Recent publications by The Salmonfly Project team

To download open-access reports and publications, click on any blue title. A PDF of the paper will then open in your browser.

For publications not linked on our website, request a copy via email.

2024

  1. Monitoring report: Birrell, J. H., Frakes, J. (2024). Monitoring Aquatic Insect Densities and Environmental Factors on the Upper Snake River, Wyoming – 2023 Report. The Salmonfly Project, 1, 1-23.

  2. Monitoring report: Birrell, J. H., Frakes, J. (2024). Monitoring Aquatic Insect Densities and Environmental Factors on the Bitterroot River, Montana – 2023 Report. The Salmonfly Project, 2, 1-21.

  3. Species vulnerability report: Birrell, J. H., Barth, A., Nelson, D., Hotaling, S. (2024). Rationale for Including the Giant Salmonfly (Pteronarcys californica) as a Species of Greatest Conservation Need in the State of Utah. The Salmonfly Project, 3, 1-16.

  4. Eichert, A., Sproul, J., Tolman, E. R., Birrell, J. H., Meek, J., Heckenhauer, J., ... & Frandsen, P. B. (2024). An unusually large genome from an unusually large stonefly: a chromosome-length genome assembly for the giant salmonfly, Pteronarcys californica (Plecoptera: Pteronarcyidae). Journal of Heredity, esae044.

  5. Birrell, J. H., Verberk, W. C., & Woods, H. A. Consistent Differences in Tissue Oxygen Levels Across 15 Insect Species Reflect a Balance between Toxicity and Asphyxiation. Available at SSRN 4592225.

2023

  1. Monitoring report: Birrell, J. H., Frakes, J. Wheeler, B. (2023). Monitoring Aquatic Insect Densities and Environmental Factors on the Big Hole River, Montana – 2023 Report. The Salmonfly Project, 1, 1-22.

  2. Publication: Birrell*, J. H., Frakes*, J. I., Shah, A. A., & Woods, H. A. (2023). Mechanisms underlying thermal breadth differ by species in insects from adjacent but thermally distinct streams–A test of the climate variability hypothesis. Journal of Thermal Biology, 112, 103435.

  3. Publication: Birrell, J. H., & Woods, H. A. (2023). Going with the flow–how a stream insect, Pteronarcys californica, exploits local flows to increase oxygen availability. Journal of Experimental Biology, 226(3), jeb244609.

  4. Publication: Meek, J., Birrell, J., Mulford, T., Shiozawa, D. K., & Nelson, C. R. (2023). Aquatic insect communities remain impaired following large-scale river restoration. Western North American Naturalist, 83(2), 207-219.

  5. Publication: Shah, A. A., Hotaling, S., Lapsansky, A. B., Malison, R. L., Birrell, J. H., Keeley, T., ... & Woods, H. A. (2023). Warming undermines emergence success in a threatened alpine stonefly: A multi‐trait perspective on vulnerability to climate change. Functional Ecology, 37(4), 1033-1043.

2022

  1. Publication: Malison, R. L., Frakes, J. I., Andreas, A. L., Keller, P. R., Hamant, E., Shah, A. A., & Woods, H. A. (2022). Plasticity of salmonfly (Pteronarcys californica) respiratory phenotypes in response to changes in temperature and oxygen. Journal of Experimental Biology, 225(18), jeb244253.

  2. Publication: Frakes, J. I., Malison, R. L., Sydor, M. J., & Woods, H. A. (2022). Exposure to copper increases hypoxia sensitivity and decreases upper thermal tolerance of giant salmonfly nymphs (Pteronarcys californica). Journal of Insect Physiology, 104455.

2021

  1. Publication: Frakes, J. I., Birrell, J. H., Shah, A. A., & Woods, H. A. (2021). Flow increases tolerance of heat and hypoxia of an aquatic insect. Biology Letters, 17(5), 20210004.

2020

  1. Publication: Birrell, J. H., Shah, A. A., Hotaling, S., et al. (2020). Insects in high‐elevation streams: Life in extreme environments imperiled by climate change. Global Change Biology, 26(12), 6667-6684.

2019

  1. Publication: Birrell, J. H., Meek, J. B., & Nelson, C. R. (2019). Decline of the giant salmonfly Pteronarcys californica Newport, 1848 (Plecoptera: Pteronarcyidae) in the Provo River, Utah, USA. Illiesia, 15(5), 53-97.

  2. Publication: Day, J.D., Birrell, J.H., et al. (2019) Invertebrate community response to fire and rodent activity in the Mojave and Great Basin Deserts. Ecology and Evolution, 9(10):6052 – 6067.

* Contributed equally

Other important publications about salmonfly ecology, declines, and distributions

Albertson, L. K., Briggs, M. A., Maguire, Z., Swart, S., Cross, W. F., Twining, C. W., ... & Walters, D. M. (2022). Dietary composition and fatty acid content of giant salmonflies (Pteronarcys californica) in two Rocky Mountain rivers. Ecosphere, 13(1), e3904.

Anderson, H. E., Albertson, L. K., & Walters, D. M. (2019). Water temperature drives variability in salmonfly abundance, emergence timing, and body size. River Research and Applications, 35(1), 1–2.

Benzel, L. (2016). Arkansas River: Restoration of Giant salmonflies (Pteronarcys californica) hasn’t had the hoped for results - yet. Coyote Gulch. Retrieved from https://coyotegulch.blog.

Colborn T. (1985). The use of the stonefly, Pteronarcys californica Newport, as a measure of bioavailable cadmium in a high-altitude river system, Gunnison County, Colorado (Doctoral dissertation, University of Wisconsin, Madison).

Nehring, R. B. (1987). Stream fisheries investigations (Federal Aid in Sportfish Restoration Project F-237R-18). Fort Collins, CO: Colorado Division of Wildlife.

Nehring, R. B., Heinold, B. D., & Pomeranz, J. (2011). Colorado River aquatic resources investigations (Federal Aid in Sportfish Restoration Project F-237R-18). Fort Collins, CO: Colorado Division of Wildlife.

Stagliano, D. M. (2010). Evaluation of salmonflies in Montana’s rivers: are statewide populations really declining? Retrieved from http://mtnhp.org/reports/ZOO_MT_Salmonfly_2010.pdf

Vinson, M. R. (2011). Returning salmonflies to the Logan River. In J. L. Li & M. T. Barbour (Eds.), Wading for Bugs: exploring streams with the experts (pp. 29–33). Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press.

Walters, D. M., Wesner, J. S., Zuellig, R. E., Kowalski, D. A., & Kondratieff, M. C. (2018). Holy flux: spatial and temporal variation in massive pulses of emerging insect biomass from western U.S. rivers. Ecology, 99(1), 238–240.

Williamson, R. (2021). What happened to Utah's salmonfly? KSL Outdoors. Retrieved from https://www.ksl.com/article/50193001/what-happened-to-utahs-salmonfly