Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Study Results Highlight Parks' Role in Conservation
USGS researchers at the Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit are partnering with National Park Service researchers at the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and New River Gorge National Park to assess the effectiveness of the two protected areas in conserving stream fishes such as the rainbow darter. This article was originally published in Park Science Magazine.
References
Tzilkowski, Caleb. 2025. “A Fish Study's Promising Results Highlight Parks' Role in Conservation.” Park Science 39 (2). August 29, 2025. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/psv39n2_a-fish-studys-promising-results-highlight-parks-role-in-conservation.htm
Morgan B Stum, Caleb J Tzilkowski, Matthew R Marshall, Frances E Buderman, Tyler Wagner, Decadal stability in stream fish communities and contemporary ecological drivers of species occupancy in two Appalachian U.S. National Parks, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, Volume 154, Issue 1, January 2025, Pages 17–34, https://doi.org/10.1093/tafafs/vnae001
ABSTRACT
Although conserving fish biodiversity in lotic systems is challenging, protected areas can provide refuge from certain environmental stressors. In the Appalachian region, USA, the National Park Service manages the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, which contain abundant and diverse freshwater resources. To assess the effectiveness of these protected areas in conserving stream fishes, we evaluated decadal changes and ecological drivers of species occupancy and detection.
Using fish assemblage data from backpack electrofishing surveys conducted in both parks during 2013–2014 and 2022–2023, we quantified temporal differences in species occupancy and detection probabilities using a Bayesian hierarchical multispecies occupancy modeling approach. For the 2022–2023 survey, we included habitat variables as predictors of occupancy and detection.
Community composition and occupancy probabilities for species in both parks remained similar through time, with the most recent occupancy estimates ranging from 0.07 (90% CI = 0.02, 0.14) for Variegate Darter Etheostoma variatum and Rainbow Darter E. caeruleum to 0.73 (90% credible interval = 0.59, 0.85) for Blacknose Dace Rhinichthys atratulus. Changes in occupancy were more prominent at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area than New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, with Yellow Perch Perca flavescens having a posterior mean difference of −0.17 [90% credible interval = −0.35, −0.01] and American Eel Anguilla rostrata having a high posterior probability (>80%) of occupancy increasing by at least 1%. Habitat variables were related to community structure, but effects varied in significance, magnitude, and direction among species and parks. Conversely, species-specific detection probabilities were comparatively less affected by environmental and sampling effort predictors.
Between 2013 and 2023, occupancy estimates for 44 fish species across two protected, ecologically diverse landscapes remained relatively stable. Furthermore, we highlight the efficacy of national parks in maintaining freshwater fish biodiversity amidst rapid global change.