Cuyahoga River Steady-State Flow Model for Lake Sturgeon Habitat, 2022

A one-dimensional hydraulic model simulates steady-state flows in the Cuyahoga River, Ohio, for three spring discharge percentiles (25th, 50th, 75th). The model was developed using HEC-RAS 6.3.1 software and calibrated using data from four USGS gaging stations over an 11 to 34 year period. It assesses the availability of spawning and age-0 habitat for Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).

Use Cases

• Assess Lake Sturgeon spawning habitat suitability based on simulated river flows.
• Model age-0 Lake Sturgeon habitat availability under different spring discharge conditions.
• Calibrate or validate other hydraulic models using the HEC-RAS model structure and gage data.
• Analyze river flow characteristics between rkm 70.919 and the mouth at Lake Erie.

Strengths

• Model is calibrated using data from four specific USGS gaging stations (04206000, 04206425, 04208000, 04208504).
• Simulates three specific flow conditions representing the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles of spring discharge.
• Model domain is precisely defined from river kilometer 70.919 to the mouth at Lake Erie.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic and temporal bias inherent to the specific USGS and NOAA stations used.

Provenance

Source

Department of the Interior

Collection Method

Model developed with HEC-RAS 6.3.1 using USGS gage and NOAA tidal gage data.

Time Range

Spring discharge percentiles calculated over an 11 to 34 year period, depending on gage.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-04 08:10:09.736089; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Cuyahoga River, Ohio, USA, from near Old Portage to Lake Erie.