Fish Habitat Enhancement Toolkit

In partnership with the Lanark County Stewardship Council, Watersheds Canada is proud to announce the creation and distribution of a free Fish Habitat Enhancement Toolkit. Generously funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the Fish Habitat Enhancement Toolkit will provide grassroots organizations and community groups with project guides, updated protocols, and accompanying videos to identify suitable sites and successfully enhance various types of fish habitat projects, including: walleye spawning bed enhancements; in-water fish habitat enhancement with woody debris; and cold-water creek enhancement projects.

“Enhancing and Restoring Critical Fish Habitat in Ontario” webinar recording, featuring Melissa Dakers, Lake Stewardship Coordinator at Watersheds Canada

PDF download: Media release – Watersheds Canada receives $71,000 OTF Grant to Help Community Groups Enhance Fish Habitat

Introduction Guide

Before starting your own fish habitat enhancement project, you should consult our Fish Habitat Enhancement Toolkit Guide which introduces different types of enhancement projects and provides additional resources in order to complete them. Once you have identified your objectives and type of project you are interested in, you can then refer to the below protocols and videos. These go into further detail and lay out the steps needed to complete a successful fish habitat enhancement project.

Fish Habitat Enhancement Toolkit Guide PDF

#1. In-Water Brush Piles (woody debris) Enhancement

Underwater woody debris is a healthy component of lake environments. Sunken logs, trees, branches, and root balls provide excellent habitat for wildlife, including fish, turtles, birds, and invertebrates. Beaver activity, wind, erosion, or water inflows from rivers or creeks naturally deposit such woody debris into a lake. However, human activity and development have significantly reduced the amount of natural woody debris from lakes. Communities can promote the health of wildlife populations and improve water quality by creating additional woody debris habitat, such as in-water brush piles. Brush piles can provide fish with a food source, as well as shaded areas to rest, spawn, and escape predators.

In-Water Brush Piles Protocols PDF

#2. Walleye Spawning Bed Enhancement

Walleye, also known as pickerel, are a highly prized sport fish and an important part of the biodiversity in many waters of Ontario. If you have walleye in your lake or river, you may be able to help strengthen their populations by enhancing walleye spawning beds. This video outlines planning and implementation guidelines for walleye spawning bed enhancement projects.

Walleye Spawning Bed Enhancement Protocol PDF

#3. Cold-Water Creek Enhancement

Cold-water streams are significant in the proper functioning of natural ecosystems as they help to moderate temperatures of the larger rivers and lakes they flow into. Additionally, cold-water streams also provide nursery habitat for many fish species (including brook trout) which require the cold temperatures and high levels of dissolved oxygen characteristic of these types of watercourses. Cold-water fish species such as brook trout are a highly prized sport fish and an important part of the biodiversity in many Ontario waterways. If these trout inhabit your river or creek, you may be able to help strengthen their populations by enhancing cold-water creek habitat.

Cold-Water Creek Enhancement Protocol PDF