, Huppert D (2007) An evaluation of the effects of conservation and fishery enhancement hatcheries on wild populations of salmon. Adv Mar Biol 53:61–194

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson MC, Reynolds JD (2014) Time-delayed subsidies: interspecies population effects in salmon. PLoS ONE 9(6):e98951. doi:10.1371/journal.pone 0098951

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). (2010) Federal Register Notice announcing initiation of review of Puget Sound salmon 75 FR 13082; March 18, 2010 http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/species/pugetsound_salmonids_5yearreview.pdf.

  • NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) (2015) Proposed Endangered Species Act (ESA) recovery plan for Oregon coast coho salmon (proposed plan). https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/10/13/2015-25866/endangered-and-threatened-species-recovery-plans

  • NOAA (2015) Eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus): NOAA Fisheries.

  • NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) (2016) Fisheries off west coast states; comprehensive ecosystem-based amendment 1; amendments to the fishery management plans for coastal pelagic species, Pacific coast groundfish, U.S. west coast highly migratory species, and Pacific coast salmon. Federal register 50 CFR Part 660 [Docket No.: 150629565-6224-02] RIN 0648-BF15. http://federalregister.gov/a/2016-07516

  • Parker RR (1971) Size selective predation among juvenile salmonid fishes in a British Columbia inlet. J Fish Board Can 28:1503–1510

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pess GR, McHenry ML, Beechie TJ, Davies J (2008) Biological impacts of the Elwha River dams and potential salmonid responses to dam removal. Northw Sci 82(Special Issue):72–90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peters R (1996) Emigration of juvenile in the Elwha River and implications for timing hatchery coho salmon releases. USFWS, Olympia

    Google Scholar 

  • Puget Sound Water Quality Authority, Olympia (PSWQA) (1996). Recommended protocol for sampling soft bottom demersal fishes by beach seines and trawling in puget sound, Washington. Puget Sound Partnership, Olympia

    Google Scholar 

  • Quinn TP (2005) The Behavior and Ecology of Pacific Salmon and Trout. University of Washington Press, Seattle

    Google Scholar 

  • Quinn TP, Harris N, Shaffer JA, Byrnes C, Crain P (2013) Juvenile coho salmon, Oncorhynchus kisutch, in the Elwha River estuary prior to dam removal: Seasonal occupancy, size distribution, and comparison to nearby Salt Creek. Trans Amer Fish Soc 142:1058–1066

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quinn TP, Shaffer JA, Brown J, Byrnes C, Harris N, Crain P (2014) Juvenile Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, use of the Elwha River estuary prior to dam removal. Envir Biol Fish 97: 731–740

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Randle TJ, Bountry JA, Ritchie A, Wille K (2015) Large-scale dam removal on the Elwha River, Washington, USA: Erosion of reservoir sediment. Geomorphology 246:709–728

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Regional Mark Information System (RMIS). Regional Mark Processing Center (RMPC) http://www.rmpc.org

  • R Core Team (2013) R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. URL http://www.R-project.org/.

  • Salo EO (1991) Life history of chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). Pages 231–309 in C. Groot, and L. Margolis, editors. Pacific salmon life histories. University of British Columbia Press, Vancouver

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaffer JA, Crain P, Winter B, McHenry M, Lear C, Randle T (2008) Nearshore restoration of the Elwha River through removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams: an overview. Northw Sci 82(Special issue):48–58

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shaffer JA, Beirne M, Ritchie T, Paradis R, Barry D, Crain P (2009) Fish habitat use in response to anthropogenic induced changes of physical processes in the Elwha estuary, Washington, USA. Hydrobiologia 636:179–190

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shaffer JA, Crain P, Kassler T, Penttila D, Barry D (2012) Geomorphic habitat type, drift cell, forage fish, and juvenile salmon: are they linked? J Env Sci Eng A 1:688–703

    Google Scholar 

  • Sibert JR (1979) Detritus and juvenile salmon production in the Nanaimo estuary: II. Meiofauna available as food to juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). J Fish Res Board Can 36:497–503

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sibert J, Brown TJ, Healey MC, Kask BA (1977) Detritus-based food webs: exploitation by juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). Science 196:649–650

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Simenstad CA, Fresh KL, Salo EO (1982) The role of Puget Sound and Washington coastal estuaries in the life history of Pacific salmon: an unappreciated function. Pages 343–364 in V. S. Kennedy, editor. Estuarine Comparisons. Academic Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith CJ (1999) Salmon and steelhead habitat limiting factors in the western Strait of Juan de Fuca. Washington State Conservation Commission, Lacey

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith EP, Orvos DR, Cairns J Jr (1993) Impact assessment using the before–after–control–impact (BACI) model. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 50:627–637

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tallman RF, Healey MC (1991) Phenotypic differentiation in seasonal ecotypes of chum salmon, Oncorhynchus keta. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 48:661–671

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thorpe JE (1994) Salmonid fishes and the estuary environment. Estuaries 17(1 A):76–93

  • Wagenmakers EJ, Farrell S (2004) AIC model selection using Akaike weights. Psychonom Bull Rev 11:192–196

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ward L, Crain P, Freymond B, McHenry M, Morrill D, Pess GR, Peters R, Shaffer JA, Winter B, Wunderlich B (2008) Elwha River Fish Restoration Plan, developed pursuant to the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act, Public Law 102–495. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS-NWFSC-90, p. 168

  • Washington State RCO (2013) http://www.rco.wa.gov/salmon_recovery/lead_entities.shtml

  • WDNR (2011) 1-meter digital orthophoto mosaic. Washington Department of Natural Resources, Olympia

    Google Scholar 

  • Weitkamp LA, Goulette G, Hawkes J, O’Malley M, Lipsky C (2014) Juvenile salmon in estuaries: comparisons between North American Atlantic and Pacific salmon populations. Revs Fish Biol. Fisheries 24:713–736

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Over 100 students from a number of colleges including Peninsula College, WWU, UW, SPU, CWU, WSU, St Olaf, Eckerd College, and the University of Victoria have assisted on this project over the years-their help has been invaluable. Funding for student internships and field support has been provided by Coastal Watershed Institute, Patagonia, Olympic Peninsula Surfrider Foundation, Rose Foundation, Seattle Foundation, Hayes Foundation, Puget Sound Keeper Alliance, the University of Victoria, and the University of Washington. This project has also been funded in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement PC00J29801 to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife*. Private landowners and their representatives including Malcolm and Cozette Dudley, Chuck Janda, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, and Ben and Irene Palzer provided access to sampling sites. John Anderson, Linda Carroll, and Nicole Harris provided important administrative and project support. Peninsula College has provided lab and storage space. Jack Ganzhorn, Dwight Barry, and Nancy Bluestien-Johnson, WWU, provided collaboration and student internship mentoring/supervision. Dan Penttila, Salish Sea Biological, and Theodore Pietsch and staff at the UW assisted with fish identification. Tamre Cardoso, University of Washington, provided technical assistance with calculating R2 values and 95% CI. The Washington Conservation Corps and Wayne Fitzwater, WaDNR have provided invaluable field assistance. Jim Longwill and Dan Webb, PSMRC provided hatchery data. Pat Crain, ONP provided technical consideration and manuscript review. Thomas Quinn’s participation was supported by the Washington Sea Grant, University of Washington, pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Award No. NA10OAR4170075, Project R/LME-7, and by the H. Mason Keeler Endowment to the University of Washington. Aerial photography was provided by Andy Ritchie, ONP/USGS. Terry Johnson, WDFW, provided the map figure. Mitch Dennis, NOAA, provided federal permit coordination and guidance. The dam removal project occurred because of the tenacity and hope of the members and staff of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, Brian Winter and local and national staff of the National Park Service, and Olympic National Park. Thank you all. *(The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use). All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology Department, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada

    J. Anne Shaffer, Francis Juanes & Cayla Naumann

  2. Coastal Watershed Institute, P.O. Box 2263, Port Angeles, WA, 98362, USA

    J. Anne Shaffer, Tara McBride, James Michel & Cayla Naumann

  3. School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA

    Thomas P. Quinn

  4. Washington Department of Natural Resources, Port Angeles, WA, 98362, USA

    Dave Parks

  5. Western Washington University Huxley College of the Environment on the Peninsulas/Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA, 98362, USA

    Tara McBride

  6. School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada

    Morgan Hocking

  7. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Port Angeles, WA, 98362, USA

    Chris Byrnes

Authors
  1. J. Anne Shaffer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Francis Juanes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Thomas P. Quinn
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Dave Parks
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Tara McBride
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. James Michel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Cayla Naumann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Morgan Hocking
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Chris Byrnes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to J. Anne Shaffer.

Appendix

Appendix

See Tables 6, 7, 8 and 9.

Table 6 Change in areal extent of wetted habitat of the Elwha estuary and lower river due to dam removal sediment delivery prior to (pre 2011), during (2011–2014) and after dam removal (2015), and total area, hectares, of Elwha shoreline and delta habitats
Full size table
Table 7 Total number of hatchery-produced salmonids released into the Elwha River between January-June, 2008–2015
Full size table
Table 8 Comparison of percent composition of Pacific salmon in the Elwha River prior to dam construction, the percent composition of salmon released from hatcheries, and catch of juveniles in our study 2008–2015
Full size table
Table 9 Fixed effects top model coefficients, standard error, and significance * = 0.05; ** = <0.01; *** = <0.001
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Shaffer, J.A., Juanes, F., Quinn, T.P. et al. Nearshore fish community responses to large scale dam removal: implications for watershed restoration and fish management. Aquat Sci 79, 643–660 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-017-0526-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-017-0526-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation