From flames to fish: Award supports interdisciplinary research at Zena Creek Ranch

Zena Creek, photo credit Professor Jen Pierce

"To paint you a picture, you've got these granite crags with forests of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir and beautiful cold, clear, rugged rivers running through them. It's just miraculous that salmon can travel all the way upstream from the Pacific Ocean to these high headwater systems. To me, one of the most special things about Idaho are our river systems," said Jen Pierce, professor of geosciences at Boise State.

Pierce is a third generation geologist, and her inherent love of natural ecosystems shines as she describes the river systems of central Idaho. These landscapes have been her area of study for more than 20 years, and continue to be a source of exploration and education for both her, and her students.

However, these delicate ecosystems face more frequent and intense wildfires, and researchers like Pierce strive to find resilient solutions for communities and ecosystems.

Fortunately, sometimes creative ideas can come from the most unexpected places (and creatures). With the support of a $250,000 research grant from the Joint Fire Science Program, Pierce and her collaborative team of faculty, students, private landowners and tribal members will tap into the genius of beaver dams to create ecosystems that protect species such as salmon, while defending against more frequent wildfires.

Eager beaver, safe salmon

Students and teachers at the Zena Creek Ranch, 2024. Photo by Jen Pierce

Over the next two summers, Pierce will work with a collaborative group including fellow faculty and 20 undergraduate students from Boise State and the College of Idaho; one doctoral student; one K-12 teacher funded through a Murdock Foundation partnership; the Zena Creek Ranch owners; USDA Forest Service scientists and managers; and fisheries scientists from the Nez Perce tribe.

Group members will venture to Zena Creek Ranch, a fully off-grid, 50-acre private property at the juncture of the Zena Creek and Secesh River, located near the Frank Church Wilderness.

This ranch has become a partner site with Boise State and serves as a field school for topics such as energy, land and water transitions in rural Idaho.

"I want Zena Creek Ranch to be known as a place where curiosity, rigor and innovation are part of the landscape. Research builds that culture," said Zena Creek Ranch co-owner, Boyd Bouwes.

"The challenges facing the West - water scarcity, wildfire, habitat degradation, renewable energy transition, rural economies - demand interdisciplinary thinking. By bringing together students from environmental science, engineering, policy, business, and even communications, we create a space where they learn to speak across disciplines, which is exactly what effective restoration and land stewardship requires," Bouwes said.

At Zena Creek Ranch, the interdisciplinary research team will build what Pierce likes to refer to as "win-win wetlands."

Students at the Zena Creek Ranch school in 2024. Photo by Jen Pierce

"We will build structures which are called beaver dam analogs. These in-stream organic structures mimic what beavers might do on the landscape, which is to raise the water table, increase diversity of habitats in stream systems and - importantly for the fire component of this grant - increase moisture around the Zena Creek Ranch and its structures," Pierce said.

Beaver dam analogs slow water along Zena Creek, creating more wetlands and trapping more moisture in the soil and plants. These 'win-win wetlands' can serve as a buffer from severe fires, all while protecting the spawning and holding habitat for aquatic species in the salmon family.

Real change happens in the real world

One of the elements of this project that excites Pierce the most is the opportunity to bring together students from Boise State and the College of Idaho to conduct field work.

Boise State professor Jen Pierce and colleague at Zena Creek Ranch school.

"I'm really excited for our faculty to learn from students and vice versa while out doing hands-on work. Those are the types of educational opportunities that we can provide our students that will be so important for them as they enter the workforce: to actually have that hands-on, landscape-based sort of tools. That's something that AI can't do."

Geosciences professor Jen pierce

At Zena Creek Ranch, Boise State and College of Idaho students will also collect stream samples to assess the number and types of fishes and aquatic insects in Zena Creek. The team also hopes to collect eDNA (short for environmental DNA).

"In these water samples are small fragments of DNA that are continuously shed by all living organisms," said Chris Walser, professor of biology ay the College of Idaho. "Using specific genetic techniques we can then determine if a particular species is present or absent in Zena Creek. This method does not involve 'catching' the animal and is a powerful method for monitoring species, like Chinook Salmon, that are protected by the Endangered Species Act."

The data these students collect will be used by faculty for research and by landowners to inform management decisions. Like Pierce, Walser hopes this experience will help his students "better understand and appreciate the connections between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and how these connections contribute to healthy watersheds for people and fish."

In this work, Pierce, Walser and Bouwes will be joined by Boise State civil engineering faculty, Moji Sadegh; School of Public Service faculty, Stephanie Lenhart; geosciences faculty, Anna Bergstrom; post-doctoral researcher, Emily Iskin; and affiliate geosciences professor, Dave Huber.

Wilderness at Zena Creek Ranch, photo by Jen Pierce

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