PROGRESSION OF A FISH COMMUNITY AT SPUNKY BOTTOMS 
PRESERVE

Melissa L. Smith, Timothy M. O’Hara, Mike A. McClelland, Kevin S. Irons, Thad 
R.Cook, and Mike A. Smith
Illinois River Biological Station, Illinois Natural History Survey, 704 N. Schrader Ave, 
Havana, IL 62644

Efforts to restore agricultural floodplain into wetlands have increased in recent years 
within the Illinois River valley.  Specifically, in 1998 The Nature Conservancy purchased 
and restored Spunky Bottoms Preserve (486-ha) located in Brown County, Illinois.  To 
assess restoration success of Spunky Bottoms we sampled the fish community each year 
during 1999-2005 following the standardized Long Term Resource Monitoring Program 
(LTRMP) electrofishing protocol.  Beginning in 1999 we sampled fish in response to 
habitat improvement through the course of the restoration.  Since 1999, 3,201 fish 
consisting of 11 species and 1 hybrid have been documented.  Mean catch per-unit effort 
(CPUE) was 6.07 fish per minute during 1999-2005.  However, mean CPUE for 2000 
was significantly the highest (0.12 mean fish per minute; P?0.05) and 2003 having 
significantly the lowest mean fish per minute (0.03).  Annual species richness averaged 
8.3 species and total mean catch was 457.3 fish per year.  For all years combined, 
common carp Cyprinus carpio were most abundant (n = 619.0) followed by largemouth 
bass Micropterus salmoides (n = 604.0) and bluegill Lepomis macrochirus (n = 559.0).  
Over time, CPUE of largemouth bass increased from 0.3 fish per minute (1999) to 1.8 
(2005).  Likewise, CPUE of gizzard shad Dorosoma cepedianum, an important forage 
species increased from no fish (1999) to 2.4 fish per minute (2004).  The CPUE of green 
sunfish Lepomis cyanellus, known to tolerate degraded conditions, decreased from 1.9 
fish per minute (1999) to 0.0 (2005).  Similarly, community analyses indicated a potential 
change in the fish community over time.  Our results suggest restoration of Spunky 
Bottoms has resulted in a positive shift in the fish community. 
 
Keywords:  restoration, floodplain, Spunky Bottoms, fish community, largemouth bass, 
common carp