Reconnaissance Lake Inventory of Halfmoon...

Reconnaissance Lake Inventory of

Halfmoon Lake WSC: 218-925300-00000-

Waterbody Identifier: 01658DEAL

Prepared for: Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks

Room 400, 10003 - 110th Avenue Fort St. John, British Columbia

V1J 6M7

Prepared by: BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc.

Box 601 Terrace, British Columbia

V8G 4B5

Approved by:

_________________________________________________

March 31, 1998

Reconnaissance Inventory of Fish and Fish Habitat in Halfmoon Lake

BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. i

Disclaimer The Province has not accepted the contents of this product for the purposes of the Forest Practices Code, and reserves the right to dispute the validity of summarized results. The province does not necessarily agree with the classification assigned to any individual stream reach, for use in logging plans, silviculture prescriptions or any other application. Acknowledgments Funding for this inventory was provided by Corporate Land Information Base. We would like to acknowledge contributions by the following: Jeff Burrows, MELP Contract Monitor Paul Giroux, MELP Contract Monitor Sig Hatlevik, MELP Senior Fisheries Biologist Leif Scott, Northern Lights Air Pilot Terry Collins, BioLith Field Crew Member Doug Webb, BioLith Biologist


BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. ii

Halfmoon Lake Data Summary MoELP Contract Number CFT045 MoELP File Number 1080-20-CFT 045; Fort St. John Region FDIS Project Number 06-DEAR-0000-0600-1998 Forest Region Skeena FW Mgt Unit 6-23 Date of Survey September 9-10, 1997 Watershed Information Watershed Group 218 Watershed Code 218-925300-00000 Waterbody Identifier 01658DEAL UTM at Lake Outlet 09.446740 .6503200 Number of Tributaries 10 Magnitude @ Outlet 37 Elevation 1100 m NTS Map 104I/12 TRIM Map 104I.071 and 104I.061 BEC Zone SWB Air Photo(s) BC5622 No. 154 Lake Sampling Summary Lake Survey Type Primary (1997 RIC Standards) Water Surface Area 1 391 741 m2 Max. Depth 19.5 m Mean Depth 6.65 m Secchi Depth 6 m Lake Volume 9 251 720 m3 Shoreline Perimeter 9 km Number of Islands 1 Perimeter of Islands 0.235 km Area above 6 metres 807 145 m2 Lake Length 4 km Fish Species Present Longnose Sucker (Catostomus catostomus) Lake Chub (Couesius plumbeus)


BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. iii

Contractor Information Project Manager: Name: Glenn Grieve, R.P. Bio, BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. Address: Box 601, Terrace, British Columbia, V8G 4B5 Phone: (250) 635-5378 Field Crew: Names: Melinda Bahr, Terry Collins, Doug Webb Data Entry by: Names: Michelle Prins Report Prepared by: Names: Melinda Bahr Report Edited by: Names: Glenn Grieve Maps prepared by: Names: BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. Address: Box 601, Terrace, British Columbia, V8G 4B5 Phone: (250) 635-5378 Water Chemistry Name: Philip Analytical Services conducted by: Address: 8577 Commerce Court, Burnaby, British Columbia,

V5A 4N5 Phone: (604) 444-4808

Aging sample Name: Michelle Prins analysis by: Address: Biolith Scientific Consultants Inc. Phone: (250) 635-5378 Genetic sample Name: Susan Pollard analysis by: Address: Fisheries Branch, 780 Blanshard St., Victoria,

British Columbia, V8V 1X4 Phone: (250) 387-4573


BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. iv

Table of Contents

DISCLAIMER..................................................................................................................................................... I

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................................................... I

HALFMOON LAKE DATA SUMMARY .........................................................................................................II

CONTRACTOR INFORMATION.................................................................................................................. III

LIST OF TABLES..............................................................................................................................................V

LIST OF FIGURES............................................................................................................................................V

1.0 INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................................................1

1.1 PROJECT SCOPE/OBJECTIVES.........................................................................................................................1 1.2 LOCATION....................................................................................................................................................1

1.2.1 Access ..................................................................................................................................................1

2.0 RESOURCE INFORMATION.....................................................................................................................1

3.0 METHODS....................................................................................................................................................3

4.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ....................................................................................................................4

4.1 LOGISTICS....................................................................................................................................................4 4.2 IMMEDIATE SHORELINE ................................................................................................................................4 4.3 SURROUNDING COUNTRY .............................................................................................................................4 4.4 SUMMARY OF DATA COLLECTION.................................................................................................................5

4.4.1 Annotated Air Photo .............................................................................................................................5 4.4.2 Bathymetric Map ..................................................................................................................................5 4.4.3 Lake Outline Map.................................................................................................................................5 4.4.4 Streams ................................................................................................................................................9 4.4.5 Limnological Sampling .......................................................................................................................13 4.4.6 Photographs.......................................................................................................................................15 4.4.7 Fish Sampling Summary .....................................................................................................................16 4.4.8 Fish Age, Size and Life History ...........................................................................................................16

4.5 FISHERIES OBSERVATIONS..........................................................................................................................20 4.5.1 Fish and Fish Habitat .........................................................................................................................20 4.5.2 Habitat Concerns ...............................................................................................................................21

BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................................................................22


BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. v

List of Tables TABLE 1. A LIST OF STREAMS ASSOCIATED WITH HALFMOON LAKE. ........................................................................9 TABLE 2. INDEX OF PHOTOGRAPHS. ......................................................................................................................15 TABLE 3. FISH SAMPLING SUMMARY FOR HALFMOON LAKE ON SEPTEMBER 9-10, 1997. ........................................16 TABLE 4. SUMMARY OF LENGTH-AT-AGE DATA FOR HALFMOON LAKE, SEPTEMBER 9-10, 1997..............................16

List of Figures FIGURE 1. OVERVIEW MAP OF THE LOCATION OF HALFMOON LAKE STUDY AREA. (DEASE LAKE WATERSHED,

BRITISH COLUMBIA) .......................................................................................................................................2 FIGURE 2. ENLARGEMENT OF HALFMOON LAKE......................................................................................................6 FIGURE 3. BATHYMETRY MAP OF HALFMOON LAKE. ...............................................................................................7 FIGURE 4. HALFMOON LAKE OUTLINE MAP. ............................................................................................................8 FIGURE 5. TEMPERATURE AND DISSOLVED OXYGEN PROFILES FOR HALFMOON LAKE ON SEPTEMBER 10, 1997. .........I FIGURE 6. FORK LENGTH FREQUENCY DIAGRAM FOR LAKE CHUB FROM HALFMOON LAKE, SEPTEMBER 9-10, 1997. 17 FIGURE 7. FORK LENGTH FREQUENCY DIAGRAM FOR LONGNOSE SUCKERS FROM HALFMOON LAKE, SEPTEMBER 9-10,

1997. ...........................................................................................................................................................18 FIGURE 8. LENGTH-AT-AGE DIAGRAM FOR LAKE CHUB FROM HALFMOON LAKE, SEPTEMBER 9-10, 1997. ...............19 FIGURE 9. LENGTH-AT-AGE DIAGRAM FOR LONGNOSE SUCKER FROM HALFMOON LAKE, SEPTEMBER 9-10, 1997. ...20

List of Appendices APPENDIX A. PHOTO CD INDEX ENLARGEMENT ...................................................................................................24 APPENDIX B. FIELD DATA INFORMATION SYSTEM (FDIS) AND FISH DATA COLLECTION FORM (FISHCOLL)............26 APPENDIX C. WATER CHEMISTRY ANALYSIS RESULTS .........................................................................................48 APPENDIX D. BATHYMETRY TRANSECT CALCULATION SHEETS.............................................................................57 APPENDIX E. DNA SAMPLING SUMMARY.............................................................................................................65


BioLith Scientific Consultants Inc. 1

1.0 Introduction Halfmoon Lake was surveyed on September 9-10, 1997.

1.1 Project scope/Objectives The object of this project was to gather information on the fish populations and the physical parameters of their habitat in Halfmoon Lake, a primary lake in a third order (1:50,000) sub-basin of the Dease River watershed. Halfmoon Lake is contained within lands claimed by the Kaska-Dene First Nation. The purpose of this study was to gather inventory information on this lake with an emphasis on sport fish species such as lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) and northern pike (Esox lucius). Data collected will assist in managing fish resources and support the province's efforts in negotiating First Nation Treaties.

1.2 Location Halfmoon Lake is situated at the headwaters of a third order tributary to Dease River. Its watershed code was 218-925300-00000. Halfmoon Lake was located approximately eight kilometres east of the point on Highway 37 which is about 25 kilometres north of the community of Dease Lake (Figure 1). The latitude of the lake is 59º 35' 00'' and the longitude is 129º 55' 00''.

1.2.1 Access Halfmoon Lake was accessible by aircraft by flying approximately 25 kilometres northeast from the community of Dease Lake. The flight time in an Otter aircraft from Dease Lake to Halfmoon Lake was 10 minutes. There was no road access to Halfmoon Lake. 2.0 Resource Information Halfmoon Lake had recreational potential for hiking, camping, and canoeing. There was a trapper's cabin located on the western shore. Old moose antlers were located at the cabin. A cow and calf moose were observed at the southeastern end of the lake near the outlet during the inventory. No pre-existing fish or water quality data was found prior to this inventory of Halfmoon Lake. No forest development had occurred in any of the area surrounding the lake.



Figure 1. Overview map of the location of Halfmoon Lake study area. (Dease Lake Watershed, British Columbia)



3.0 Methods Halfmoon Lake was inventoried according to reconnaissance standards outlined in the Reconnaissance (1:20 000) Fish and Fish Habitat Inventory: Standards and Procedures (1997). In addition, an extra sinking gill net was set overnight at approximately 10 metres. The objective of setting this net was to more intensively sample the fish population. There were no other alterations made to the reconnaissance standards in this lake inventory. Sampling equipment used included the following: • Smith-Root Model 15C-POW Backpack Electrofisher was used to sample fish presence in

the inlet and outlet streams • Lowrance X-16 echosounder was used to record the lake depth during bathymetric transects

and e-lines as well as to find the limnological sampling site • Eight foot Zodiac inflatable boat powered by a 2 hp Honda 4 cycle outboard motor was used

for studying inlet and outlet streams, shoreline vegetation and substrate composition, and for setting minnow traps

• Fifteen foot Zodiac inflatable boat powered by a 4 hp Honda 4 cycle outboard motor was used for bathymetric transects and e-lines, limnological sampling and net setting

• YSI Model 57 portable Oxygen Meter was used for dissolved oxygen and temperature measurements

• Oakton pH/mV/C meter was used for pH measurements • LaMotte Conductivity Meter was used for conductivity measurements • Eagle Explorer 12 Channel GPS Receiver and Garmin 12XL GPS handheld units were used

for UTM measurements on the lake • Olympus SZ40 stereo dissecting microscope was used for fish scale age analysis • Pentax 35 mm single lens reflex camera with a standard 35 mm focal length lens was used

for all photography • Microsoft Word 6.0 was used for production of the report, and Microsoft Excel 5.0 was used

for data storage, calculations and graphing • CorelDRAW Graphics 6.0 was used for composition of lake outline, fishing, and overview

maps • Ministry of Environment digital entry tools entitled Field Data Information System (FDIS)

and Fish Collection Form (Fishcoll) were used for recording data. The digital entry tools were written by the Ministry of Environment in Microsoft Access 2.0. The specific file names that contain the habitat information are fdisdat.mdb and fishcoll.mdb.



4.0 Results and Discussion

4.1 Logistics Field Data Information System (FDIS) produced by Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks of British Columbia was used for data entry in this report. There were multiple releases of this data entry tool throughout production of this report. Consequently, there are unavoidable inconsistencies in the alpha-numeric field "Project ID" found on the Fish Collection Forms, Sample Site Cards, Reach Forms and FDIS Lake Forms. The most up to date Project ID information can be found on the Fish Collection Forms and the Lake Forms. Field work was constrained by inflexibility in float plane availability due to its use in fall hunting. As a result, data gathering had to be extremely efficient.

4.2 Immediate Shoreline The shoreline of Halfmoon Lake consisted of approximately 70% low rocky shore and approximately 30% wetland. The majority of the wetland areas were located near the mouths of the inlet and outlet streams. Sedges (Carex spp.) lined the entire lake shore. Some rocks around the shoreline were slippery, indicating the presence of algal growth. Substrate in the littoral zone of Halfmoon Lake was primarily organic fines with limited amounts of cobble. The riparian area of the lake consisted of a mature coniferous forest. The majority of the forest was composed of sub-alpine fir trees (Abies lasiocarpa). Other terrestrial vegetation included willows (Salix spp.), buckbrush (Betula spp.) and freckled pelt lichen (Peltigera britannica).

4.3 Surrounding Country Halfmoon Lake was situated in an area of relatively low relief on the Stikine Plateau. The rolling hills surrounding the lake were covered by a mosaic of mature coniferous forest and open meadow. The closest visible mountain range was the Beady Range, approximately 20 kilometres north of the lake (see CD#7 photo 103). No forestry development was observed in the surrounding landscape.



4.4 Summary of Data Collection

4.4.1 Annotated Air Photo An annotated air photo enlargement showing the location of netting sites, minnow trap sites, direction of water flow, limnological station and the benchmark is given in Figure 2.

4.4.2 Bathymetric Map A fold out bathymetric map of Halfmoon Lake is given in Figure 3.

4.4.3 Lake Outline Map An outline map of Halfmoon Lake showing bathymetric transects and streams with interim location numbers (LP numbers) is given in Figure 4.



Figure 2. Enlargement of Halfmoon Lake.



Figure 3. Bathymetry map of Halfmoon Lake.



Figure 4. Halfmoon Lake outline map.



4.4.4 Streams

Table 1. A list of streams associated with Halfmoon Lake. Table 1 lists all of the streams that were shown on the 1:20 000 TRIM and Forest Cover Maps as flowing into or out of Halfmoon Lake. Some of these streams were not found in the field. LP numbers are interim location point numbers assigned to each stream pending replacement with unique watershed codes.

Map Number

Locational Point

Number

Location in Field Verified

UTM Zone

Easting Northing Higher Level Watershed Code

Comments

104I.071 LP00027 No 9 444220 6507240 218-925300

Inlet

104I.071 LP00028 No 9 444100 6507500 218-9253

Inlet



00

104I.071 No 9 444330 6508300 218-925300-87200

Inlet

104I.071 LP00031 No 9 444440 6508520 218-925300

Inlet

104I.071 LP00032 No 9 444860 6507680 218-925300

Inlet

104I.071 LP00033 No 9 445000 6507480 218-925300

Inlet

104I.061 Yes 9 444720 6506700 218-9253

Inlet



00-79100

104J.070 Yes 9 444250 6508450 218-925300

Inlet

104J.070 Yes 9 446750 6505850 218-925300

Outlet

104I.061 LP00036 No 9 446500 6506150 218-925300

Inlet

104I.061 LP00037 No 9 446040 6506140 218-925300

Inlet

104I.061 No 9 445250 6506470 218-9253

Inlet



00-76100



4.4.4.1 Streams Surveyed One outlet stream and two inlet streams were sampled at Halfmoon Lake. The LP numbers or watershed codes referred to can be located on the Lake Outline Map (Figure 4) and a location description can be found in Table 1. 218-925300. Reach 2. Halfmoon Creek Outlet. This outlet is located at the southeastern end of Halfmoon Lake. There were three beaver dams located within the first 500 m of stream beyond the lake. However, water was flowing over the dams and they were not barriers to fish passage. Due to the abundant sedge and deep pools, the outlet had good cover for rearing habitat for fish such as lake chub and longnose suckers. 218-925300. Reach 4. Halfmoon Creek Inlet. This inlet was located at the northern end of Halfmoon Lake. The inlet was a wide channel lined with sedge for the first 500 m upstream of the lake and at about 300m upstream of the lake there was a beaver dam which was not a barrier to fish. The average depth of the inlet was 30 cm and there was fair cover with some deep pools. Upstream of 300 m, this inlet did not have a defined channel and was part of a wetland complex. 218-925300-79100. Reach 1. Inlet to Halfmoon Lake. This creek had lots of cover and adequate discharge, but little gravel for spawning. The average depth was 30 cm and the morphology was 100% run. There were not many deep pools for rearing in this inlet stream.

4.4.5 Limnological Sampling Limnological sampling was conducted at mid-day on September 10, 1997. This site is marked X on the accompanying annotated air photo map (Figure 2). Field data was recorded on the Lake Survey Form (Appendix 3). Water samples were stored on ice and shipped via air to Philip Analytical Services, Burnaby, B.C. for analysis within 72 hours of collection. Data are presented in Appendix 4 of this report.

4.4.5.1 Stratification The dissolved oxygen-temperature profile of Halfmoon Lake for September 10, 1997 is shown in the Figure below. The lake was thermally stratified, with the thermocline between 6-13 metres where temperature decreased from 13º C to 7.5º C. The decline in concentration of dissolved oxygen with depth was more gradual. Dissolved oxygen concentrations decreased from 7.5 mg/l at the surface to 3.7 mg/l at the bottom.



Figure 5. Temperature and dissolved oxygen profiles for Halfmoon Lake on September 10, 1997.

4.4.5.2 Water Chemistry Water samples from the surface and at 17 metres (1 metre above the bottom) were collected in a 1 litre non-metallic Van Dorn bottle on September 10, 1997 from the limnological station noted on Figure 2. Samples were then apportioned into containers for general chemistry, metals and chlorophyll a analysis. The metals aliquots were fixed with 1 ml HNO3 and the chlorophyll a aliquots were filtered. Samples were shipped to Philip Analytical Services in a cooler with ice packs and were received by Philip within 72 hours of collection. Data from Philip Analytical Services is presented in Appendix 4. Halfmoon Lake was slightly basic with a pH of 8.4 at the surface and a pH of 7.7 on the bottom. The specific conductance at the surface was 160 siemens and was 150 siemens at the bottom. The nitrogen:phosphorus concentrations suggest that the lake was oligotrophic (Wetzel, 1975). The N:P ratio in the epilimnion was 76:1 and was 133:1 in the hypolimnion. The secchi depth was measured to be 6.0 metres.

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

Temperature (Deg. C)

Dep

th (m

)0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

200 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

Dissolved Oxygen (mg/l)

Depth (m

)

Temperature (Deg. C)

Dissolved Oxygen



4.4.6 Photographs All photographs were taken with a standard 35 mm focal length lens and are summarized in Table 2.

Table 2. Index of photographs. Roll

# Frame CD/Photo

Numbers MAP NID Comment

1 1 7/069 104I.061 7069 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air -notice the inlet

1 2 7/070 104I.061 7070 inlet at North end of the lake 1 3 7/071 104I.061 7071 inlet on NE side of the lake 1 4 7/072 104I.061 7072 inlet on E side of the lake (LP00032) 1 5 7/073 104I.061 7073 convergence in middle of Halfmoon Lake 1 6 7/074 104I.061 7074 lower half of Halfmoon Lake 1 7 7/075 104I.061 7075 outlet of Halfmoon Lake 1 8 7/076 104I.061 7076 facing North showing LP00037-to left of spit of land in the

photo

1 9 7/077 104I.061 7077 facing North showing inlet 218-925300-79100 1 10 7/078 104I.061 7078 looking North at island on Halfmoon Lake 1 11 7/079 104I.061 7079 cabin on Western shore of Halfmoon Lake 1 12 7/080 104I.061 7080 outlet at South end of Lake 2 8 7/100 104I.061 7100 overview from the air of Northern end of Halfmoon Lake 2 9 7/101 104I.061 7101 cabin located on Western shore of lake 2 10 7/102 104I.061 7102 outlet at Southeastern end of lake 2 11 7/103 104I.061 7103 overview of Lake from the air showing Northern end 2 12 7/104 104I.061 7104 rainbow reflection at Halfmoon Lake 2 14 7/105 104I.061 7105 benchmark 2 15 7/106 104I.061 7106 facing upstream at NID00047 2 16 7/107 104I.061 7107 facing downstream at NID00047 2 18 7/108 104I.061 7108 view to East from Limnology station 2 19 7/109 104I.061 7109 view to North from Limnology station 2 21 7/110 104I.061 7110 typical shoreline vegetation 2 22 7/111 104I.061 7111 head of outlet of LP00035 2 23 7/112 104I.061 7112 facing upstream at NID00049 2 24 7/113 104I.061 7113 facing downstream at NID00049 2 25 7/114 104I.061 7114 facing upstream at NID00048 3 1 8/001 104I.061 8001 facing downstream at NID00048 3 2 8/002 104I.061 8002 mouth of LP00034 3 3 8/003 104I.061 8003 longnose sucker caught at Halfmoon Lake 3 4 8/004 104I.061 8004 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air 3 5 8/005 104I.061 8005 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air 3 12 8/012 104I.061 8012 Lake chub captured at Halfmoon Lake



4.4.7 Fish Sampling Summary Lake chub (Couesius plumbeus) and longnose suckers (Catostomus catostomus) were captured in Halfmoon Lake. Fish effort and results are summarized in Table 3.

Table 3. Fish sampling summary for Halfmoon Lake on September 9-10, 1997.

Net Trap Summary Set Pull Site No. Method Depth of

sampling Date Time Date Time Species

100 Minnow trap 1 m Sept. 10 0900 Sept. 10 1600 101 Minnow trap 1 m Sept. 10 0910 Sept. 10 1550 102 Minnow trap 1 m Sept. 10 0913 Sept. 10 1555 LKC 103 Minnow trap 1 m Sept. 10 0920 Sept. 10 1545 104 Minnow trap 1 m Sept. 10 0925 Sept. 10 1546 105 Sinking Gill Net 30 m Sept. 9 2100 Sept. 10 0930 106 Sinking Gill Net 10 m Sept. 9 2145 Sept. 10 1100 LSU 107 Floating Gill Net 2 m Sept. 9 2130 Sept. 10 1230 LSU, LKC

Tributary Sampling Summary Watershed

code Site # Inlet or Outlet Length surveyed Stream

Order Species caught Electrofishing

seconds Halfmoon Creek 218-925300-

49 Outlet 100 m 4 Visual id of 3 fish approx. 30 mm

122

Halfmoon Creek 218-925300-

47 Inlet 100 m 2 Visual id of one fish below beaver dam

114

218-925300-79100- LP00034

48 Inlet 100 m 3 No fish caught 139

LSU= Longnose Sucker LKC= Lake Chub

4.4.8 Fish Age, Size and Life History Scale tissue was collected for aging. Size and aging data are summarized in Table 4.

Table 4. Summary of length-at-age data for Halfmoon Lake, September 9-10, 1997.

Stream or Lake Name

Watershed Code/Waterbody Identifier

Spp. Age Number of fish

Mean length (mm)

Range of Lengths (mm)

Halfmoon Lake

218-925300-00000/ 01658DEAL

LKC 2+ 3+ 4+

2 4 3

103 99 110

100-105 95-100 105-115

Halfmoon Lake

218-925300-00000/ 01658DEAL

LSU 3+ 4+

6 3

229 198

205-260 180-220

LKC = Lake Chub LSU = Longnose Sucker



4.4.8.1 Non-Salmonid Species Fork lengths ranged from 95-115 mm for lake chub (n= 16) and 85-310 mm for longnose sucker (n=30) with means of 106 mm (S.D.5.4 mm) and 192 mm (S.D. 49.5 mm) respectively. Fork length frequency diagrams are presented in Figures 6 and 7. Nine longnose suckers and nine lake chub were aged and their respective length-at-age diagrams are given in Figures 8 and 9. The small sample size of aging data for both species makes these diagrams of limited significance.

Fork length frequency for Lake Chub (LKC)

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

95-96 97-98 99-100 100-101 101-102 103-104 105-106 107-108 109-110 111-112 113-114 115-116

Fork length class (mm)

Num

ber

of in

divi

dual

s

LKC

Figure 6. Fork length frequency diagram for lake chub from Halfmoon Lake, September 9-10, 1997 (n=16).



Fork Length frequency for Longnose Suckers in Halfmoon Lake

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

150-159 160-169 170-179 180-189 190-199 200-209 210-219 220-229 230-239 240-249 250-259 260-269

Fork length class (mm)

Num

ber o

f ind

ivid

uals

Figure 7. Fork length frequency diagram for longnose suckers from Halfmoon Lake, September 9-10, 1997 (n=30).



Length at Age of Lake Chub in Halfmoon Lake

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

2 3 4Age (years)

Freq

uenc

y

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

Mea

n Fo

rk L

engt

h (c

m)

Number of individualsMean Fork Length

Figure 8. Length-at-age diagram for lake chub from Halfmoon Lake, September 9-10, 1997 (n=9).



Length at Age of Longnose Suckers in Halfmoon Lake

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

3 4

Age (years)

Freq

uenc

y

0

50

100

150

200

250

Mea

n Fo

rk L

engt

h

Number of IndividualsMean Fork Length

Figure 9. Length-at-age diagram for longnose sucker from Halfmoon Lake, September 9-10, 1997 (n=9).

4.4.8.2 Salmonid Species No salmonid species were captured at Halfmoon Lake.

4.5 Fisheries Observations

4.5.1 Fish and Fish Habitat Fish sampling efforts captured more than 180 longnose suckers. The sinking gill net which was set on the bottom of the lake yielded approximately 140 longnose suckers and the sinking gill net set at about 10 metres yielded approximately 40 longnose suckers. One minnow trap set for approximately 6 hours captured between 50 and 60 lake chub. Lake chub were also captured in the floating gill nets. No spawning habitat was observed in the streams which were sampled at Halfmoon Lake. Longnose suckers are known to spawn in shallow areas of lakes (Scott and Crossman, 1973).



The southeastern arm of Halfmoon Lake was completely in the littoral zone as it had a maximum depth of six metres. No fish were observed in this arm of the lake.

4.5.2 Habitat Concerns

4.5.2.1 Fisheries Sensitive Zones The creek mouths were surrounded by wetlands which should be considered Fisheries Sensitive Zones.

4.5.2.2 Restoration and Rehabilitation Opportunities There are no restoration or rehabilitation opportunities at Halfmoon Lake as it was pristine. The cabin located on the west shore of the lake did not appear to have affected the lake habitat.



Bibliography Section A. The following documents were used as guidelines in conducting this project. Anon. (1997) Bathymetric Standards for Lake Inventories. British Columbia Ministry of

Environment, Lands and Parks, 42 pp. Anon. (1995) Fisheries Information Summary System: Data Compilation and Mapping

Procedures. British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, and Department of Fisheries and Oceans, 105 pp.

Anon. (1996) A Guide to Photodocumentation, Resources Inventory Committee Manual,

Province of British Columbia. Anon. (1996) Field Key to the Freshwater Fishes of British Columbia, Resources Inventory

Committee Manual, Province of British Columbia. Anon. (1997) User's Guide to British Columbia's Watershed/Waterbody Identifier System,

version 2.1, Resources Inventory Committee, Province of British Columbia. Anon. (1997) Field Data Information System Users Manual. British Columbia Environment,

Lands and Parks. Anon. (1997) Reconnaissance (1:20 000) Fish and Fish Habitat Inventory: Standards and

Procedures. British Columbia Environment, Lands and Parks. Anon. (1997) Fish Collection Methods and Standards. Ministry of Environment, Lands and

Parks' Fish Inventory Unit in consultation with Gordon Haas of UBC Fish Museum. Anon. (1997) Standards for Fish and Fish Habitat Mapping. Fisheries Section, Resources

Inventory Branch, Resources Inventory Committee Section B. List of Contacts The following individuals were contacted during the course of this study. Burrows, Jeff. Contract Monitor. Ministry of Environment--Fisheries Branch. Fort St. John,

British Columbia. Personal Communication. Facchin Angelo. (1997-1998) Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, Victoria, British

Columbia. Field Data Information System. Personal Communication. Giroux, Paul. Fisheries Inventory Specialist. Ministry of Environment. Smithers, British

Columbia. Personal Communication.



Hatlevik, Sig. Senior Fisheries Technician. Ministry of Environment. Smithers, British

Columbia. Personal Communication. Miers, Lynn. (1997-1998) Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, Victoria, British

Columbia. Field Data Information System. Personal Communication. Section C. Additional Resources The following additional resources were used for this project. Dabrowski, R. S. (1984). A Reconnaissance Survey of Horseranch Lake. Ministry of

Environment, Fisheries Branch. Dabrowski, R. S. (1984). A Reconnaissance Survey of Vincent Lake. Ministry of Environment,

Fisheries Branch. Grant, D. J. (1985). A Reconnaissance Survey of Cry Lake. Ministry of Environment, Fisheries

Branch. MacKinnon, A., Pojar, J., and Coupe, R. (1992). Plants of Northern British Columbia. B. C.

Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing, Vancouver, British Columbia. Scott, W. B. and Crossman, E. J. (1973) Freshwater Fishes of Canada. Fisheries Research

Board of Canada, Ottawa. Published by Crown. Wetzel, Robert G. 1975. Limnology. W. B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.



Appendix A. Photo CD Index Enlargement Roll

# Frame CD/Photo

Numbers MAP NID Comment

1 1 7/069 104I.061 7069 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air -notice the inlet

1 2 7/070 104I.061 7070 inlet at North end of the lake 1 3 7/071 104I.061 7071 inlet on NE side of the lake 1 4 7/072 104I.061 7072 inlet on E side of the lake (LP00032) 1 5 7/073 104I.061 7073 convergence in middle of Halfmoon Lake 1 6 7/074 104I.061 7074 lower half of Halfmoon Lake 1 7 7/075 104I.061 7075 outlet of Halfmoon Lake 1 8 7/076 104I.061 7076 facing North showing LP00037-to left of spit of land in the

photo

1 9 7/077 104I.061 7077 facing North showing inlet 218-925300-79100 1 10 7/078 104I.061 7078 looking North at island on Halfmoon Lake 1 11 7/079 104I.061 7079 cabin on Western shore of Halfmoon Lake 1 12 7/080 104I.061 7080 outlet at South end of Lake 2 8 7/100 104I.061 7100 overview from the air of Northern end of Halfmoon Lake 2 9 7/101 104I.061 7101 cabin located on Western shore of lake 2 10 7/102 104I.061 7102 outlet at Southeastern end of lake 2 11 7/103 104I.061 7103 overview of Lake from the air showing Northern end 2 12 7/104 104I.061 7104 rainbow reflection at Halfmoon Lake 2 14 7/105 104I.061 7105 benchmark 2 15 7/106 104I.061 7106 facing upstream at NID00047 2 16 7/107 104I.061 7107 facing downstream at NID00047 2 18 7/108 104I.061 7108 view to East from Limnology station 2 19 7/109 104I.061 7109 view to North from Limnology station 2 21 7/110 104I.061 7110 typical shoreline vegetation 2 22 7/111 104I.061 7111 head of outlet of LP00035 2 23 7/112 104I.061 7112 facing upstream at NID00049 2 24 7/113 104I.061 7113 facing downstream at NID00049 2 25 7/114 104I.061 7114 facing upstream at NID00048 3 1 8/001 104I.061 8001 facing downstream at NID00048 3 2 8/002 104I.061 8002 mouth of LP00034 3 3 8/003 104I.061 8003 longnose sucker caught at Halfmoon Lake 3 4 8/004 104I.061 8004 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air 3 5 8/005 104I.061 8005 overview of Halfmoon Lake from the air 3 12 8/012 104I.061 8012 Lake chub captured at Halfmoon Lake



Appendix B. Field Data Information System (FDIS) and Fish Data Collection Form (Fishcoll)



Appendix C. Water Chemistry Analysis Results



Appendix D. Bathymetry Transect Calculation Sheets



Appendix E. DNA Sampling Summary

Date post:	10-Jan-2020
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	3 times
Download:	0 times

Reconnaissance Lake Inventory of Halfmoon...

Documents