Physical and biological constraints on the capacity for life-history expression of anadromous salmonids: an Eel River, California, case study

Recovery of anadromous salmonid populations is complicated by their complex life histories. We examined the spatiotemporal interplay of stream temperature, geomorphic features, and a species’ thermal sensitivity mediated by biological interactions in a case study of steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in California’s Eel River watershed. We estimated habitat suitability and fish capacity for each salmonid run and freshwater life stage during average, cool, and warm years in each of the watershed’s subbasins, including a historically occupied high-elevation subbasin upstream of an impassable dam. Our estimates varied depending on whether we accounted for exposure to the Sacramento pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus grandis), an introduced predator and competitor. Our results indicate that the dammed subbasin has substantial salmonid capacity relative to the rest of the watershed and could provide an important cool-water refuge during warm years and from pikeminnow, potentially improving the productivity and resilience of multiple anadromous salmonid populations. Our approach can be applied in any setting where spatially explicit habitat metrics can be estimated and population-specific and life-stage-specific habitat criteria can be specified.