ABSTRACT:

Bear Lake provides a unique location to use bathymetric data to analyze the relationship between changing water surface elevations and the accessible spawning habitat for fish species. The spawning habitat for the prey species of Bear Lake consists of cobble which is present in the littoral zone of the lake. The littoral zone is classified as the area of the water column that has light penetration, sufficient for macrophytes to photosynthesis, to reach the sediment floor of the lake. The analysis was performed using ESRI’s ArcMap and Python coding to calculate, automate, and illustrate this relationship; and to provide a possible methodology for water and wildlife management to apply to their unique situations to make informed decisions in the future. This method is advantageous when analyzing present or future conditions because of its versatility to create hypothetical scenarios.