NC0000272_NC Pigeon River Fish Restoration_20080305

NC Pigeon River fish restoration
Co-op.steering committee mtg.
March 5,2008
Agenda
Meeting Obiectives
1. Review any new information on water and habitat quality and fish communities
2. Review progress to date
3. Consider any changes to approach over next couple years
4. Confirm plans -
1. Welcome, overview, additions to agenda, scribe selection—NCWRC&Blue Ridge
(BRPP)
11. New ownership and other news from BRPP
111. Review any available monitoring data and water quality issues
a. Any monitoring data?
b. Color, temperature, etc.; drought, etc.
c. Fish kill—Keith Haynes, BRPP
IV. IPSI overview—Eric Romaniszn
V. Updates from 2006-2007
a. Fish translocations and assessments
TN —Joyce
NC—TR Russ
b. Striped Shiner school project—Steve
c. Habitat assessment—Mike Gaugler
VI. Discuss proposals
a. Continue to stock Mirror, Tennessee, and Telescope Shiners; and Gilt Darters
at Iron Tree
b. Continue to stock Mirrors and Tennessees at Ferguson Br.
c. Stock Gilts at a site between Iran Tree and Ferguson Br. In 2009
d. Stock Silvers and Telescopes at Gauging Station
e. Others? Alt. collection sites?
f. Next species to consider
VII. Plan translocation and assessment for spring and fall 2008; 2009?
a. Species
b. Sites
Collection
Release
Assessment
Vill. New opportunity-Richland Creek above Junaluska—Landon Davidson, Bryn
Tracy, Eric Romaniszn, etc.

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North Carolina Steering Committee Meeting
March 5, 2008
Pigeon River Recovery Project: Summary of 2007 Activities
Re-introductions:
FISH TN Totals NC Totals
Gilt(D) 51 796 87 323
Stripetail (D) 0* (929) ()=denotes T.I. numbers only
Bluebreast(D) 199 227
Tangerines (D) 46 46
Blotched chub 164 164 *=limited/none collected, low flows
Stargazer 28 877
Mtn. madtom 438 1546
Lamprey(D) 0* 116
Silver 160* 1674
Telescope 175* 2533
Mirror 1269* 5317
Tennessee 670* 670
Striped 90 90
SNAILS TN (Denton)
Leptoxis sp. 3096
Pleurocera spp. 857
Lithasia sp. 26
Monitoring-TN:
• From July to September we conducted snorkel surveys in the TN reach of the Pigeon
River, starting above Sisk Island (PRM 10.3), we covered 12 sites and 10 miles to the
mouth of the Pigeon. Gilt darters were observed at 6 sites including Fork Island (PRM
0.5) where we located over 30 juvenile gilts, no blueside darters but plenty of potential
habitat.
• Common river snails (Leptoxis,Pleurocera)were found at 10 of the 12 sites.Io was
observed only at Tannery Island. The extensive snorkel survey(3.5 hours) at Fork Island
documented very good habitat, a diverse fish community but not a single snail.
• A backpack shocker monitoring effort was conducted at Tannery Island to locate juvenile
mountain madtoms in August. We netted 8 mountain madtoms, only Iwas a juvenile so
the reproduction question remains. We also herded up numerous gilt darters, 1 bluebreast
darter(untagged) and 3 of the blotched chubs we had released earlier in August.

Monitoring—NC:
• Monitoring efforts were conducted August 15 and 16,from approximately PRM 47.0 to
the Irontree.Golf Course at PRM 52.3. Seine hauls produced mirror, silver, telescope, and
Tennessee shiners. Telescope(91) and silver(171) shiner numbers more than tripled
from last year.
• The first untagged gilt darter was collected at the golf course site.
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thcnnal-disy4argP from the paper mill Tho 1__:Stn ..����i �:,a-�--`-.-lvc,--�—a�2rs were
found in the first three miles below the mill, which means that they have dispersed almost
eight river miles from the nearest release site. Re-colonization?!
• This data reflects an increase in numbers and distance dispersed compared to the survey
of 2005 and 2006.
Annual IBI Sampling:
• The TDEC/TVA/TWRA annual IBI sampling in July at Denton found our first adult
mountain brook lamprey (5); we also collected gilt darters, but, once again, no Tennessee
shiners.
• The 113I survey at Tannery Island (TI) netted three surprises: The first mountain brook
lampreys (13), a bluebreast darter with a red tag (7/03 release, tagged nearly four years),
and the first river darter collected in the Pigeon. We found mountain madtoms, gilt and
stripetail darters as well. Total fish density has increased since last year. Darter numbers
are up but the shiner numbers are still low. Telescope shiners retuned, but again, no
Tennessee shiners were seen.
• It is hypothesized that the higher numbers of some fish may be an affect of the low flows
concentrating fish in the available water due to the extended drought.
Tentative Plans for 2008:
TN—Collect stripetail and bluebreast darters to release at Denton; collect blotched chubs .
for release at Tannery; collect mountain madtoms and snails from the French Broad and/or
Nolichucky. Madtoms and Lithasia snails will be released at Tannery, all other snails will be
released at Brown Island at Denton. CFI will release juvenile tangerines spawned in 2007
and their brood stock but will not continue propagation of tangerine darters (no funding).
Conduct specific surveys in the fall for juvenile madtoms. Suspend stargazing minnow re-
introduction. Lamprey re-introduction is on hold due to the drought and location of new
collection sites.
NC — Collect silver, telescope, Tennessee and mirror shiners; release shiners in the
general Riverside reach and/or consider a new release site on Jonathans Creek. Collect gilt
darters from the upper French Broad sites and release them at the Irontree site. Conduct
monitoring surveys in the fall.

Draft Agenda
Pigeon Fish Restoration Steering Committee
March 5, 2008
1. Update from restoration efforts in Tennessee—Joyce Coombs
2. Review progress in NC since last mtg.—Steve Fraley
Fish translocation
Assessments
Striped Shiner school project
3. Blue Ridge Paper update—BRPP, Keith Haynes
Mill sale
Discharge problems
Fish kill
Permit Renewal
4. Review any bioassessment,water quality or other pertinent investigations—Bryn
Tracy,BRPP, Keith Haynes?
5. Habitat assessment update—Gaugler
6. Planning
Fish translocations
Species
Collection sites
Release sites
Assessments
7. IPSI overview—Eric Romaniszn
8. New opportunity-Richland Creek above Junaluska—Landon Davidson,Bryn Tracy,
Eric Romaniszn, etc.
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