The original experimental design for this study was submitted to BPA in December, 1992 and field work began in 1993 as the Idaho Steelhead Supplementation Project.  Two small scale supplementation experiments were initiated in 1993 and completed in 2004.  In concordance with these supplementation studies, the project's objectives focused on Idaho wild steelhead population dynamics, life-history, and genetics.  The project was renamed Idaho Steelhead Monitoring & Evaluation Studies (ISMES) in 2005.  

In 2008, our monitoring activities will be similar to what was done in 2007.  We will install and operate a weir in Fish Creek to estimate steelhead escapement.  We will also collaborate with other Idaho Fish and Game weirs to estimate adult Steelhead escapement in Rapid River, Pahsimeroi River, upper Salmon River (Sawtooth Weir), Red River and Crooked River.  We plan to continue running screw traps in Fish Creek, Rapid River, Secesh River, and Big Creek (Middle Fork salmon drainage) at Taylor Ranch.  Data from these traps will allow us to gather important life-history data (e.g., length and age of smolts, smolt migration patterns, and number of migrants) from a range of population types.   This juvenile and smolt life-history data will allow comparisons among streams.  We will assess juvenile steelhead abundance in tributary streams of the Lochsa River, Selway River, SF Salmon River, MF Salmon River, and the upper Salmon River.  The ISMES project will continue collecting continuous temperature data at over 40 locations within the Clearwater and Salmon Rivers.  We plan to prepare manuscripts for peer reviewed journals that describe the genetic stock structure of Idaho's steelhead populations, productivity of the Fish Creek population, and if time permits a description of steelhead parr and smolt age and growth in Idaho streams.

ISMES cooperates with and complements the other projects in the Idaho Anadromous Natural Production Program (Idaho Supplementation Studies and Idaho Natural Production Monitoring & Evaluation Project) as well as research conducted by other resource management entities operating in areas upstream of Lower Granite Dam (LGD).  ISMES uses data from a variety of sources from the Snake River drainage that is upstream of LGD and accessible to anadromous salmonids. Collection of these data requires coordination and cooperation among numerous agencies and projects, e.g. the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the United States Forest Service (USFS), the Nez Perce Tribe (NPT), the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes (SBT), and the United States Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS).  Internal IDFG cooperators include the Idaho Supplementation Studies (ISS, projects 198909800, 198909801, and 198909802), Lower Snake River Compensation Plan Evaluation, and Idaho Natural Production Monitoring & Evaluation Project (INPMEP project 1991-073-00), and IDFG regional fisheries biologists and managers.

In April of 2008, the scope of ISMES was amended by a Memorandum of Agreement between Bonneville Power and the State of Idaho for a period of 10 years. In the Memorandum, it was noted that additional monitoring is needed for Snake River steelhead, particularly B-run populations. The Memorandum directed that ISMES be modified to incorporate the objective of providing steelhead population status information. Field work was to begin in 2008 and $150,000 was added to the budget. Given the timing of the MOA and contract process in 2008, we decided to conduct sampling of wild steelhead at Lower Granite Dam as a pilot study. This pilot study will focus on spawn year 2009, commencing in fall 2008 and completing in spring 2009. This work will incorporate genetic stock identification and age analysis as provided in Objectives 1 and 7 below. The goal is to assess feasibility of determining age structure and abundance by major drainages.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

Objective 1: Enumerate adult escapement, age, sex ratios, and run timing at index streams in the Clearwater/Salmon drainages and at Lower Granite Dam.
Objective 2:  Monitor juvenile steelhead abundance in tributaries of the Clearwater and Salmon drainages
Objective 3:  Estimate juvenile steelhead outmigration and timing in tributaries of the Clearwater and Salmon drainages
Objective 4:  Assess age and growth of steelhead juveniles and smolts from tributaries in the Clearwater and Salmon drainages.
Objective 5: Monitor smolt survival from tributary to Lower Granite Dam, through the hydro system, and to adult return.
Objective 6: Develop productivity metrics from wild steelhead stocks in Idaho.
Objective 7: Monitoring of the temporal and spatial genetic patterns of steelhead populations in Idaho
Objective 8:  Monitor water temperatures in selected tributaries of the Clearwater and Salmon drainages.