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Big Hole River Foundation
P.O. Box 3894
Butte, Montana 59702

phone: 1-866-533-BHRF

BHRF Newsletter | fall 2005

Welcome to our Fall Newsletter

Always evolving: change is our only reliable lifelong companion.

The Big Hole River Foundation is no exception. We welcome new board members John English and Steve Parker as we move into another growth phase of the Foundation. It is an exciting and challenging time. We depend on each of our board members to make informed choices.

Simultaneously, we bid farewell to board members Pat Munday and Matt Vincent.

For the past decade Pat has given generously of his time and wisdom. I have enjoyed working at his side for he has served as a mentor on many issues. I admire that he is embracing change in order to follow his passion. Let's just call it a sabbatical … and hope that in the next few years he will join us again.

Matt Vincent has stepped off the board to spend more time with his family and new job with Montana Tech of the University of Montana. We thank him for his work with the Big Hole Watershed Committee and for forging ahead with our hazardous materials project. A fact that few of you know: Matt was in my fifth and sixth grade class many years ago!

You dream a dream, and you go with it. You may think you know where you are going, but you will never know where it is going to take you. It takes you to places you never thought. ... At a seminar once, a young man came up and handed me a slip of paper that read: "Happy are they that dream dreams, and have the courage to make them come true." That has stuck with me ever since. You have got to have a dream, an idea, a concept. And then you have to do something about it. There is no big merit in just being a dreamer. But there is a lot of merit to dreams. If you are just willing to go with some of them, things happen. Some very outstanding things will happen to people who dare to dream and dare to do something about those dreams. ~ Verlen Kruger, adventurer

Thank you, Sheila

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Director's Message 

On September 30, 2005 U.S. House of Representatives approved amendments that would dramatically weaken the Endangered Species Act with little debate.

Montanans have been working together to recover many of our rare plants and animals and we need more incentives to help to promote recovery, not more red tape and government entitlements.

The bill creates a potentially expensive entitlement program requiring taxpayer dollars to compensate developers, miners, and others every time a property use is restricted because of impacts on rare animals or plants. If agencies cannot respond to proposals within a 180-day deadline, projects can go forward despite how many endangered animals and plants would be killed or harmed.

Specifics of HR 3824 include:

First, the legislation allows environmentally harmful actions to proceed if the Fish and Wildlife Service cannot evaluate them within a 90 day review period. Already, the cash-strapped Services are unable to meet many of the deadlines imposed on them.

Second, a major provision undercutting prospects for recovery includes changes to the provision of the law requiring regulations for "threatened" species. Current law requires regulations that meet a highly protective standard ("necessary and advisable for the conservation" of the species).

Finally, another major provision puts new obstacles in the path to recovery that makes it harder for federal agencies to cooperate in the implementation of recovery plans. Currently, several federal agencies often take on important tasks to implement recovery plans.

Much of our progress in bringing back species like Arctic grayling, bull trout, and Westslope cutthroat trout could be reversed if the Endangered Species Act is amended like this. The House bill would reduce or eliminate incentives for ranchers and other landowners to get involved in proactive riparian restoration projects as is being done through the Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurance (CCAA) in the Big Hole. This legislation will not help Montanans conserve their natural heritage and I hope that the Senate does not even discuss these radical reversals of wildlife protections.

Jeff Schahczenski

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BHRF Welcomes Two New Board Members

Steve Parker

Steve and his wife Bridget moved to Montana in 1978 and first lived near Eureka. During this time Steve worked with the USFS Engineering office in Eureka and also worked as a private contractor. In 1988, Steve, Bridget and their three boys moved to Butte and Steve took a position in the Department of Chemistry and Geochemistry at Montana Tech. [http://www.mtech.edu/chem/faculty/Parker/parker.htm]

Steve has an MS in Biochemistry and recently completed a PhD in Environmental Chemistry with the University of Montana. His research interests include carbon cycling and metals transport in rivers systems. His scientific work includes the Big Hole River with a recent publication in the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology entitled "Biogeochemical Controls on Diel Cycling of Stable Isotopes of Dissolved O2 and Dissolved Inorganic Carbon in the Big Hole River, MT," which dealt with investigations conducted in the Dickie Bridge area.

His family enjoys outdoor recreation in the diverse and wonderful wild places of Montana. Hiking, backpacking, hunting and fishing in the Pioneer, Beaverhead and Pintlar ranges surrounding the Big Hole have provided countless enjoyable experiences.

Steve says, "I am dedicated to conservation and restoration of Montana's natural resources. I hope to contribute to the efforts of the BHRF and others who work to preserve our natural heritage for future generations."

John English

John is a resident of Butte, Montana. He graduated from the University of Montana and works in the field of internet and computer administration. He is passionate about fisheries biology and the stewardship of our wild places for the generations to come. The Big Hole River is very close to his heart and he enjoys spending time with his family, hiking, fly-fishing, geocaching and of course, surfing the internet. It's a good bet that when he is not at a computer, he will be doing something outdoors.

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Big Hole Watershed Committee Update - by Steve Parker, Foundation Representative to BHWC

In October, the Habitat Restoration Working Group presented the Big Hole Watershed Committee with several projects. Those approved for funding included:

1. "Big Hole River Restoration Feasibility Project" which would investigate and make recommendations for restoration of the main stem of the Big Hole River from Rock Creek Road to the Highway 43 Bridge in Wisdom. 2. "Rheinhardt stockwater well" which will provide an alternative water source for livestock. Riparian fencing has already been done in this area. 3. "Rock Creek Reconnection Project". This project will reconnect Rock Creek with the main stem of the Big Hole River. The project will potentially provide stream flow enhancement during low flow periods and is part of the CCAA site-specific plan.

The November BHWC meeting was a multi upper Missouri watershed group meeting held in Twin Bridges and included the Jefferson Watershed Council, Ruby Valley Watershed Council and the Beaverhead Watershed Committee.

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Arctic Grayling CCAA and EA Ready for Comments - by Jeff Schahczenski

he draft Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) and the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the fluvial Arctic grayling in the upper Big Hole will be published in the Federal Register and public comment will begin soon. Both documents can be found on the Foundation's website at www.bhrf.org. The documents are long but will be critical to the recovery of the Arctic grayling in the Big Hole River and have historic implications for improvement of surface water management, riparian and fishery health. It is critical that Foundation members, watershed landowners, conservation and angling organizations and the public generally offer supporting comments for this effort.

The Foundation will provide both on our website and winter newsletter a set of basic "talking" points to assist Foundation members and others in offering their support. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service will also be providing a means for the public to comment directly on-line. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks will also be offering public informational sessions on the CCAA in December. As the draft document states the CCAA will help "landowners to voluntarily implement proactive conservation measures that benefit grayling".

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Remembering "Big Hole Bob" Henderson (1932-2005) - by Chad Okrusch

"Fellows like 'Big Hole Bob' still command a certain level of respect, even though they might fish illegal bait such as bullheads, because they know how to catch big fish." -Pat Munday, Montana's Last Best River: The Big Hole and its People

Several years ago, while researching his beautiful tribute to the Big Hole River and its people, Pat Munday interviewed my good friend Matt Vincent and me. It didn't take long for our conversation to turn to talk of some of the legendary Big Hole River fishers we've known, prominent among them, a kindly giant of a man we called "Big Hole Bob" Henderson-my father-in-law.

Over pints of Moose Drool, I regaled Pat with several stories of Bob's fishing acumen. I recounted the time that Matt's brother Josh and I went fishing with Bob. We were neophyte anglers, entranced by the poetry of fly-fishing. We emerged from Bob's old truck dressed as though we were extras in "A River Runs Through It."

Bob wore ancient hip-waders patched with duct-tape. In his massive hands his fishing pole and closed-face Johnson's reel looked like a child's fishing outfit. He slung an old wicker creel loaded with treble hooks, lead shot, and bullheads around his neck and shoulders. And his beat-up ball cap, slightly askew, sat lightly atop his big square head.

Josh and I, confident in our method and equipment, proceeded to thrash about the river, clumsily slapping flies atop prime holding water, and conspicuously dragging others through good dark holes. Every five minutes or so, the silence of the river was broken by Bob's whoops and cries as he hauled in lunker after lunker. Six or seven fish later, with a smile a mile wide, he asked if we'd like to switch over to bullheads. We refused on principle.

Six or seven giant brown trout later, we set our principles aside, and our poorly tied trout flies too. Swearing Bob to secrecy, we awkwardly fixed bullheads to our leaders and flipped them into dark recesses and undercut banks-and we caught fish-lots of fish-and big ones.

From that day forward, whenever the Vincent brothers and I would talk of our flyfishing adventures, Bob would remind us of that day. He never let us forget. And, now that he is gone, I'm thankful for the memory.

When Bob Henderson passed away last spring, the Henderson family lost their patriarch. But, the river lost one of its best fishermen and storytellers. If you knew Bob, please take a moment and wish him tight lines the next time you're on the river.

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What Does That Mean?

The English language is rich in words that describe groups and collections. Here are a few lesser-known terms used for collections of specimens from the animal kingdom. Some animals take different group nouns depending on where they happen to be. A group of ducks are "a paddling" only if in water; in flight they become "a team."

Next time you camp out in the wilds and receive a visit from some uninvited guests in the form of, say, boars, you'll know what to say: "Help, I'm surrounded by a sounder of swine". Anything else and the park ranger may not come to the rescue.

sounder (SOUN-duhr) noun

1. A person or thing that makes sound. 2. A group of wild boars.

"Yesterday I asked Bill to butcher two piglets from the sounder of eleven the sow dropped two months ago." covey (KUV-ee) noun

1. A small flock of birds such as partridge or quail. 2. A group or a set.

"A black-tailed jackrabbit walks slowly down the wash, ambling tall-eared amid a covey of Gambel's quail, like a cowboy driving his herd."

skein (skayn) noun

1. A length of yarn wound around a reel. 2. A flock of geese, ducks, or other similar birds in flight. 3. Something suggesting complex twists and tangles.

When in flight, geese are called a skein; when not in flight, a gaggle; and when flying in a V formation, they are referred to as a wedge. Ducks take a number of terms too: while in water, they are called a paddling.

"Arrowhead skeins of geese fly northward and land at Walker Bay to breed."

bevy (BEV-ee) noun

1. A group of birds or animals, especially larks, quail, or roe buck. 2. A group or collection.

"A bevy of birds, winging silently across the sky on a clear moonless night, is like a shipful of sailors in the middle of the sea."

skulk (skulk) verb intr.

1. To hide, evade, or move stealthily.

noun

1. Someone who lies in hiding, evades, or lurk. 2. A pack of foxes.

"Heaven's Acre Wildlife Center has a gaggle of geese, a skulk of foxes, an over-abundance of raccoons and a singular problem - it violates city zoning."

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Species Spotlight - Common Loon The common loon (Gavia immer) is anything but common.

Red-eyed, with distinctive black and white markings, the loon has a dagger-like beak that apparently is perfect for its long, underwater fishing trips diving to depths of over 90 ft. The loon is most closely related to primitive birds, and its soliloquy of cries can sound eerily prehistoric. It is silent in winter, but in summer the loon is truly loquacious, with a repertoire of sounds that haunt the lake or waterway with strange laughter-like calls, falsetto wails and strange yodeling. At night, the effect is absolutely mesmerizing.

While it is tempting to think of the estimated 200 common loons found in northwestern Montana as "Montana's loons," in reality they belong to a broader, more challenging landscape. As a result, biologists who are studying the birds closely have a lot of unanswered questions.

True to its reclusive and solitary nature, the loon prefers a secluded lake or estuary. It is very territorial, normally with only one family to a small body of water. This bird is an excellent swimmer and can stay underwater for long periods, but its life on land is another story. Larger than most ducks, and with its feet well toward its tail, the loon is extremely awkward and most vulnerable on land. As a result, the loon nests as close to the water as possible, nearly throwing itself out of the nest and into the water. Graceful in the water and in flight, they are almost comical on take-offs and landing. Their size, solid bone structure and weight distribution result in thrashing water take-offs that can last hundreds of feet. The loon's landing is nothing so much as a controlled crash-glide.

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BOARD MEMBER NEWS

PAT MUNDAY - It has been my great pleasure to serve the Big Hole River Foundation. I attended my first meeting in 1994, and became a board member by 1996. When I began, I served with fellow board members such as Todd Collins, Stuart Decker, Bill Cain, Dick Wright and Paul Redfern. I learned much from them, and have proudly carried the torch for a few years. In my time with the board, I served as newsletter editor, chair of the communications subcommittee, interim executive director, and representative to the Big Hole Watershed Committee. We had some great triumphs, including the land use planning process established with the four county governments, and special regulations for commercial angling on the river. I am deeply indebted to former Executive Director Charlie Harris, who encouraged me in publishing a book for the Foundation, and to the Foundation for its support of the book project. My happiest accomplishments were in working with the search committees that hired Executive Director Jennifer Dwyer in 1998 and Jeff Schahczenski in 2004, whereas my saddest loss has been in watching the steady decline of fluvial Arctic grayling.

No place is more special to my heart than the Big Hole River valley, and it is good that the Foundation is now solidly supported by a professional staff and an active board. I was often awed by the intelligence and power of the organization, which was greater than the mere sum of its board members, staff, and membership. Good luck to you all, and I hope that in the next few years I am again in a position to serve the Big Hole River Foundation.

With all good wishes, Pat Munday.

MATT VINCENT - A long time member of the board, Matt worked closely with the Big Hole Watershed Committee in the coordination of the TMDL work in the upper and lower Big Hole. He also spearheaded the HazMat trailer program. Matt has recently taken on new job responsibilities at Montana Tech.

We wish Pat and Matt the best and hope to see them back in the future.

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Grayling Symposium a Success

The Big Hole River Foundation's Grayling Symposium concluded with a fish fry-of grayling. Before anyone calls the game warden, let it be known that these were common lake grayling and not the rare fluvial Arctic grayling that inhabit the Big Hole River. As Jeff Schahczenski, the Foundation's Executive Director explained, "Successful fluvial Arctic grayling recovery will mean that we can manage them just like any other game fish, that someday there will be a limited harvest for those who want to take a few home to eat."

From the evidence presented in the symposium at Jackson Hot Springs Resort, Montana has a long way to go before that goal can be reached. Presentations by fisheries biologists, agency personnel, private consultants, and conservationists all agreed: fluvial Arctic grayling restoration will require landowner support, agency cooperation, progressive conservation groups, and a lot of money.

In the 120 or so years that we have inhabited this land, we have proven ourselves adept at altering habitat and eliminating species. Now is our chance to prove that we can recover them, as well. Margaret Mead once remarked that every Navajo family consisted of grandma and grandpa, the parents, an uncle or aunt, the children-and an anthropologist. Similarly, it seems that every Big Hole family now consists of parents, kids, a fisheries biologist, an agency specialist, and a restoration consultant. Like the title of that popular book, we might say that "It takes a village" to recover grayling.

Ranchers talk about the concept of "a well-balanced ranch"-a property that has high carrying capacity, good water rights, adequate hay ground, sheltered calving area, and access to summer pasture. Grayling too need a well-balanced "ranch"-a river that has high spring flows and good gravelly pools for spawning, well-shaded banks and cool water throughout the summer, connectivity between the main stem and tributaries, and deep pools for over-wintering.

Over the years, ranching and irrigation have subtly changed the river so that it no longer functions as ideal grayling habitat. Jim Magee, a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks biologist who is working on grayling, pointed out some of the restoration needs. It is clear that considerable work will be needed to plant willows, fence riparian corridors, and - in some cases - rebuild stream channels. Because grayling travel 50 to 70 miles over the course of the year and must have access to a broad range of habitat, they are limited by physical barriers such as diversion dams, dewatered reaches, and reaches with high temperatures. Even a few years ago it was thought that minimal flows were critical only in late summer. It is now apparent that minimal flows are also critically important during the spring spawning season.

Jim Magee also described efforts to characterize grayling genetics. Because physical barriers and low river flows have isolated grayling populations in tributaries, this habitat fragmentation might have created genetically distinct sub-populations. It is possible that the Big Hole grayling - as a population of fish inhabiting the main stem of the river around Wisdom - has already been lost.

Pete Lamothe, a US Fish & Wildlife Service biologist who is working on grayling, described the Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) program. Because an endangered species listing now appears imminent, Montana FWP and the USFWS have begun the CCAA process, enrolling landowners who then institute conservation measures. So long as landowners comply with the agreement, they are protected from future demands of a listing under the Endangered Species Act. Thus far, 215,000 of the 320,000 acres in the upper Big Hole are enrolled. The groundwork laid by the Watershed Committee has facilitated the CCAA process.

Emma Rens and Adam Petersen, FWP fisheries biologists, described fluvial Arctic grayling restoration efforts beyond the Big Hole. The Arctic Grayling Workgroup, established in 1987, began reintroduction efforts a decade later. A brood stock of Big Hole grayling are kept in several lakes, and used for egg and hatchery fish production. Reintroduction has been attempted in numerous rivers in the grayling's historic range, including the Ruby, Beaverhead, Sun, Gallatin, and Cougar Creek (Yellowstone Park). Only in the upper Ruby River does reintroduction seem promising, but there is no evidence of a self-sustaining population.

The key tool in grayling reintroduction will be the "Remote Site Incubator" (RSI)-a modified five-gallon bucket with an egg tray, inflow, and outflow. The RSI is set in a pool with good juvenile grayling habitat and then tended carefully for several weeks until the eggs hatch and the young fish can be released. Because the RSIs are so labor intensive, "manpower" is currently limiting their use.

Several ranchers and conservationists expressed willingness to tend Remote Site Incubators in the Big Hole and its tributaries. Fisheries biologists are cautious, however, because they believe that RSIs should not be used until all habitat factors have been addressed and indicate that they will be successful. Given the rapid decline of Big Hole grayling and the pressure from an ESA listing, the Foundation believes we might not be able to afford this degree of caution. Surveys of tributaries and the mainstem in the upper Wise River watershed are currently underway, and if the habitat passes muster then the Foundation is ready to assist with grayling reintroductions.

Prior to the symposium, grayling biologists from Alaska, British Columbia, and Alberta made a whirlwind three-day tour of grayling habitat in the upper Big Hole Basin. The observations and comments of Robert Clark (Alaska Fish & Game), Brian Blackman (Peace/Williston Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program, British Columbia), and Jim O'Neil (Golder Associates, Alberta) will help us assess the status and recovery of Big Hole grayling. Though they will each provide detailed comments, their immediate impressions are instructive.

Fluvial grayling are in trouble everywhere. Populations have declined throughout Alberta, and the province has instituted a triage system to focus on preserving the healthiest populations. Even in traditional destination grayling fisheries such as the Williston Watershed in BC and the Chena River in Alaska, the fish is in trouble. Global warming, sediment from timber harvest and road construction, habitat fragmentation, and over-fishing: all have contributed to the decline of grayling. They also believe that - though there are some studies yet to do - now is the time to make Big Hole grayling recovery a reality. The Foundation agrees.

Jim Lovell, of Confluence Consulting, is optimistic. Water temperature seems to be a major impediment to grayling recovery. Jim's message was "build it and they will come." He proposed a target temperature of 64.4°F as a 7-day average. Some ways to meet that target include stream channel work to create ideal width to depth ratios, shrub plantings to create an overstory, and improved irrigation efficiency to produce higher flows.

In the lat 1970's George Liknes' graduate dissertation drew attention to the decline of the Big Hole Grayling. He could barely find enough grayling to study. Montana listed fluvial Arctic grayling as a "species of special concern" in 1979. When environmental groups petitioned to list the fish as an endangered species in 1991, the USFWS decided that the listing was "warranted, but precluded" because of Montana's efforts to restore populations. But despite the best efforts of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), the interagency Fluvial Arctic Grayling Workgroup, and the Big Hole Watershed Committee, the fish has continued its downward spiral toward extinction. Once found throughout the upper Missouri River watershed, fluvial grayling are today found only in the upper reaches of the Big Hole River-just 4% of their native range.

The Big Hole River Foundation supports the CCAA process, and hopes that the habitat restoration targets can be achieved quickly. We look forward to working with the agencies and the Watershed Committee. As the visiting biologists warned us, we should not expect a quick recovery once habitat restoration is complete. The grayling population might take years to recover and rebound. Time is of the essence.

Sources: Big Hole River Foundation (2005). "Arctic Grayling Recovery: Working together for a new future." The first annual Arctic Grayling Symposium. Jackson, Montana. 26-27 August 2005.

Byorth, Patrick A. (1996). "Fluvial Arctic Grayling." Montana Chapter of the American Fisheries Society website, http://www.fisheries.org/AFSmontana/SSCpages/grayling_status.htm (01.Sept.2005).

Lamothe, Peter and James Magee (2004). Reintroducing fluvial Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) to the upper Ruby River, MT; a progress report. Dillon Office: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (2005). "Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances for fluvial Arctic grayling in the upper Big Hole River (Draft).