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Proposed Research <br />To fully develop the relationship between discharge and habitat quantity and quality for <br />pallid sturgeon in the lower Platte River several steps need to be completed. In our prior <br />research, data from a wide range of times and locations (most non-overlapping) were <br />used to approximate current conditions in the lower Platte River. As a result several <br />important questions could not be addressed. <br />• First, how stable or mobile are instream habitats in response to different discharge <br />rates? <br />• Second, what is timing and duration of peak flows necessary to create and <br />maintain habitats suitable to pallid sturgeon? <br />To accomplish these goals, an integrated image acquisition strategy will be employed. <br />LIDAR and aerial images will be collected from an airplane for the reach between the <br />confluence of the Platte River and Elkhorn River downstream to the Platte River's <br />junction with the Missouri River. LIDAR images will be collected once during the study, <br />and aerial images will be collected monthly over a 2 year period with several extra flights <br />targeted at unique discharge levels (floods or droughts). Concurrently with the aerial <br />images, several fixed site cameras will be deployed to collect daily images of specific <br />reaches. These time-lapse cameras will, be located on observation towers ar other high <br />points along the river. This combination of low spatial and temporal resolution images of <br />the lower 46 km of the river, high spatial and temporal resolution images of small sites <br />within this reach will provide a method to assess fine scale changes in habitat related to <br />discharge and providc a mcchanism to scalc thcsc results up to thc complctc rcach of <br />concern for the pallid sturgeon. <br />By combining these two areas of study, we can achieve an important leap forward in <br />understanding the dynamic interplay between the water stage and habitat quality, and we <br />anticipate being ahle to develop a functional relationship between river stage, stream <br />power (the ability of water to move sediment), and observed distrirutinn anci extent of <br />instream habitats in the lower Platte River. This will provide managers method to help <br />predict the likely results of changes in water quantity or channel morphology on habitats <br />suitable for pallid sturgeon. <br />It is important to note that this effort must be closely coordinated with researchers <br />working to refine pallid sturgeon habitat use in the lower Platte River under the Pallid <br />Sturgeon Research Plan. This will allow substantially greater utility of information <br />collected, as the assessment of habitat changes can be focused on the specific habitat <br />types used by pallid sturgeon.