The Dolores River "DRAMS" Project: Patterns of Vegetation Response and Rebound in the Face of Large Flow Variations
Cynthia Dott, Fort Lewis College
The Dolores River Adaptive Management Support project (DRAMS) was initiated by a group of stakeholders with the intent of using more scientific input to make spring flow release decisions, with a goal of supporting native fish habitat on the lower Dolores River (below McPhee Reservoir). This 5-year monitoring project (2021-2025) involved annual geomorphic, vegetation and fish surveys in five different reaches across about 200 miles of the lower Dolores. Vegetation monitoring revealed significant changes in cover and stem density for some plant groups, in response to both very low flows and high seasonal flows. However, vegetation changes were restricted to particular geomorphic features such as attached or mid-channel bars, or old side-channels. Other areas saw little to no change in vegetation over the course of the study, even after prolonged high flows during spring-summer 2023. Understanding controls on vegetation dynamics is critical to managing native fish habitat, and may be used to inform future active restoration work on the Dolores River.