Habitat tools for assessing instream-flow needs for fishes in the upper Roanoke River, Virginia

Abstract

The goal of this research was to formulate new tools for instream-flow analyses, with emphasis on protecting fish assemblages in speciose, warmer-water streams. This included habitat and fish data sets for the upper Roanoke River (URR) in southwestern Virginia, collected during the warmer, low- f low seasons of 1989-1991. Physical data were collected in small, rectangular quadrats or crosssectional transacts, whereas fish were collected by seining and electroshocking in the quadrats. Statistical analyses included uni-, bi-, and multivariate analyses.