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Evaluation of a large-scale flow manipulation to the upper San Francisco Estuary: Response of habitat conditions for an endangered native fish

PloS one, 2020-10, Vol.15 (10), p.e0234673-e0234673 [Peer Reviewed Journal]

COPYRIGHT 2020 Public Library of Science ;COPYRIGHT 2020 Public Library of Science ;This is an open access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License. ;ISSN: 1932-6203 ;EISSN: 1932-6203 ;DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0234673 ;PMID: 33002006

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Title:
Evaluation of a large-scale flow manipulation to the upper San Francisco Estuary: Response of habitat conditions for an endangered native fish
Author: Sommer, Ted ; Hartman, Rosemary ; Koller, Michal ; Koohafkan, Michael ; Conrad, J. Louise ; MacWilliams, Michael ; Bever, Aaron ; Burdi, Christina ; Hennessy, April ; Beakes, Michael
Magar, Vanesa
Subjects: Biology and Life Sciences ; Chlorophyll ; Construction ; Critical period ; Deltas ; Earth Sciences ; Ecology and Environmental Sciences ; Ecosystems ; Endangered species ; Environmental aspects ; Environmental monitoring ; Estuaries ; Estuarine ecosystems ; Fish ; Floods ; Habitats ; Monitoring ; Natural history ; Physical Sciences ; Prey ; Protection and preservation ; Rare species ; Rivers ; Salinity ; Salinity effects ; Salt marshes ; Smelts ; Summer ; Three dimensional models ; Tidal marshes ; Tributaries ; Turbidity ; Water control ; Water currents ; Water inflow ; Water shortages ; Wetlands ; Zooplankton
Is Part Of: PloS one, 2020-10, Vol.15 (10), p.e0234673-e0234673
Description: While flow is known to be a major driver of estuarine ecosystems, targeted flow manipulations are rare because tidal systems are extremely variable in space and time, and because the necessary infrastructure is rarely available. In summer 2018 we used a unique water control structure in the San Francisco Estuary (SFE) to direct a managed flow pulse into Suisun Marsh, one of the largest contiguous tidal marshes on the west coast of the United States. The action was designed to increase habitat suitability for the endangered Delta Smelt Hypomesus transpacificus, a small osmerid fish endemic to the upper SFE. The approach was to operate the Suisun Marsh Salinity Control Gates (SMSCG) in conjunction with increased Sacramento River tributary inflow to direct an estimated 160 x 10.sup.6 m.sup.3 pulse of low salinity water into Suisun Marsh during August, a critical time period for juvenile Delta Smelt rearing. Three-dimensional modeling showed that directing additional low salinity water into Suisun Marsh ("Flow Action") substantially increased the area of low salinity habitat for Delta Smelt that persisted beyond the period of SMSCG operations. Field monitoring showed that turbidity and chlorophyll were at higher levels in Suisun Marsh, representing better habitat conditions, than the upstream Sacramento River region throughout the study period. The Flow Action had no substantial effects on zooplankton abundance, nor did Suisun Marsh show enhanced levels of these prey species in comparison to the Sacramento River. Fish monitoring data suggested that small numbers of Delta Smelt colonized Suisun Marsh from the Sacramento River during the 2018 Flow Action. Comparison of the salinity effects of the Flow Action to historical catch data for Suisun Marsh further supported our hypothesis that the Flow Action would have some benefit for this rare species. Our study provides insight into both the potential use of targeted flow manipulations to support endangered fishes such as Delta Smelt, and into the general response of estuarine habitat to flow management.
Publisher: San Francisco: Public Library of Science
Language: English
Identifier: ISSN: 1932-6203
EISSN: 1932-6203
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0234673
PMID: 33002006
Source: PLoS (Open access)
Geneva Foundation Free Medical Journals at publisher websites
PubMed Central
Directory of Open Access Journals
ProQuest Central

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Evaluation of a large-scale flow manipulation to the upper San Francisco Estuary: Response of habitat conditions for an endangered native fish

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