Bulk samples of streambed sediment from two restored reaches of the lower Merced River, California
Dates
Acquisition
2016
Acquisition
2002
Publication Date
2019-10-25
Citation
Legleiter, C.J., and Harrison, L.R., 2019, Field measurements for characterizing salmon spawning habitat in two restored reaches of the lower Merced River, California: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P99CWIDL.
Summary
Bulk samples of streambed sediment were collected from two reaches of the lower Merced River in California's Central Valley to support research intended to evaluate the extent to which large-scale restoration projects provided improved salmon spawning habitat. A related goal of this study was to improve our understanding of the geomorphic factors influencing spawning site selection by salmon. The bulk samples were acquired during the summer of 2016 at the Merced River Ranch and Robinson Reach field sites using a McNeil sampler [McNeil and Ahnell, 1964]. Before collecting each sample, the surface layer was removed to avoid including surface grains as part of the sample. Surface material was scraped off to a depth equal to the diameter [...]
Summary
Bulk samples of streambed sediment were collected from two reaches of the lower Merced River in California's Central Valley to support research intended to evaluate the extent to which large-scale restoration projects provided improved salmon spawning habitat. A related goal of this study was to improve our understanding of the geomorphic factors influencing spawning site selection by salmon. The bulk samples were acquired during the summer of 2016 at the Merced River Ranch and Robinson Reach field sites using a McNeil sampler [McNeil and Ahnell, 1964]. Before collecting each sample, the surface layer was removed to avoid including surface grains as part of the sample. Surface material was scraped off to a depth equal to the diameter of the largest particle found on the surface. The subsurface material was collected to a depth of 0.3 m and grain size distribution data were obtained by running the bulk sample through a series of sieves with screens ranging from 0.063 - 128 mm [Bunte and Abt, 2001]. We used existing bulk sample data of the initial sediment stockpile of the Robinson Reach, which was collected by California Department of Water Resources in 2002 [CADWR, 2005]. Additional bulk sample data were collected during the summer of 2016 at the Merced River Ranch and Robinson Reach field sites.
Click on title to download individual files attached to this item.
BulkSampleMetadata.xml “Metadata describing the data and the processes by which the data were collected” Original FGDC Metadata
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14.09 KB
application/fgdc+xml
Merced_subsurfaceGrainSize.csv “Subsurface sediment grain size distributions derived from bulk samples”
1.18 KB
text/csv
Related External Resources
Type: Citation
Bunte, K., and S. R. Abt (2001), Sampling surface and subsurface particle-size distributions in wadable gravel- and cobble-bed streams for analyses in sediment transport, hydraulics, and streambed monitoring, Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-74,113, Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, 428 p.
McNeil, W. J., and W. H. Ahnell (1964), Success of pink salmon spawning relative to size of spawning bed materials, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Special Scientific Report – Fisheries 469, Washington, D.C.
Harrison, L. R., Bray, E., Overstreet, B., Legleiter, C., Brown, R. A., Merz, J. E., et al. ( 2019). Physical controls on salmon redd site selection in restored reaches of a regulated, gravel‐bed river. Water Resources Research, 55, 8942– 8966. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018WR024428
For questions concerning this data set, please contact:
Dr. Carl J. Legleiter - cjl@usgs.gov, 303-271-3651
Geomorphology and Sediment Transport Laboratory
United States Geological Survey
4620 Technology Drive, Suite #400
Golden, CO 80403
Purpose
Bulk samples of streambed sediment were collected from two reaches of the lower Merced River in California's Central Valley to support research intended to evaluate the extent to which large-scale restoration projects provided improved salmon spawning habitat. A related goal of this study was to improve our understanding of the geomorphic factors influencing spawning site selection by salmon.
Rights
Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
