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This report presents a synthesis of data on nonnative fish species observed by the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) in six study reaches on the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS). Since 1989, the LTRMP has collected more than 3.5 million individual fish, consisting of 139 species. Sixteen taxa of nonnative fishes, or hybrids thereof, have been observed by the LTRMP, and several species are presently expanding their distribution and increasing in abundance. For each of these nonnative fishes, this report discusses native range biology, pathway of introduction, distribution in LTRMP study reaches, relation of habitat and sampling to fish catch, trends in distribution and abundance, and ecological impacts., Item donated by the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee (UMRCC) to Murphy Library in 2018. Part of the UMRCC Collection housed at Murphy Library, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

This report summasizes the development of a life history database for Upper Mississippi River System fishes. It provides the rationale for its development within the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program, describes it, outlines standards for its development. and demonstrates how it can be linked to the LTRMP fisheries database and used to address a host of new questions relevant to management and science in the basin., The original document contains color images.

This report summasizes the development of a life history database for Upper Mississippi River System fishes. It provides the rationale for its development within the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program, describes it, outlines standards for its development. and demonstrates how it can be linked to the LTRMP fisheries database and used to address a host of new questions relevant to management and science in the basin., "Report submitted to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers District, Rock Island ..."; Mode of access: Internet from the UMESC web site. Address as of 12/05/07: http://www.umesc.usgs.gov/documents/reports/2007/2007-t001.pdf ; current access is available via PURL.

Variation in community composition (presence/absence data) and structure (relative abundance) of Upper Mississippi River fishes was assessed using data from the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) collected from 1994 to 2002. Community composition of fishes varied more in space than through time. We found substantial variation in community composition across two spatial scales: large-scale differences between upper and lower river reaches and small-scale differences among individual regional trend areas (RTA). Community structure (relative abundance data) of fishes also varied more through space than through time. We found substantial variation in fish community structure at three spatial scales: (1) large-scale difference between upper and lower river reaches, (2) differences among individual RTA, and (3) differences among habitat strata, with backwaters having a distinct community structure relative to the main channel and side channels. When averaged across all RTA, fish community structure in 1994 and 1995 was distinct from all other years, possibly as a result of the 1993 flood. Fish community structure observations for each RTA and year correlated with the environmental variables measured at each sample site. A canonical approach revealed that the combination of Secchi depth, water temperature, current velocity, and vegetation abundance had the greatest correlation with community structure., Long Term Resource Monitoring Program. Prepared in cooperation with the Illinois Natural History Survey, Brighton, IL and Havana, IL; and the Missouri Department of Conservation, Jackson, MO.

We investigated differences in adult and young-of-the-year (YOY) fishes within each of the six Long Term Resource Monitoring Program study areas, using monitoring data from 1993 to 2001. Our objective was to investigate the relative roles of seasonal, annual, in situ, and physical habitat factors in explaining assemblage structure patterns within the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program study areas. Adult and YOY assemblage structure within each reach was dominated by one to three numerically abundant species. The percent of the total abundance for which these species accounted was 10-88% and varied among age classes and study areas. Physical habitat classes were only weakly associated with differences in fish assemblage patterns within each study area. The amount of variation in fish abundance explained by physical habitats varied among the reaches. Differences among physical habitat classes accounted for 3-23% of the variation in the adult fish assemblage and for 3-20% of the difference in the YOY fish assemblage within each reach of our study area. Factors associated with interannual differences in environmental conditions were strongly correlated to patterns in assemblage structure within each of the six study areas. This was particularly true for YOY assemblages. Such a result would not have been attainable without long-term standardized data. Little is known regarding YOY assemblage patterns and dynamics in large river systems and long-term data sets are vital for continued investigation. The influence of environmental gradients on fish assemblage structure varied among the six study areas and explained 9-31% of the variation in assemblage structure. In the northern four reaches, water velocity was one of the primary factors associated with differences in fish assemblage structure.

ELECTRONIC FILE CHARACTERISTICS: 10,353 files; HyperText Markup Language (.HTML), MS Word (.DOC), Microsoft Access Database (.MDB), and SAS files (.SAS). PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: 1 computer laser optical disc (CD-ROM); 4 3/4 in.; 372 MB. SYSTEMS DETAIL NOTE: IBM-clone PC-compatible. ABSTRACT: Environmental monitoring programs are frequently designed to track changes in key physical, chemical, and biological features of an ecosystem. As such, these programs provide critical information for detecting changes in system state, investigating ecological relations, and making resource management decisions. However, monitoring programs require significant investments of time, money, and human resources to implement and maintain. Periodic evaluations are necessary to assess whether the sampling design adequately addresses program goals and objectives, and whether adequate and useful information can continue to he provided for changing management and science needs. We evaluated the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) sampling design for fish by analyzing data from stratified random samples collected from 1993 to 1999 in six Trend Analysis Areas (TAAs). Specifically, we investigated whether the sampling design could provide similar information with fewer sampling gears. Our goals were to identify and quantify information provided by each gear used to monitor fish in the LTRMP, develop alternative sampling design scenarios based on our analyses and expert opinion, and engage program partners in a discussion on the relative value of each gear within the present sampling design. We forward a proposal to systemically eliminate four of the ten sampling gears presently used to monitor the status and trends in fish resources within the LTRMP., See also hardcopy version ADA408441. The CD-ROM contains analytical results used as an heuristic tool by the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) partners to investigate potential sampling design refinement scenarios (accessible using Netscape or Microsoft Explorer browser software). In addition, we provided the dateabase we analyzed (Microsoft Access format) and analytical program files we wrote (SAS program file format).

Environmental monitoring programs are frequently designed to track changes in key physical, chemical, and biological features of an ecosystem. As such, these programs provide critical information for detecting changes in system state, investigating causal mechanisms of the observed changes, and making resource management decisions. Because monitoring programs require significant investments of time, money, and human resources to implement and maintain, periodic evaluations of monitoring programs are necessary to determine if the sampling design adequately addresses program goals and objectives. Periodic evaluations also permit assessment of a program's ability to provide adequate and useful information for changing management and science needs. We evaluated the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program's (LTRMP) fish sampling design by analyzing data from stratified random samples collected from 1993 to 1999 in six Trend Analysis Areas (TAAs). Specifically, we investigated whether the sampling design could provide similar information with fewer sampling gears. Our goals were to identify and quantify information provided by each gear used to monitor fish in the LTRMP, develop alternative sampling design scenarios based on our analyses and expert opinion, and engage program partners in a discussion on the relative value of each gear within the present sampling design. Community characterization (presence or absence), community structure (relative abundance within the full community), and detection of annual changes in single-species catch-per-unit-effort (Lubinski et al. 2001) are the primary information provided by the fish component. Our analyses considered differences in these measures among TAAs, gear types, sampling strata, seasonal sampling period, and fish size. Results were made available to program partners through a Web site for review and comment. Based on these analyses, program partners developed a suite of potential options for component refinement., The original document contains color images.