Data release associated with research that describes how major flooding and dam operations in the upper Mississippi River contribute to large upstream migrations of native paddlefish and invasive bigheaded carp

Recent research has attributed major flood events with the upstream spread of invasive carp in the Mississippi River. In two sequential years, the upper Mississippi River experienced a low water year with very minimal flooding in 2022 and a very high water year with extreme and sustained flooding in the spring of 2023. This data release contains hydrologic data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at upper Mississippi River navigation locks 4-18 to classify when each dam experienced open river conditions and was no longer preventing upstream movements of fishes. To attribute biological movements around these open river conditions, we used acoustic telemetry data to track native paddlefish and invasive bigheaded carps. The telemetry data were used to identify instances where these fishes moved upstream through each of the dams. Telemetry data were also used to quantify distance traveled by each of the fish across our study years and define a distance over ground rate as kilometers per day. These data help explain some features of the upper Mississippi River that might inhibit upstream movements during low water years and how major floods increase connectivity in this river system that allows unimpeded upstream migration of invasive bigheaded carp. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.