JACKSON, Wyo. — The Snake River Fund, Jackson Hole Trout Unlimited, and numerous volunteers have been documenting the rapid drawdown of Snake River flows and its impacts on the entire river system, which include fish, macroinvertebrates and bank stabilization.
The expected drawdowns of Jackson Lake made water drop rapidly to levels only seen three times in the last 30 years. During the fall, water released out of Jackson Lake Dam into the Snake River is cut down to a winter-long release rate. 300 cubic feet are typically released per second during this time.
Due to these drawdowns, pods of fish fry, including cutthroat, sculpins and dace, all native fish, were found in dried pools. Macroinvertebrates were unable to move fast enough to avoid desiccation on dry rocks. Thus, advocates are highly concerned about the survival of native fish species.
While drawdowns occur each fall season, this year has been different due to the fact that water flows had been considerably higher than average through the summer and into the fall months. Therefore, the transition into the winter flow rate has been more drastic than in years past.
The image of the stakes in a Facebook post below represents how far the river has come down in just five days, with orange spray paint marking Sept. 29, 2021, and the photo taken on Oct. 4, 2021.
