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Heat, algae blamed for dead Lost River suckers
published August 4, 2003
By DYLAN DARLING
H&N Staff Writer
Hot weather, a cloud cover and an algae bloom are the suspected cause of 146 dead suckers found last week on the Lost River.
Rich Piaskowski, a fisheries biologist with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, said the suckers were found early last week on a mile-long stretch above Harpold Dam. Most of the dead suckers were Klamath large scale, some were shortnose and one was believed to be a Lost River sucker.
"This is a fairly substantial dieoff for the Lost River," Piaskowski said.
Both shortnose and Lost River suckers have been protected by the Endangered Species Act since 1988.
Piaskowski said the fish died sometime the week of July 21 and were decomposed to the point identification of species was difficult. The exact cause of death hadn't been pinpointed, but poor water quality, particularly low amounts of dissolved oxygen, was thought to be a contributing factor.
Poor water quality has been reported around the Klamath Basin, mostly because of the scorching temperatures last week, he said.
"The hotter the water the less oxygen," he said.
The finding of dead suckers on the Lost River came a week after about 25 suckers were found belly up on Upper Klamath Lake. The U.S. Geological Survey, which looked into the event, said diminished water quality and low amounts of dissolved oxygen probably caused to the sucker deaths on the lake.
The die-off on Lost River was probably caused by the same factors as the event on the lake, said Christine Karas, deputy manager of the Klamath Reclamation Project.
She said the two incidents, along with the finding of dead chubs and minnows on the Klamath River about two weeks ago, show that water quality is down all around the Basin.
"It just shows that it is a Basinwide issue, as opposed to a lake issue, because we are having problems elsewhere," she said.
There were some differences though.
The dead suckers on the lake were in different stages of decomposition, meaning they died at different times, but the dead suckers on the Lost River all seemed to have died in a span of a couple of days.
Bob Davis, chief of natural resources for the Bureau's Klamath Falls office, said it appears that the mortality of the fish happened in a short period of time.
"This is unique," he said.
Though the dieoff seems to be over, Bureau official will be keeping close tabs on the Lost River, Piaskowski said.
"We'll be following up and watching conditions," he said.
Karas, said the dead suckers won't affect project irrigation deliveries.
"We are meeting the requirements of the biological opinions for both the lake level and the downstream flows," she said.
The biological opinions are federal documents that guide how much water the Bureau must supply for endangered suckers in Upper Klamath Lake and down the Klamath River for threatened coho salmon.
Reporter Dylan Darling covers natural resources. He can be reached at 885-4471, (800) 275-0982, or by e-mail at ddarling@heraldandnews.com.
By DYLAN DARLING
H&N Staff Writer
Hot weather, a cloud cover and an algae bloom are the suspected cause of 146 dead suckers found last week on the Lost River.
Rich Piaskowski, a fisheries biologist with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, said the suckers were found early last week on a mile-long stretch above Harpold Dam. Most of the dead suckers were Klamath large scale, some were shortnose and one was believed to be a Lost River sucker.
"This is a fairly substantial dieoff for the Lost River," Piaskowski said.
Both shortnose and Lost River suckers have been protected by the Endangered Species Act since 1988.
Piaskowski said the fish died sometime the week of July 21 and were decomposed to the point identification of species was difficult. The exact cause of death hadn't been pinpointed, but poor water quality, particularly low amounts of dissolved oxygen, was thought to be a contributing factor.
Poor water quality has been reported around the Klamath Basin, mostly because of the scorching temperatures last week, he said.
"The hotter the water the less oxygen," he said.
The finding of dead suckers on the Lost River came a week after about 25 suckers were found belly up on Upper Klamath Lake. The U.S. Geological Survey, which looked into the event, said diminished water quality and low amounts of dissolved oxygen probably caused to the sucker deaths on the lake.
The die-off on Lost River was probably caused by the same factors as the event on the lake, said Christine Karas, deputy manager of the Klamath Reclamation Project.
She said the two incidents, along with the finding of dead chubs and minnows on the Klamath River about two weeks ago, show that water quality is down all around the Basin.
"It just shows that it is a Basinwide issue, as opposed to a lake issue, because we are having problems elsewhere," she said.
There were some differences though.
The dead suckers on the lake were in different stages of decomposition, meaning they died at different times, but the dead suckers on the Lost River all seemed to have died in a span of a couple of days.
Bob Davis, chief of natural resources for the Bureau's Klamath Falls office, said it appears that the mortality of the fish happened in a short period of time.
"This is unique," he said.
Though the dieoff seems to be over, Bureau official will be keeping close tabs on the Lost River, Piaskowski said.
"We'll be following up and watching conditions," he said.
Karas, said the dead suckers won't affect project irrigation deliveries.
"We are meeting the requirements of the biological opinions for both the lake level and the downstream flows," she said.
The biological opinions are federal documents that guide how much water the Bureau must supply for endangered suckers in Upper Klamath Lake and down the Klamath River for threatened coho salmon.
Reporter Dylan Darling covers natural resources. He can be reached at 885-4471, (800) 275-0982, or by e-mail at ddarling@heraldandnews.com.
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