The Kootenai RiverWhite Sturgeon Investigation is managed by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and is comprised of four major projects collectively called the Kootenai River Fisheries Recovery Investigations.  Most of the investigations are transboundary in nature and cooperative with various state, federal, provincial, and tribal agencies.

1) First is the white sturgeon research to monitor and evaluate measures taken to rehabilitate the Kootenai River white sturgeon population, an endangered sopecies, the goal is to rehabilitate sturgeon to a fishable level and remove them from the ESA list.  The FY06 goals and tasks will focus on M&E of the proposed "Pilot Project" site which is a high use spawning site for white sturgeon, the Pilot Project is the first phase of habitat enhancement of a sturgeon spawning site to improve incubation and rearing habiat.  Adult sturgeon will have VEMCO transmitters implanted and their activity around the proposed site will be monitored to determine pre - Pilot Project use.   In July the USACE initiate the Piolt Project by placeing  large rock in the Kootenai River at this spawning site.  Additional studies will evaluate the release of white sturgeon embryos at several locations in the river with cobble and gravel substrate to determine the importance of substrate size and to experiment with early releases to establish a year class of sturgeon.  Also, juvenile sturgeon will be sampled to M &E flow and temperature measues by the USACE as mitigation for sturgeon spawning and recruitment.  Further, juvenile wild and hatchery sturgeon will be sampled in July and August to monitor hatchery sturgeon survival and contribution of wild sturgeon from previous mitigation measures by the USACE and BPA.  

2) A burbot (a species of special concern) investigation in FY06 is designed to monitor and evaluate measures through a Conservation Strategy to rehabilitate burbot and it is undertaken each fall and winter.  This Goal to is to rehabilitate burbot to a fishable level.  Burbot are winter spawners and the most important measures are designed to improve spawning migration by reducing temperature and discharge in the river.  The capture of adults pre and post spawn and biopsies provides vital information on whether or not these measures result in spawning.  Adult burbot will also be implanted in FY06 with sonic tags and their movement is monitored to determine their response to the discharge and temperature measures during the spawning season.  Larval tows are made and light traps are set to search for evidence of spawning success with the capture of larva.  

3) Ecosystem nutrient restoration to restore nutrients to the Kootenai River was first undertaken in FY05 with a goal to improve primary production lost to the nutrient sink affect of Lake Koocanusa.  The Kootenai River is the largest river in the world that nutrients are purposely being added to to restore primary production and fish growth and survival.  The main objective is to measure the response at the various trophic levels, this is a cooperative investigation with the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho.  The main tasks will involve not only calculating P and N releases and the precise ratio needed daily but biomonioring of all food transfer levels from algae to the fish community.  

4)  The fourth is a salmonid investigation to monitor improvements to the bull trout (threatened) and interior redband (petitioned) trout with secondary species of mountain whitefish and cutthroat trout. The main goal is to devise methods to improve the trout fishery in the Kootenai River and help plan management.   In Fy06 an investigation using EMAP will be implemented to determine the Kootenai River basin wide in Idaho population numbers of rainbow and cutthroat troutprimarily including tributaries.  Vital statistics of the rainbow trout fish population in the Kootenai River will be continued to M & E management regulation changes and the effect of nutrient enhancement to the fecundity, recruitment, growth and survival of rainbow trout.  Bull trout redd counts will also be made to monitor spawning or adult numbers as a measuree of stock size improvements due to protective measures.