NOAA’s partners at The Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay recently completed a project to restore habitat and improve fish passage on Kids Creek in Traverse City, Michigan. The effort received more than $1.5 million in NOAA funding through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Through this work, our partners are helping enhance habitat and food sources for fish species such as brook trout.
Kids Creek is on Michigan’s Impaired Waters List, due to a decline in macroinvertebrates—small aquatic animals such as snails, worms, and insect larvae. Sediment and stormwater runoff have led to a loss of macroinvertebrate habitat, causing a decrease in their populations. Macroinvertebrates provide an important food source for brook trout and other fish species. Without proper habitat to support a healthy macroinvertebrate population, the fish populations that depend on them cannot thrive.
In addition to a lack of macroinvertebrate habitat, portions of the creek are filled in with sand or contain structures that impede water flow. This makes it difficult for migrating fish to access their habitat, and causes the project area to flood frequently.
