Lamprey Conservation Guidance for Instream Activities

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Lamprey Conservation Guidance for Instream
Activities
Bianca Streif

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office

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Introduction

• Life history characteristics of lampreys.
• How to identify of locations of lampreys within
  streams to avoid impacts.
• Habitat impacts to lampreys.
• Recommended actions that address the conservation
  needs of lampreys.

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• Information is limited on lamprey life history
  and ecology, and even more limited on reasons for
  decline and recommended conservation actions.
• Recommendations presented are based on
  literature, information from biologists
  conducting research and implementing projects on
  lampreys or other aquatic species throughout the
  west. In addition, information was gathered from
  various experts using a survey specific to this
  presentation.

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lamprey An eel-like primitive fish with a
jawless sucking mouth.-The American Heritage
Dictionary
Lampetra lambere lick petra stone(Stone
licker)
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Pacific Northwest Lampreys
Pacific lamprey Lampetra tridentata River
Lamprey L. ayresi Western Brook Lamprey L.
richardsoni Other species in region Dwarf
Pacific Lamprey Miller Lake lamprey L.
minima Pacific brook lamprey L.
pacifica Klamath River lampreys L. similis, L.
lethophaga, L. folleti
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Distribution

• Historically, Pacific lampreys were thought to be
  distributed wherever salmon and steelhead once
  occurred.

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Pacific Lamprey Life History
Eggs hatch into larvae
Adults spawn in gravel nest in stream riffles,
then die
Adults live in ocean 2-3 years and feed on host
fish
Adult migrates to freshwater
Larvae (ammocoetes) drift downstream to backwater
area
Teeth pattern used for ID
Larvae transform to juveniles (macropthalmia) and
migrate to ocean or stay in stream
Ammocoetes live in silt/sand substrates as filter
feeders for 5-7 years
Sucking disk
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Adult Phase
Pacific river lamprey adults in ocean 1 4
years.
Goose Lake lamprey on tui chub
R. White
Lamprey scars on basking shark
Western brook lamprey are not parasitic and do
not feed as adults.
M. Mitchell
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SpawningAdults enter freshwater Feb. Oct. and
spawn the following Feb. - May.
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Adult Pacific Lamprey Spawning Needs

• Spawn in low gradient riffles, runs, glides and
  pool tail outs.
• Use gravel /cobble substrate (2-4 in.) with low
  embeddedness.
• Nest is usually 0.5 2 feet deep with 0.2-3
  ft/sec flow.
• Passage to spawning areas.
• Intact stream systems.
• Ammocoete pheromones?

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• Migrating adult lampreys may be directed to
  their spawning areas by the smell (pheromones) of
  larval and juvenile lampreys. It is unknown if
  they have any homing instinct like that of salmon.

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Habitat alteration effects on adult lampreys

• Physical barriers
• Entrainment
• Altered flows
• Altered sediment regimes
• Loss of riparian habitat
• Water temperature quality

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Ammocoetes (larvae)The most important habitat
to protect for lamprey...
ammos sandkoites dwellers
Multiple age classes reside in fine sediments for
3 7 years.
Feed on diatoms, algae, and detritus.
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Pacific Lamprey Ammocoete Needs

• Undisturbed low velocity areas with fine
  substrates such as backwater habitat.
• Stable channel bottom.
• Passage to rearing areas.
• Clean water and natural flows.
• Habitat complexity / large wood.
• Healthy riparian corridors.

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Habitat alteration effects on ammocoetes

• Altered Flows / de-watering of stream.
• Contaminants.
• Altered sediment regimes.
• Streambed disturbance and/or degradation.
• Degradation of floodplain and riparian habitats.
• Elevated water temperature.
• Physical barriers to rearing areas.
• Entrainment / Impingement.

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Macropthalmia (juvenile)
Transform July Oct. migrate to ocean late fall
and spring.

• macr large
• opthalmia eye

USGS
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Pacific Lamprey Juvenile Needs

• Unobstructed passage to ocean.
• Habitat complexity / large wood.
• Natural flows.

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Habitat alteration effects on juvenile lampreys

• Entrainment / impingement
• Altered Flows
• Physical barriers
• Elevated water temperature
• Loss of habitat diversity
• Conditions that favor predators

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Value

• Tribal
• Food
• Cultural / medicinal
• Commercial
• Bait
• Ecological
• Forage for birds, sturgeon, sea lions
• Ocean derived nutrients
• Filter feeders

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Status

• Three Pacific Northwest lamprey species were
  petitioned for listing but found not to be
  warranted (due to a lack of information) for
  listing under the ESA
• Pacific lamprey
• Western brook lamprey
• River lamprey
• It appears there has been a decline in abundance
  and distribution of lampreys.

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Determine if lampreys are in the stream before
your project begins!
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Methods Used to find Lampreys Locating them in
a stream before your project begins.

• Local experts and / or mapping data
• Video monitoring
• Adults / Juveniles
• Direct observation during spawning
• Observation of lamprey redds
• Night-time observations esp. at barriers
• Nets (hand, dip, drift, fyke) and seines
• Electro-fishing (slow pulse)
• Screw traps / pot traps
• Snorkeling
• Weirs

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Methods Used to find Lampreys Locating them in
a stream before your project begins.

• Ammocoetes
• Nets and seines
• Electro-fishing (slow pulse)
• Not recommended
• Screening substrate
• De-watering
• Gill-netting

the absence of evidence is not evidence of
absence Stewart Reid
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Passage
Lampreys move mostly at night with bursts of
swimming followed by attaching to a relatively
smooth surface. They will wedge into crevices,
climb most vertical faces, and seek out lower
velocity flows!

• Lampreys travel deeper in the water column (no
  air bladder) compared to salmonids, therefore,
  traditional spill gates may block passage. Use
  removable spillway weirs during peak movement
  periods.
• Lampreys avoid light.
• Hanging culverts (a couple of inches) are
  barriers to lampreys.

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Lamprey friendly passage features include

• Smooth surfaces.
• Round corners with no 90 bends in high
  velocity areas.
• Natural substrate in culvert bottoms or fitted
  with attachment surfaces.

No grating that precludes attachment.
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Lamprey friendly passage features include

• Flat plates (e.g., steel, aluminum,
  polycarbonate) to provide attachment points for
  passage ramps over flashboards or grating.
• Smaller gaps on screens to reduce impingement or
  entrainment of ammocoetes on screens or intakes.
• Rock piled with water overflow to accommodate
  passage at barriers.

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Flows

• Avoid de-watering streambeds containing
  ammocoetes.
• Ramp down flows slowly at night so ammocoetes and
  juveniles can move out.
• Protect natural surface and subsurface flows.
• Provide adequate stream flow velocities during
  peak migration periods.

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Stream Substrates

• Spawning substrates probably not as critical as
  salmonids due to shorter in gravel time.
• Prevent substrate smothering.
• Projects that may reduce the complexity of
  substrate particle size (esp. decrease in sand
  and silt) below historic levels may have an
  adverse impact on lamprey populations.

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Habitat Complexity

• Protect water quality.
• Preserve slow water habitats used by lampreys.
• Avoid alteration of low gradient stream reaches
  because they may impact lamprey rearing
  capacities.

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Habitat Complexity

• Generally lampreys appear to be more abundant in
  streams with high habitat complexity (leaf
  litter, woody debris of all sizes, complex pools
  / riffle habitats, diverse substrate size).
• Lamprey ammocoetes have an affinity for riparian
  canopy cover (shade). However, it is unclear if
  this behavior is in response to thermal
  preferences or light avoidance.

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Diversions / Screening

• Approach velocity, screen size, and diversion
  routes should be considered with lamprey behavior
  in mind, i.e., they may not follow hydraulic cues
  like salmonids.
• Newer irrigation ditch screen bypass systems
  function for most older (gt age 2) ammocoetes and
  macropthalmia. Younger ammocoetes sometimes move
  between drum screen seals and into ditches.
• Design to avoid impingement small (3/32-inch)
  screen placed vertically.
• Mid-water intakes might reduce entrainment
  ammocoetes appear to move downstream close to the
  surface at night.
• Reduce night diversions to avoid most entrainment.

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In-Water Work Periods

• Limit in-stream-work to the higher velocity
  habitats to reduce the overall numbers of
  lamprey encountered.
• Disturbance to one rearing area can result in
  mortality of hundreds and perhaps several
  thousand rearing ammocoetes of several age
  classes.
• Instream work manipulating the substrates and
  stream channel is likely to impact rearing
  lampreys to some degree year-round.

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Primary Considerations in Project Design and
Implementation

• Provide Lamprey Passage
• Protect Ammocoete Habitat
• Think Channel Complexity

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Freshwater Mussels.
Old growth forests of aquatic ecosystems
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Special Thanks
Tammie Steelman California DFG Doug Baus
USFWS, OR Damon Goodman USFWS Arcata CA Petey
Brucker Salmon River, CA Leo Grandmontagne
Coquille River, OR Erich Yokel Siskiyou Co.
CA Lisa Briggs Coos Watershed Assoc. Ann Gray
USFWS, OR Paul Cadrett USFWS Stockton, CA Chad
Smith City of Portland Dan Van Slyke
BLM Christina Luzier USFWS Vancouver Mike
Clement Grant PUD Rob Nielsen URS
Corporation, WA

• Abel Brumo OSU
• Stewart Reid Western Fishes, CA
• Jason Dunham - USGS
• Christopher Claire Idaho DFG
• Mary Moser NOAA Fisheries
• Larry Ward Elwha Tribe, WA
• Michael Meeuwig Montana Coop Fish Res. Unit
• David Clungston COE, Portland
• Chris Brun Conf. Tribes of the Warm Springs
• Dennis Dauble PNW National Lab
• Shawn Chase, Sonoma Co. Water Agency
• Daniel Domina - PGE
• Steve Corbett Olympic Natl Park, WA