Kootenai River white sturgeon fine-scale habitat model archive

Kootenai river hydraulic conditions were simulated using the iRIC FaSTMECH two-dimensional hydraulic flow model (Nelson, 2003). In addition to this study, FaSTMECH 2D flow models have been developed for numerous Kootenai River studies dating back to 2005. The methods used to develop, calibrate, and simulate FaSTMECH 2D flow models are described at length in multiple previous studies (Fosness and Dudunake, in press; Barton and others, 2005; Barton and others, 2007; Logan and others, 2011; McDonald and others, 2016; McDonald and Nelson, 2018; McDonald and Nelson, 2020). Model simulations were combined with white sturgeon telemetry data to explain fish positions with respect to selected depths and depth-averaged velocity.