Trout Unlimited (TU) has developed a new Home Waters project to improve redband habitat in the Owyhee Watershed of Nevada, Idaho, and Oregon.  In this high desert landscape, identifying coldwater refugia areas and protecting them is critical to improving the habitat for redband trout.

TU uses landscape-scale thermography and climate change modeling data to locate and prioritize cold water refugia and guide on-the-ground restoration actions.   
• Review key linkages b/w redband populations and riparian habitat conditions

• Develop stream temperature and riparian vegetation measures of redband trout habitat that can be used for broad-scale assessment and monitoring

• Develop linkages between landscape-scale measures of stream temperature and riparian vegetation and redband trout distribution and abundance

• Integrate landscape-scale measures of stream temperature and riparian vegetation into TU’s Conservation Success Index as a tool that can help inform strategic redband trout conservation 

The modeling tools target where landowner knowledge is sought and working together we improve water availability for redband trout as well as cattle operations.