Using RFID and accelerometer-embedded tracers to measure probabilities of bed load transport, step lengths, and rest times in a mountain stream

We present new measurements of bed load tracer transport in a mountain stream over several snowmelt seasons. Cumulative displacements were measured using passive tracers, which consisted of gravel and cobbles embedded with radio frequency identification tags. The timing of bed load motion during 11 transporting events was quantified with active tracers, i.e., accelerometer‐embedded cobbles. Probabilities of cobble transport increased with discharge above a threshold, and exhibited slight to moderate hysteresis during snowmelt hydrographs. Dividing cumulative displacements by the number of movements recorded by each active tracer constrained average step lengths. Average step lengths increased with discharge, and distributions of average step lengths and cumulative displacements were thin tailed. Distributions of rest times followed heavy‐tailed power law scaling. Rest time scaling varied somewhat with discharge and with the degree to which tracers were incorporated into the streambed. The combination of thin‐tailed displacement distributions and heavy‐tailed rest time distributions predict superdiffusive dispersion. Key Points: Probabilities of bed load transport vary with discharge Step lengths and cumulative displacements also scale with hydrologic forcing Heavy‐tailed rest time distributions suggest superdiffusive dispersion