Fisheries management in a flow-regulated river on a private ranch
Warner College of Natural Resources
Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology
Grand
County
(Summit)
- Natural Resources and Sustainability
- In the field
Primary Topic:
Natural Resources and Sustainability
Other Topics:
Economic and Community Development
Internship Overview:
Fisheries fieldwork and stakholder engagement will take place on the Blue River at the Blue Valley Ranch in Kremmling, Grand County. The internship will be physically based in the Blue Valley Ranch, and housing will be provided on the ranch for 10 weeks.
Goals, Scope and Objectives:
The internship goal is to assist with fisheries management in a flow-regulated river on the Blue Valley Ranch, which owns a large segment of the Blue River. The intern will participate in fishery fieldwork involving electrofishing, food web sampling, and angling, and a limited amount of laboratory work, including aquatic insect and algae identification. The intern will work with the Blue Valley Ranch and other stakeholders in the area involved in the relationships among stream flow, habitat, and fishery production. The intern will also have the opportunity to engage with other natural resources tasks and maintenance activities on the Blue Valley Ranch.
With which stakeholder group(s) will the intern work?
Blue Valley Ranch, Trout Unlimited, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Blue River Watershed Group
What student learning outcomes do you anticipate and what are the opportunities for professional development?
The intern will gain hands-on experience, learning field and laboratory techniques in fisheries and stream ecology. A learning outcome is for the intern to learn via this case study how best to communicate and engage with stakeholder groups who have vested interests in management of natural resources. The intern is expected to develop a poster focusing on their summer experience and present it at CSU Extension’s Annual Forum and other opportunities (e.g., CO-WY American Fisheries Society meeting). The intern will work with a research team involving CSU faculty and a graduate student, and the intern will gain direct experience on how applied fisheries research is conducted.
