The headwaters of the Kentucky River Basin reach a nexus in the heart of Appalachia: the northern Tennessee and southeastern Kentucky border, where a series of streams and shallow pools swirl and eddy. It is a countryside that seethes with abundance, a biodiversity richer than any on the North American continent. The arrow darter is a native to these creeks and seeps that snake about remote forests. Protecting the darter’s habitat would protect habitat for a suite of other rare… Continue reading →
Bull trout require the coldest water of all species native to the Rocky Mountains (summer temps less than 58 degrees F and spawning temps less than 48 degrees) and are therefore a leading indicator species for aquatic ecosystem health within the Rocky Mountain region. They spawn in the fall and often migrate long distances to lay their eggs in loose, silt-free gravels. Both juveniles and adults are often found in or near deep pools and overhead cover such as logjams,… Continue reading →
The migration of the salmon is one of nature’s most dramatic and exciting journeys. We still do not know how they find the river where they were born to return to spawn. People from Alaska to southern California depend upon the annual salmon migration as an important food source. Salmon fishing provides tens of thousands of jobs in the sport and commercial fishing industries and hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefit to the West Coast. Because salmon need… Continue reading →
