Aquatic Species Diversity and Habitat Characterization in Tidal Parkers Creek Michael E. Molina, American Chestnut Land Trust

Introduction • The American Chestnut Land Trust (ACLT) is a non-profit organization

located in Prince Frederick, MD, dedicated to preserving land and other

natural resources throughout Calvert County.

• The ACLT has recently initiated a biological monitoring program throughout

the Parkers Creek Watershed (PCW) to document baselines of species

richness for various taxa. This information is utilized for ecosystem

analysis, future monitoring efforts, and management decisions by staff.

• Objectives include establishing a species baseline of migratory and year-

round aquatic fauna in Parkers Creek (PC) and characterization of the PC

ecosystem.

Methods • Twelve sites were sampled along a 2-mile segment of PC (Fig. 1).

• A 15-meter seine net was hauled at 7 sites in the downstream portion of PC

(yellow) in March, June, August, and October 2017.

• Five fish trap sites were placed upstream where bottom structure

prevented seining (red). Traps were baited for one day before collection in

May and September 2017.

• Water quality measurements were taken at the 7 seine net sites in March,

June, August, and September 2017 (Table 1).

• Shoreline flora identification was conducted at all 12 sites.

Results • 1066 individuals and 25 different species were collected from

both seine and trap sites (Fig. 3).

• Most abundant species was F. heteroclitus (n=498).

• Simpson’s Index = 0.695, Shannon Index = 1.7, and Evenness =

0.53 (Fig. 3).

• Vegetation analysis indicated a distinct shift in creek flora from

salinity-tolerant to non-tolerant species around site 9 (Table 2).

Discussion • High species richness, low evenness (Fig. 3).

• Rank-Abundance curve shows uneven spread; PC dominated by

the most abundant species (Fig. 2).

• Combination of water quality, vegetation, and fish community

sampling allows for holistic monitoring program for the PCW

through the ACLT.

• Presence of juvenile commercially and recreationally valuable

species illustrates PC’s prominence as an estuary and the

importance of continued monitoring programs.

• Future directions include establishing a monitoring program

schedule, sampling for target species, and analyzing fish

assemblage seasonal variation.

Acknowledgements • Chesapeake Bay Trust for project funding

• Dr. Lora Harris’ lab at Chesapeake Biological Lab for water quality

sampling/processing

• Dr. Ronald Klauda and Dr. Denise Breitburg for advising and equipment

• ACLT staff and volunteers for sampling efforts: A. Phillips-Lewis, B. Field, C. Foutz,

C. Gustin, G. Hanners, J. Rupard, J. Klapper, J. and V. Sullens, K. Anderson, K.

Donahue, M. Blanchette, P. Cook, S. Foley, T. Roswall, and T. Wells

Figure 2. Rank-Abundance Curve for PC assemblage.

Table 1. Water quality data from seven seine sites. Data are averaged for March, June, August, and September.

Figure 1. Site map for Parkers Creek. Seine sites are in yellow and trap sites are in red.

1 Spartina spp.

B. halimifolia

I. frutescens

R. pseudoacacia

A. officinalis

2 Spartina spp.

I. frutescens

S. pungens

A. officinalis

3 Spartina spp.

A. officinalis

I. frutescens

A. cannabinus

4 Spartina spp.

A. officinalis

I. frutescens

A. cannabinus

5 Spartina spp.

S. pungens

D. spicata

I. frutescens

6 Spartina spp.

S. pungens

A. cannabinus

B. halimifolia

7 Spartina spp.

A. cannabinus

S. pungens

B. halimifolia

P. australis

K. virginica

8 S. alterniflora

S. cynosuroides

P. australis

9 S. alterniflora

P. virginica

R. pseudoacacia

10 S. alterniflora

P. virginica

T. latifolia

11 P. virginica

T. latifolia

H. moscheutos

V. dentatum

A. rubrum

12 P. australis

P. virginica

V. dentatum

T. radicans

H. moscheutos

T. latifolia

Table 2. Vegetation ID for

12 sites in PC.

Site Salinity (ppt) Conductivity (mS) Saturated DO (%) DO (mg/L) pH Depth (m) Water Clarity (Kd)

1 (Mouth) 8.52 14.61 107.52 8.79 7.88 0.78 3.08

2 8.08 13.88 106.48 8.74 7.79 0.88 3.87

3 6.12 10.74 82.05 7.00 7.27 1.62 4.33

4 5.46 9.64 81.80 6.97 7.17 0.87 6.22

5 5.09 9.03 82.33 6.90 7.19 1.58 3.50

6 4.28 7.66 86.42 7.35 7.20 1.32 3.60

7 3.46 6.30 96.60 8.09 7.22 0.73 4.26

5.86 10.26 91.89 7.69 7.39 1.11 4.12

s 1.87 3.07 11.54 0.83 0.31 0.38 1.02

Water Quality Parameters

Figure 3. Species richness in PC with each species’ abundance. Diversity

indices are listed at the bottom of table.

Parkers Creek

Species N= 1066

Mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus ) 498

Grass Shrimp (Palaemonetes ) 302

Atlantic Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus ) 59

Striped Killifish (Fundulus majalis ) 42

Pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus ) 24

Atlantic Silverside (Menidia menidia ) 20

Black Drum (Pogonias cromis ) 19

Green Sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus ) 17

White Perch (Morone americana ) 15

Atlantic Croaker (Micropogonias undulates) 14

Atlantic Sea Nettle (Chrysaora quequincirrha ) 9

Naked Goby (Gobiosoma bosc ) 8

Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus ) 8

Spot (Leiostomus xanthurus ) 7

Creek Chub (Semotilus atromaculatus ) 4

Hogchoker (Trinectes maculatus ) 4

Spotted Sea Trout (Cynoscion nebulosus ) 3

Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus ) 2

Sheepshead Minnow (Cyprinodon variegatus ) 2

Inland Silverside (Menidia beryllina ) 2

Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis) 2

Summer Flounder (Paralichthys dentatus ) 2

Creek Chubsucker (Erimyzon oblongus ) 1

Atlantic Mud Crab (Panopeus herbstii ) 1

Atlantic Needlefish (Strongylura marina ) 1

Species Richness (S)= 25

Simpson’s Index (1-D)= 0.695

Simpson’s Reciprocal Index (1/D)= 3.28

Shannon Diversity Index (H)= 1.70

Pielou’s Evenness Index (J’)= 0.53