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AUTHORS: Gerald Mestl, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission; Caroline Elliott, U.S. Geological Survey; Jerrod Hall, Thad Huenemann, Kirk Steffensen - Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ABSTRACT: The Missouri National Recreational River, immediately below Gavins Point Dam, is the longest minimally-altered reach remaining on the lower Missouri River. This reach has been highly affected by managed flows and sediment trapped behind Gavins Point Dam, its tributaries have been dammed or altered, and bank lines are highly stabilized. However, this 59 mile reach still retains many natural features such as active alluvial processes, which allows for a shifting channel alignment and creates a more natural distribution of water velocities and depths. Habitat restoration work on the channelized Missouri River has attempted to mimic these unaltered conditions through the construction of shallow water habitat but has been challenged by the lack of specific habitat needs, especially for pallid sturgeon and other native fish species. Using newly developed habitat preference functions, we will describe the habitat availability for a group of native species in a reach of the Missouri National Recreational River and compare this to a reach of the channelized lower Missouri River.
