Brown Trout in the Kananaskis River

We used radio-telemetry to investigate detailed movement and summer habitat of brown trout Salmo trutta (size range 157 – 488 mm TL, n = 18) in the Kananaskis River, Alberta. Flows in the Kananaskis River respond to pulsed daily discharge from an upstream hydroelectric generating facility (range 0.15 – 25 m3.s-1). Wetted area available for brown trout doubled during periods of high flow. Fluctuating river levels did not appear to influence the degree to which brown trout moved within the study site. However, there was evidence that brown trout used cover and pools more as discharge increased.