Emily Oma

Brian He

Nelson, 

Tram

Humpback Chub Translocations 

Shinumo and Havasu Creeks, 

Grand Canyon National Park
Many Cooperators!

•Funded by Reclamation and NPS•Thank you to NPS River and Helicopter crews!•Many, many volunteers helped too!•Thanks to Amy Martin, Brian Healy, Melissa Trammell, Jeff Soren

Balsom, and Allyson Mathis for beautiful photos
Why Translocate Humpback C

 USFWS 1994 Biological Opinion – Establish 

“spawning aggregation” of Humpback Chub

 Conservation Measures in USFWS 2008 & 2

Biological Opinions – tributary Humpback Ctranslocations

 NPS Comprehensive Fisheries Management P

2013
Valdez et al. 2000 – Developed plan fo

establishing second population of humpback 

in Grand Canyon, identifying the top 3 tribu

for translocation

1. Havasu Creek2. Shinumo Creek3. Bright Angel Creek, excluded due to “large n

of predators...”

Next....
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Translocation Sites 

Glen Canyon Dam & Lake Powell- 15 mile

Hoover Dam & Lake Mead

•HBC collected from LCR as YOY•Treated & PIT tagged at SNARRC o•Translocated within 11 months of col

HB
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Translocation Goals

 Experimental Establish second spawning population in 

Grand Canyon

--and/or—

 Provide rearing habitat for juvenile Humpba

Chub- Augmentation of Colorado River aggregations
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Tributary

Hatchery

Tagging Date

Average

Length (mm)

Average

Weight (g) Rele

Shinumo

Creek May 18, 2009 127.9 18.7 June 

Shinumo

Creek June 10, 2010 121.1 15.3 June 

Shinumo

Creek May 5, 2011 88.9 5.4 June 

Shinumo

Creek June 10, 2013 123.3 14.8 June 

* Alternative translocation site due to Galahad Fire (fish originally destined 

Shinumo Creek

Total= 1102
Havasu Creek

Total= 1350

Tributary

Hatchery

Tagging Date

Average

Length (mm)

Average

Weight (g) Releas

Havasu Creek May 5, 2011 86.1 4.8 June 2Havasu Creek May 10, 2012 124.7 16.7 May 1

Havasu Creek May 9, 2013 123.1 14.9 May 1

Havasu Creek May 9, 2014 123 16.4 May 1

Havasu Creek* May 9, 2014 124 16.4 June 5

* Alternative translocation site due to Galahad Fire (fish originally destined fo
Monitoring Methods
Questions about Translocation

1. Will chub remain & survive ?2. Will chub augment mainstem?

3. How will chub fare in 4. Will chub reproduce?
1.Will chub remain & survive?

 50.4% as  Antenna e

 Apparent survival has varied over time2011- low Rainbow Trout densities2013- soft release into new areas
*Cross-hatched population estimates indicate estimates based on preliminary, modeled capture 

derived from previous sampling events.  Minimum of 200 HBC to be maintained in Shinumo Creek if acting as a “gr

(NPS CFMP 2013)

1. Will chub remain & survive?

0

300 300 200
Apparent survival does not vary over time in 

Havasu Creek as it does in Shinumo Creek Apparent survival does vary by HBC total length

and translocation group

1. Will chub remain & survive?
 These abundance estimates include both translocated and non-translocated H

Chub. Minimum of 200 HBC to be maintained in Havasu Creek if reproduction occ(USFWS 2010, NPS CFMP 2013)

1. Will chub remain & survive?

298 300 300+209
2. Will Translocations Augment Colorado 

Humpback Chub Aggregations?

 NPS 2010-2014: 149 unique translocated chub caught in the mainstem Colo

many in multiple years (214 total captures)

 3 HBC translocated to Shinumo Creek have been detected in antenn

the Little Colorado RiverGCMRC/FWS presenting much more later today!
3. How will chub fare in the tributa

Hatchery relative weight vs. one summer in Shinumo Creek
3. How will chub fare in the tribut

Theoretical LCR juvenile growth curve: Robinson & Childs 2001
3. How will chub fare in the tributa

Theoretical LCR juvenile growth curve: Robinson & Childs 2001
4. Will chub reproduce in tributar

Havasu Creek•Ripe males and females have been captured•GCMRC/ U of A ultrasound image study suggests multiple females contained developed eggs 

Shinumo Creek•No ripe fish•Worn fins and spawnindetected
4. Will chub reproduce in tributa

Untagged juvenile humpback chub from Havasu Creek 

in May 2013 & October 2014
Tributary Translocation Summa

1. Will chub remain & survive ? Yes, someMaintaining 200 minimum per the CFMP (NPS 2013) and USFWS 20Management Plan2. Will chub augment mainstem aggregations? Yes3. How will chub fare in the tributaries? Growth as high or the LCR4. Will chub reproduce? Yes, in Havasu Creek
2014 Flooding & Fire in Shinumo 

 Galahad Fire- started by lightning in May and then managed; burned approximately 6500 acres and 10% of the watershedLate July- flood severely damaged the antenna array

- USFWS staff reported the Colorado River had turned dark with 

and smelled like a campfire downstream of Shinumo Creek; recrboaters said the source was Shinumo Creek

- NPS River District personnel observed charcoal pieces in the cre

 August 20-22- an larger flood was reported by commercial boatmenimpacts noted even in the mainstem Colorado River
2014 Flooding & Fire in Shinumo 

September – NPS monitoring revealed severe flood disturbance & wdeposition of charred wood 

- water level appeared to have risen at least 12 -15 feet above basef- riparian vegetation was reduced by approximately 80-90%- at least one archeology site was damaged (Bass Camp)- macroinvertebrate densities and taxa richness significantly reduce- sediment deposition eliminated most pool habitat, including form

HBC translocation sites

- fish community reduced by 99%
Upper Shinumo Trips

 September 29-October 3: Merlin & Modred Reconnaissance

- concluded that the heavy localized rainfall on top of 

burned areas and flooding caused the likely extirpation of all HBC and BHS from the watershed

- RBT present in Merlin Abyss, providing a source for 

recolonization as habitat recovers

October 29-November 3: Merlin & Modred Nonnative 

Removal

- 869 RBT captured and preserved for beneficial use- 139 SPD (population estimate= 293-859)- RBT captured above a barrier falls in upper Merlin; are 

found all the way up to the spring source (several miles)

High habitat complexity and remote area with extremely difficult access make electrofishing removal unlikely
Potential Shinumo Creek Action

pending planning & complianc

Explore options and compliance for trout removal in upper waMonitor recovery of watershedTranslocate Humpback Chub

- were successfully maintaining 200 translocated HBC in cree- good growth- evidence of mainstem augmentation

successful “grow out” 

Reintroduce Bluehead Sucker
Pre- and Post- Flood/Galahad Fi

photo-matching
Galahad Fire

E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Sept 2009 and Sept 2014

reach 1 
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Sept 2009 and Sept 2014

Low Trail first stream crossing: Reach 1
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

Sept 2014

new driftwood on 

top of very tall rock
Sept 2014

Reach 2; note height of debris on tree

about 12’ above stream level
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

June 2009 and Sept 2014

looking across stream at bottom of Glide Pool, 

reach 3
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

June 2009 and Sept 2014

“The Glide Pool”; bottom of reach 4
E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R 

June 2011 and Sept 2014

“The Chub Pool” ; reach 4
 Spurgeon, J., C. Paukert, B. Healy, M. Trammell, D. Speas, E. Oman

Can translocated native fish retain their trophic niche when confronresident invasive? Ecology of Freshwater Fish, pp 1-11. In Press. Trof Humpback Chub into tributary streams of the Colorado River: imconservation of large-river fishes. Transactions of the American Fish

 Trammell, M., B. Healy, E. Omana Smith, and P. Sponholtz.2012. H

chub translocation to Havasu Creek, Grand Canyon National Park: implementation and monitoring plan. NPS Natural Resource Repor

 Spurgeon, J. C. Paukert, B. Healy, C. Kelley, D. Whiting. 2014. Can 

native fish retain their trophic niche when confronted with a residenEcology of Freshwater Fish, pp 1-11. Doi: 10.1111/eff.12160

Translocation Publication

Joe Tomelleri
•Cross-hatched population estimates based on preliminary modeled capture probability data d

previous sampling events. The asterisk(*) indicates a sampling period for which no population derived due to low capture probability. •Zero BHS captured in September 2014 following monsoon flooding and ash f2014 Galahad Point fire; 74 SPD caught

Shinumo Creek Bluehead Sucker & Speck

* 0
* p

on capdersam

*

Shinumo Creek Rainbow Trout
3. How will chub fare in the tribu

Theoretical LCR juvenile growth curve: 

Robinson & Childs 2001
3. How will chub fare in the tributa

Theoretical LCR juvenile growth curve: Robinson & Childs 2001