Eastern Ecological Science Center research ecologists are working with state and local partners to develop multiple biological assessments of non-tidal stream and river conditions in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
The current study has four primary objectives. First, researchers will use an index of biological condition based on benthic macroinvertebrates developed by the ICPRB, the Chessie BIBI (“Chessie BIBI” Index for Streams - ICPRB (potomacriver.org), and landscape data summarized with the SHEDs data set (Spatial Hydro-Ecological Decision System | SHEDS (ecosheds.org) to develop improved predictive models of stream condition for the entire watershed. Second researchers are working with providers of fish data (e.g, state, federal and local monitoring programs) to develop a compiled database of fish for the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed for use in an assessment of fish habitat. Third, this study will test improvements to models predicting fish habitat when using higher resolution data sources (e.g. 1:24,000) through development of joint pilot studies with NOAA. Fourth, the team is working with both biological datasets to identify stream reaches with long-term data for eventual use in analyses of status and trends. Under objectives one through three, researchers will use the summarized predictor data (i.e. catchment summaries) to develop models and make predictions of stream health and fish habitat based on future conditions using projected land use and climate scenarios. This project is aimed to assist the Chesapeake Bay Program’s partners and stakeholders.
- Improve predictive models of stream health (using benthic macroinvertebrates) for small streams across the entire Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
- Acquire fish survey data from programs across the watershed and compile into a single database and develop an assessment of fish habitat for all lotic systems from headwaters to the tidal fresh system.
- Test improvement in model predictive ability when using 1:24,000 scale data versus 1:100,000 scale for assessing landscape impacts on fish communities through pilot studies.
- Analyze status and trends for both benthic macroinvertebrate and fish data sets with sufficient temporal data.
Attribution of Chessie BIBI and fish sampling data to NHDPlusV2 Catchments within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Fish community and species distribution predictions for streams and rivers of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Modeled estimates of altered hydrologic metrics for all NHDPlus v21 reaches in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Community metrics from inter-agency compilation of inland fish sampling data within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Chesapeake Bay Watershed historical and future projected land use and climate data summarized for NHDPlusV2 catchments
Using fish community and population indicators to assess the biological condition of streams and rivers of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA
Time marches on, but do the causal pathways driving instream habitat and biology remain consistent?
Disentangling the potential effects of land-use and climate change on stream conditions
Predicting biological conditions for small headwater streams in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Eastern Ecological Science Center research ecologists are working with state and local partners to develop multiple biological assessments of non-tidal stream and river conditions in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
The current study has four primary objectives. First, researchers will use an index of biological condition based on benthic macroinvertebrates developed by the ICPRB, the Chessie BIBI (“Chessie BIBI” Index for Streams - ICPRB (potomacriver.org), and landscape data summarized with the SHEDs data set (Spatial Hydro-Ecological Decision System | SHEDS (ecosheds.org) to develop improved predictive models of stream condition for the entire watershed. Second researchers are working with providers of fish data (e.g, state, federal and local monitoring programs) to develop a compiled database of fish for the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed for use in an assessment of fish habitat. Third, this study will test improvements to models predicting fish habitat when using higher resolution data sources (e.g. 1:24,000) through development of joint pilot studies with NOAA. Fourth, the team is working with both biological datasets to identify stream reaches with long-term data for eventual use in analyses of status and trends. Under objectives one through three, researchers will use the summarized predictor data (i.e. catchment summaries) to develop models and make predictions of stream health and fish habitat based on future conditions using projected land use and climate scenarios. This project is aimed to assist the Chesapeake Bay Program’s partners and stakeholders.
- Improve predictive models of stream health (using benthic macroinvertebrates) for small streams across the entire Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
- Acquire fish survey data from programs across the watershed and compile into a single database and develop an assessment of fish habitat for all lotic systems from headwaters to the tidal fresh system.
- Test improvement in model predictive ability when using 1:24,000 scale data versus 1:100,000 scale for assessing landscape impacts on fish communities through pilot studies.
- Analyze status and trends for both benthic macroinvertebrate and fish data sets with sufficient temporal data.