Linking landscape variables to cold water refugia in rivers.

The protection of coldwater refugia within aquatic systems requires the identification of thermal habitats in rivers. These refugia provide critical thermal habitats for brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) during periods of thermal stress, for example during summer high temperature events. This study aims to model these refugia using georeferenced thermal infrared images collected during late July 2008 and 2009 for a reach of the Cains River, New Brunswick, Canada.