|
Drought is taking such an early toll on portions of two popular southwestern Montana streams.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks announced today that the 19-mile stretch of the upper Big Hole River from the Rock Creek Road to the mouth of the North Fork of the Big Hole, and the 57-mile stretch of Red Rock River between Lima Dam and Clark Canyon reservoir, will remain closed to all angling due to extremely low water flows that threaten the survival of the rivers' wild fish populations.
The closure took effect Saturday, May 15, the day the general fishing season is set to open throughout Montana. While the remainder of the Big Hole will be open to fishing, FWP is asking anglers to be alert to declining flows and the potential for stress to fish.
Chris Hunter, FWP's chief of Fisheries in Helena, said irrigators in each basin are participating in a drought response plan, or on-going drought related meetings, and will continue to play an important role in helping to keep water in the Big Hole and Red Rock rivers this spring and summer.
On the Big Hole River, water users follow emergency and irrigation guidelines when low-water conditions occur. Meanwhile, water users on the Red Rock River recently voted unanimously to delay irrigation releases and may forego agricultural-use releases from Lima Dam for the rest of the summer while keeping a minimal instream flow for fish and stock water.
"It's distressing for FWP to close waters to fishing this early in the season," Hunter said. "This is also a critical time of year for these farmers and ranchers and we are very grateful for the communities' help and trust during these hard times," Hunter said.
The combination of the angling closure and the irrigators' willingness to cut back on water they have a legal right to use are designed to conserve and protect the Big Hole's spawning-age wild and native Arctic grayling and the Red Rock River's wild rainbow trout and brown trout.
Hunter said stream flows on the upper Big Hole near Wisdom recently fell below 6 cubic feet per second, which appears to be the lowest flow on record for this date and well below the 20 cfs recommended point of closure under the Big Hole Drought Management Plan. This time of year, the upper Big Hole River normally flows at 300 cfs. This is the sixth consecutive year that the upper Big Hole River closed to angling.
On the Red Rock River, now experiencing its fifth consecutive year of poor water conditions, the river is dry near Kidd and only managed a 5-cfs trickle near Dell, where flows of greater than 300 cfs would be expected for mid May.
Streams are closed to fishing when low-water conditions or high temperatures, combined with fishing pressure, would lead to an unacceptable level of stress on fish. Montana's streams and rivers contain populations of wild trout that replenish through natural spawning. It is critical that sufficient numbers of trout are conserved to repopulate the fishery when conditions improve.
Once abundant in the Missouri River above Great Falls, Montana's native fluvial, or river-dwelling, Arctic grayling are now restricted to the upper Big Hole River. The population represents the last remaining native population of river-dwelling Arctic grayling in the lower 48 states. Introductions of grayling into some Missouri River tributaries have recently been made to expand the native fish's present range.
Hunter said the upper Big Hole and Red Rock river closures could possibly remain in effect throughout the summer. |
Advertise with us