Variable Responses of Fish Assemblages, Habitat, and Stability to Natural‐Channel‐Design Restoration in Catskill Mountain Streams

Baldigo, Barry P.; Ernst, Anne G.; Warren, Dana R.; Miller, Sarah J.

doi:10.1577/t08-152.1

Cited by 29 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…In other stream systems, channel modification restoration practices appear to have inconsistent impacts on fish communities in the short-term, improving in some streams [13,44], showing no response in others, [10,13,45,46], or reflecting negative shifts in the fish community [10,13]. Even when fish community composition and structure shows rapid improvement (within one year), responses can be short-lived, and patterns of recovery can reverse within the short timeframe (three-five years) [47].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Short-Term Impacts of Remeandering Restoration Efforts on Fish Community Structure in a Fourth-Order Stream

Clark

Montemarano

2017

Water

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Channel reconfiguration is a common but debated method used to restore streams, often causing disturbance and producing subsequent negative impacts on biota. Here, we report results from short-term assessment (i.e., one and three years' post-restoration) of habitat variables (e.g., reach depth, substrate, and canopy cover) and fish community composition and structure (using electrofishing surveys; e.g., proportion of juveniles and tolerant fishes) from a 675 m section of Eagle Creek (Portage County, OH, USA) restored using channel remeandering in August 2013. Mesohabitat analysis was not conducted as part of this study. Sites upstream and downstream of restoration efforts were also monitored. Surveys were completed in 10 separate 50 m stretches: one upstream control site, three new channel sites, two old channel sites, and three downstream sites. Following restoration, fish communities in downstream sites became more similar to new channel sites and diverged from the upstream control site over time, as reflected in increased proportions of juvenile and tolerant fishes. Shifts in fish communities were not explained by habitat variables. Diversity was significantly lower in new channel sites post-restoration than in the upstream control, while downstream sites remained similarly high in diversity compared to the upstream control site over time. Overall, in the short-term, new channel colonizing communities were unable to recover to reflect upstream community composition and structure, and fish communities downstream of restoration were negatively impacted.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Short-Term Impacts of Remeandering Restoration Efforts on Fish Community Structure in a Fourth-Order Stream

Clark

Montemarano

2017

Water

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“…We found little evidence that NCD restorations affected macroinvertebrate assemblages in temperate, forested streams of the Catskill Mountain Region. Despite significant changes to stream habitat and fish assemblages at most restored reaches (Baldigo et al 2008, 2010; Ernst et al 2010), only 1 of the 16 macroinvertebrate metrics changed significantly at any reach following NCD restoration. Rather, macroinvertebrate assemblages from all reach types (reference, treatment, and control) within each stream were generally more similar to each other within a given year than to assemblages from the same reach type in different streams or years.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…NCD methods and principles have been used in streams across the United States, yet only a few studies have quantified associated changes in aquatic communities (Nagle 2007). Baldigo et al (2010) and Ernst et al (2010) documented significant increases in the abundance and biomass of trout and improvement in many fish community and habitat metrics across several Catskill Region streams following NCD restorations. However, no studies have assessed the response of benthic macroinvertebrate communities explicitly to large‐scale NCD stream restoration techniques.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Natural‐Channel‐Design Restorations That Changed Geomorphology Have Little Effect on Macroinvertebrate Communities in Headwater Streams

Ernst

Warren

Baldigo

2011

Restoration Ecology

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Stream restorations that increase geomorphic stability can improve habitat quality, which should benefit selected species and local aquatic ecosystems. This assumption is often used to define primary restoration goals; yet, biological responses to restoration are rarely monitored or evaluated methodically. Macroinvertebrate communities were inventoried at 6 study reaches within 5 Catskill Mountain streams between 2002 and 2006 to characterize their responses to natural-channel-design (NCD) restoration. Although bank stability increased significantly at most restored reaches, analyses of variation showed that NCD restorations had no significant effect on 15 of 16 macroinvertebrate community metrics. Multidimensional scaling ordination indicated that communities from all reach types within a stream were much more similar to each other within any given year than they were in the same reaches across years or within any type of reach across streams. These findings indicate that source populations and watershed-scale factors were more important to macroinvertebrate community characteristics than were changes in channel geomorphology associated with NCD restoration. Furthermore, the response of macroinvertebrates to restoration cannot always be used to infer the response of other stream biota to restoration. Thus, a broad perspective is needed to characterize and evaluate the full range of effects that restoration can have on stream ecosystems.

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“…In addition to the morphological monitoring reported in this project, fish communities and habitat were monitored for this site (Baldigo et al, 2010). The project is on a thirdorder river, with an upstream drainage area of 14 km 2 and downstream drainage area of 19 km 2 .…”

Section: Project Site and Monitoringmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydraulic analysis of river training cross-vanes as part of post-restoration monitoring

Endreny¹,

Soulman²

2011

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. River restoration design methods are incrementally improved by studying and learning from monitoring data in previous projects. In this paper we report postrestoration monitoring data and simulation analysis for a Natural Channel Design (NCD) restoration project along 1600 m of the Batavia Kill (14 km 2 watershed) in the Catskill Mountains, NY. The restoration project was completed in 2002 with goals to reduce bank erosion and determine the efficacy of NCD approaches for restoring headwater streams in the Catskill Mountains, NY. The NCD approach used a reference-reach to determine channel form, empirical relations between the project site and reference site bankfull dimensions to size channel geometry, and hydraulic and sediment computations based on a bankfull (1.3 yr return interval) discharge to test channel capacity and sediment stability. The NCD project included 12 cross-vanes and 48 j-hook vanes as river training structures along 19 meander bends to protect against bank erosion and maintain scour pools for fish habitat. Monitoring data collected from 2002 to 2004 were used to identify aggradation of pools in meander bends and below some structures. Aggradation in pools was attributed to the meandering riffle-pool channel trending toward steppool morphology and cross-vane arms not concentrating flow in the center of the channel. The aggradation subsequently caused flow splitting and 4 partial point bar avulsions during a spring 2005 flood with a 25-yr return interval. Processing the pre-flood monitoring data with hydraulic analysis software provided clues the reach was unstable and preventative maintenance was needed. River restoration and monitoring teams should be trained in robust hydraulic analytical methods that help them extend project restoration goals and structure stability.

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Variable Responses of Fish Assemblages, Habitat, and Stability to Natural‐Channel‐Design Restoration in Catskill Mountain Streams

Cited by 29 publications

References 43 publications

Short-Term Impacts of Remeandering Restoration Efforts on Fish Community Structure in a Fourth-Order Stream

Short-Term Impacts of Remeandering Restoration Efforts on Fish Community Structure in a Fourth-Order Stream

Natural‐Channel‐Design Restorations That Changed Geomorphology Have Little Effect on Macroinvertebrate Communities in Headwater Streams

Hydraulic analysis of river training cross-vanes as part of post-restoration monitoring

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