# Presentation: 117297

## R I O Hs - Rio Grande Silvery Minnow Index of Habitat Health

- Joel D. Lusk and Cyndie Abeyta
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- Bosque Hydrology Group Water Quality Summit Meeting
- October 25, 2004

## Water Quality & the Silvery Minnow

- Water Quality – is the ecological quality of the Rio Grande necessary for the silvery minnow to survive:
- Chemical Factors
- Flow Regime
- Biotic Factors
- Physical Habitat
- Energy Sources

## Integrity of Silvery Minnow Habitat

**CHEMICAL**
**VARIABLES**

**BIOTIC**
**FACTORS**

**ENERGY**
**SOURCE**

**HABITAT**
**STRUCTURE**

**FLOW**
**REGIME**

## Chemical Factors of RGSM Habitat

## Flow Regime of RGSM Habitat

## Biotic Factors of RGSM Habitat

## Physical Features of RGSM Habitat

## Chemical Factors of RGSM Habitat

## Integrity of Silvery Minnow Habitat

**CHEMICAL**
**VARIABLES**

**BIOTIC**
**FACTORS**

**ENERGY**
**SOURCE**

**HABITAT**
**STRUCTURE**

**FLOW**
**REGIME**

## Integrated Water Quality Study

- Our Water Quality Assessment worked with Fishery Resources, Water Resources, and others to measure these qualities of the Middle Rio Grande in 2002-03.

## RIOHs - Ranking Chemical Quality

- Compare measured chemicals to:
- Water quality criteria
- Sediment quality criteria
- Tissue quality criteria
- Regional nutrient guidelines
- Temperature regimes
- Dissolved oxygen regimes
- Provide rank to all comparisons
- 5 = good, none exceed of criteria
- 3 = fair, few exceed of criteria
- 1 = poor, many exceed criteria

## RIOHs - Ranking Physical Quality

- Riverscape Quality
- Riparian Width
- River Width
- Width to Depth Ratio
- Shoreline Complexity Index
- Silvery minnow habitat quality
- Depths < 20 cm
- Velocity < 30 cm/sec
- Nonfluvial Mesohabitats (pools, etc.)
- Provide “5-3-1” ranks to all comparisons

## RIOHs - Ranking Biological Quality

- Fish Health Assessment
- Condition Factor
- Normality Index
- Severity Index
- Feeding Index
- Fish Community Metrics
- Presence of silvery minnow
- Number of native fish species
- Energy Sources
- Gross Primary Productivity

## RIOHs – 4 Site Chemical Example

| Criteria & (Rank) | Barelas | WWTP | Los Lunas | BdANWR |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| > Acute | ___(5) | ___(5) | ___(5) | ___(5) |
| > Chronic | ___(5) | COD (3) | BOD,COD (1) | ___(5) |
| DO < 3 mg/L | 5.6 (5) | 2.2 (1) | 3.1 (3) | 6.2 (5) |
| Temp > 30 C | 29.9 (5) | 29.2 (5) | 35.0 (1) | 30.9 (3) |
| > Nutrients | ___(5) | NO4 (3) | NO3,NO4 (1) | NO4 (3) |
| > Sediment | ___(5) | PAHs (3) | PAHs,OCs (1) | ___(5) |
| > Tissue | ___(5) | OCs, Hg, Se, Zn (1) | OCs, Al, Hg, Se, Zn (1) | Cr (3) |
| Index of Chemical Quality | 35 | 21 | 13 | 29 |
| Score | 100 % | 60 % | 37 % | 83 % |

## RIOHs – 4 Site Physical Example

| Criteria & (Rank) | Barelas | WWTP | Los Lunas | BdANWR |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Riparian (ft) | 1533 (3) | 384 (1) | 1928 (3) | 5495 (5) |
| River Width(ft) | 441 (5) | 24 (1) | 504 (5) | 177 (3) |
| Riparian/River | 3.4 (1) | 16 (3) | 3.8 (1) | 32 (5) |
| Depth/Width | 0.3 (3) | 5.0 (1) | 0.2 (5) | 0.5 (3) |
| Shoreline | 1.03 (3) | 1.00 (1) | 1.03 (3) | 1.16 (5) |
| Depth <20 cm | 51% (5) | 28% (1) | 45% (3) | 51% (5) |
| Velocity < 30cm/s | 37% (3) | 43% (3) | 59% (5) | 56% (5) |
| Index of Physical Quality | 23 | 11 | 25 | 31 |
| Score | 65 % | 31 % | 71 % | 89 % |

## RIOHs – 4 Site Biological Example

| Criteria & (Rank) | Barelas | WWTP | Los Lunas | BdANWR |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Condition | 0.84 (3) | 0.87 (3) | 0.91 (5) | 0.71 (1) |
| Fat Reserves | 0.87 (5) | 0.99 (5) | 0.72 (3) | 0.12 (1) |
| Feeding Index | 67.8 (5) | 68.9 (5) | 63.8 (3) | 47.4 (1) |
| Severity Index | 9.17 (3) | 11.25 (1) | 5.74 (5) | 11.06 (1) |
| RGSM ? | 1 (1) | 0 (1) | 4 (5) | 2 (3) |
| CPUE | 0.4 (1) | 0.2 (1) | 9.5 (5) | 3.4 (3) |
| # Predators | 82 (1) | 12 (5) | 29 (3) | 16 (5) |
| IndexofBiological Quality | 19 | 21 | 29 | 15 |
| Score | 54 % | 60 % | 83 % | 43 % |

## RIOHs –Example Results of 4 Sites

| Criteria & (Rank) | Barelas | WWTP | Los Lunas | BdANWR |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Index of Chemical Quality | 35 | 21 | 13 | 29 |
| Index of Physical Quality | 23 | 11 | 25 | 31 |
| Index of Biological Quality | 19 | 21 | 29 | 15 |
| RIOHs | 77 | 53 | 65 | 75 |
|  |  |  |  |  |
| Score | 73 % | 50 % | 63 % | 71% |

## RIOHs Impact Analysis – Percent and Type of Impairment

## RIOHs – Rio Grande Silvery Minnow Index of Habitat Health

- RIOHs is an index to assess the ecological integrity of silvery minnow habitat
- RIOHs integrates landscape, habitat, fish health, productivity, and chemical factors – Can be expanded! (algae?).
- RIOHs identifies impaired sites and prioritizes how to restore them
- RIOHs = can help link Science, Management, and Outreach for Recovery.