Mapping potential off-channel habitat
Mapping valley-floor landforms without a machete. Here I provide an informal, ongoing progress report for collaborators, potential collaborators, interested parties. Feel free to post comments, ask questions. Remote mapping of off-channel habitats A primary goal of mapping valley-floor landforms is to estimate the abundance of off-channel habitat within a basin and to identify opportunities for increasing access to potential off-channel habitats. Valley-floor landforms that can provide off-channel habitat for salmon include side channels, alcoves, sloughs, beaver ponds, and other floodplain features ( Roni et al., 2016 provide a nice review). Off-channel areas that remain submerged over summer, generally from groundwater influx, provide important rearing habitat. In winter, features inundated during flood events provide areas with lower flow velocity than through the mainstem and offer refuge for overwintering juvenile salmon. For a coho-habitat workshop last September...