Barry P Baldigo
Barry Baldigo has been a Research Biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey since 1990. He leads numerous collaborative studies that aim to improve our understanding of the health of aquatic ecosystems, impacts of environmental contaminants and hydrologic modification, important interrelations, and management options that help mitigate ecological disturbance and sustain valuable natural resources.
Professional Membership:
Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry
American Fisheries Society
New York State Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
Society for Freshwater Science (formerly North American Benthological Society)
Professional Experience
Research Biologist (RGE); U.S. Geological Survey, Troy, NY; 1990-present: Principal investigator for cooperative water programs (with NGOs, and county, regional, and state agencies) evaluating interrelations among restoration, channel stability, habitat, and fish communities; tissue contaminants and toxicity of water and sediments in Areas of Concern across the Great Lakes; basin features, impound
Senior Biologist; Adirondack Lakes Survey Corp, Raybrook, NY; 1988-1990: Field coordinator for the EPA’s Episodic Response Project assessing effects of episodic acidification on water quality, fish survival, and biologic communities in streams of the southwestern Adirondack Mountains, New York.
Senior Scientist; Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Co., Las Vegas, NV; 1984-1988: Lead investigator for several EPA technical-support projects in the Northwest and regional coordinator and instructor for EPA’s NSWS Eastern and Western Lakes-, Eastern Stream-, and Michigan Lakes Biology and Acidification Surveys.
Research Biologist; University of Nevada, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Las Vegas, NV; 1980-1984: Invertebrate taxonomist and technician; helped develop and assess new field guidelines for modifying EPA’s national site-specific water quality criteria (NPDES permitting program) and stream biological assessments.
Education and Certifications
SUNY, College of Environmental Sciences & Forestry M.S. Fisheries Biology, 1982
Utica College of Syracuse University B.S. Biology, 1978
Science and Products
Response of fish assemblages to decreasing acid deposition in Adirondack Mountain lakes
Assessing Brook Trout populations in headwater streams of the Adirondack Mountains using environmental DNA -- Summary report
Effects of seasonal drawdowns on fish assemblages in sections of an impounded river-canal system in upstate New York
Assessing condition of macroinvertebrate communities and sediment toxicity in the St. Lawrence River at Massena Area-of-Concern
Toxicity of bed sediments from the Niagara River Area of Concern and tributaries, New York, to Chironomus dilutus and Hyalella azteca, 2014-15
Long-term trends in naturalized rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) populations in the upper Esopus Creek, Ulster County, New York, 2009–15
Toxicity of waters from the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern to the plankton species Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata and Ceriodaphnia dubia
Response of periphyton fatty acid composition to supplemental flows in the upper Esopus Creek, Catskill Mountains, New York
Potential estrogenic effects of wastewaters on gene expression in Pimephales promelas and fish assemblages in streams of southeastern New York
Identifying trout refuges in the Indian and Hudson Rivers in northern New York through airborne thermal infrared remote sensing
Fish assemblages in the Upper Esopus Creek, NY: Current status, variability, and controlling factors
Didymosphenia geminata in the Upper Esopus Creek: current status, variability, and controlling factors
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Assessing American Eel Populations in Tributaries to the Upper Delaware River
Estimating Acute and Chronic Toxicity of Waters from the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern Using Two Plankton Species
Geomorphology, Biology, & Stability of Catskill Mountain Streams, New York
Estrogenicity in Streams of New York State
Response of Fish Assemblages to Changing Acid-base Chemistry in Adirondack Long Term Monitoring Lakes, 1984-2012
Regionalization of Channel Geomorphology Characteristics for Streams of New York State, Excluding Long Island
Natural Resources of the Neversink River Watershed
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 95
Response of fish assemblages to decreasing acid deposition in Adirondack Mountain lakes
The CAA and other federal regulations have clearly reduced emissions of NOx and SOx, acidic deposition, and the acidity and toxicity of waters in the ALTM lakes, but these changes have not triggered widespread recovery of brook trout populations or fish communities. The lack of detectable biological recovery appears to result from relatively recent chemical recovery and an insufficient period forAuthorsBarry P. Baldigo, Karen Roy, Charles T. DriscollAssessing Brook Trout populations in headwater streams of the Adirondack Mountains using environmental DNA -- Summary report
This project evaluated standard fish-survey and environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling methods to determine the ability of eDNA to accurately predict the presence and abundance of resident Brook Trout populations in 40 headwater streams mainly in the western Adirondack Mountains during 2014–2015 (Figure 2). Standard 3-pass electrofishing surveys found that Brook Trout were absent from about 25 percentAuthorsBarry P. Baldigo, Scott D. George, Lee Ann Sporn, Jacob BallEffects of seasonal drawdowns on fish assemblages in sections of an impounded river-canal system in upstate New York
The Mohawk River and New York State Barge Canal run together as a series of permanent and temporary impoundments for most of the distance between Rome and Albany, New York. The downstream or lower section is composed of two permanent impoundments, the middle section of a series of temporary (seasonal) impoundments, and the upper section of a series of permanent impoundments. In the middle section,AuthorsScott D. George, Barry P. Baldigo, Scott M WellsAssessing condition of macroinvertebrate communities and sediment toxicity in the St. Lawrence River at Massena Area-of-Concern
In 1972, the USA and Canada agreed to restore the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Great Lakes ecosystem under the first Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. In subsequent amendments, part of the St. Lawrence River at Massena, New York and segments of three tributaries, were designated as an Area of Concern (AOC) due to the effects of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), lead and cAuthorsBrian T. Duffy, Barry P. Baldigo, Alexander J. Smith, Scott D. George, Anthony M. DavidToxicity of bed sediments from the Niagara River Area of Concern and tributaries, New York, to Chironomus dilutus and Hyalella azteca, 2014-15
The Niagara River was designated as an Area of Concern in 1987 on both the United States and Canadian sides of the international boundary line because past industrial discharges and hazardous waste sites had caused extensive degradation of aquatic habitats. The degradation of the “benthos”, or the benthic macroinvertebrate community, was identified as one of seven beneficial use impairments causedAuthorsScott D. George, Barry P. Baldigo, Brian T. DuffyLong-term trends in naturalized rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) populations in the upper Esopus Creek, Ulster County, New York, 2009–15
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, surveyed fish communities annually on the main stem and tributaries of the upper Esopus Creek, Ulster County, New York, froAuthorsScott D. George, Barry P. BaldigoToxicity of waters from the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern to the plankton species Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata and Ceriodaphnia dubia
The lower Genesee River and Rochester Embayment of Lake Ontario are a designated Area of Concern (AOC) under the binational Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. The “degradation of phytoplankton and zooplankton populations” or plankton Beneficial Use Impairment (BUI) was classified as unknown and in need of further assessment in this AOC because water quality data suggested plankton communities coAuthorsBarry P. Baldigo, Brian T. Duffy, Alexander J. Smith, Scott D. GeorgeResponse of periphyton fatty acid composition to supplemental flows in the upper Esopus Creek, Catskill Mountains, New York
Fatty acid analysis of periphyton is an emerging tool for assessing the condition of a stream ecosystem on the basis of its water quality. The study presented in this report was designed to test the hypothesis that periphyton communities have a fatty acid profile that can detect excessive turbidity and suspended sediment. The fatty acid composition of periphyton was assessed during two seasons upsAuthorsScott D. George, Anne G. Ernst, Barry P. Baldigo, Dale C. HoneyfieldPotential estrogenic effects of wastewaters on gene expression in Pimephales promelas and fish assemblages in streams of southeastern New York
Direct linkages between endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) from municipal and industrial wastewaters and impacts on wild fish assemblages are rare. The levels of plasma vitellogenin (Vtg) and Vtg messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) in male fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) exposed to wastewater effluents and dilutions of 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), estrogen activity, and fish assemblages in 1AuthorsBarry P. Baldigo, Scott D. George, Patrick J. Phillips, Joceyln D. C. Hemming, Nancy D. Denslow, Kevin J. KrollIdentifying trout refuges in the Indian and Hudson Rivers in northern New York through airborne thermal infrared remote sensing
The locations and sizes of potential cold-water refuges for trout were examined in 2005 along a 27-kilometer segment of the Indian and Hudson Rivers in northern New York to evaluate the extent of refuges, the effects of routine flow releases from an impoundment, and how these refuges and releases might influence trout survival in reaches that otherwise would be thermally stressed. This river segmeAuthorsAnne G. Ernst, Barry P. Baldigo, Fred J. Calef, Douglas A. Freehafer, Robert L. KremensFish assemblages in the Upper Esopus Creek, NY: Current status, variability, and controlling factors
The Upper Esopus Creek receives water diversions from a neighboring basin through the Shandaken Tunnel (the portal) from the Schoharie Reservoir. Although the portal is closed during floods, mean flows and turbidity of portal waters are generally greater than in Esopus Creek above their confluence. These conditions could potentially affect local fish assemblages, yet such effects have not been assAuthorsBarry P. Baldigo, Scott D. George, Walter T KellerDidymosphenia geminata in the Upper Esopus Creek: current status, variability, and controlling factors
In May of 2009, the bloom-forming diatom Didymosphenia geminata was first identified in the Upper Esopus Creek, a key tributary to the New York City water-supply and a popular recreational stream. The Upper Esopus receives supplemental flows from the Shandaken Portal, an underground aqueduct delivering waters from a nearby basin. The presence of D.geminata is a concern for the local economy, waterAuthorsScott D. George, Barry P. BaldigoNon-USGS Publications**
Warren, D. R., A. G. Ernst, and B. P. Baldigo. 2009. Influence of spring floods on year-class strength of fall- and spring-spawning salmonids in Catskill Mountain streams. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 138(1):200-210.Baldigo, B. P., and T. P. Baudanza. 2001. Avoidance response and mortality of juvenile brown trout (Salmo trutta) in tests with copper sulfate-treated waters from West Branch Reservoir, Putnam County, New York. U. S. Geological Survey, WRI 99-4237, Troy, NY.Baldigo, B. P., K. R. Riva-Murray, and G. E. Schuler. 2004. Effects of environmental and spatial features on mussel populations and communities in a North American river. Walkerana 14(31):1-32.Baldigo, B. P., D. R. Warren, A. S. Gallagher-Ernst, S. J. Miller, D. Davis, W.Keller, T. P. Baudanza, D. DeKoskie, and J. R. Buchanan, 2008. Restoring geomorphic stability and biodiversity in streams of the Catskill Mountains, New York, USA. Pages 1777-1790 in J. L. Nielsen, and coeditors, editors. Proceedings of the Fourth World Fisheries Congress: Reconciling fisheries with conservation, Symposium 49. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Maryland.Smith, A. J., B. T. Duffy, D. L. Heitzman, J. Lojpersberger, L. E. Abele, B. P. Baldigo, M. R. McHale, S. G. George, J. Siemion, and M. A. Novak. 2013. Upper Esopus Creek: Biological Assessment, 2009-2010 Survey. NYSDEC SOP 208·09, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Troy, NY., 30 pp.**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
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Assessing American Eel Populations in Tributaries to the Upper Delaware River
American Eel (Anguilla Rostrata) Background The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has worked in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) over the past 11 years to study the effects of channel geomorphology and impoundments on the distribution of common and rare mussels in the Neversink River and to characterize fish assemblages in tributaries to the Upper Delaware River in New York, Pennsylvania,Estimating Acute and Chronic Toxicity of Waters from the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern Using Two Plankton Species
Background Discharges from non-point sources, municipal and industrial point sources, and combined sewage overflows over the last century resulted in elevated levels of heavy metals, conventional pollutants, phosphorus, and toxic organic contaminants in water and sediments of the Lower Genesee River and Rochester Embayment. As a result, the zooplankton and phytoplankton or “plankton” communities wGeomorphology, Biology, & Stability of Catskill Mountain Streams, New York
Problem - The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP) Stream Management Program, in cooperation with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, is implementing stream-restoration demonstration projects to decrease channel bed and bank erosion and improve water quality (lower suspended sediment and turbidity) in several priority streams of the Catskill Mountain Region (FiEstrogenicity in Streams of New York State
Problem Almost 1900 public, private, and commercial waste-water treatment plants (WWTPs), many located upstream of drinking water intakes or within tributaries to water-supply reservoirs, are permitted to release effluents into surface- or ground-waters across New York State. More than 150 facilities have New York State SPEDES permits to discharge waste waters in the New York City East of HudsonResponse of Fish Assemblages to Changing Acid-base Chemistry in Adirondack Long Term Monitoring Lakes, 1984-2012
Background The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) and Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation (ALSC) repeatedly surveyed fish assemblages and characterized water chemistry from 44 to 52 lakes during the periods 1984-1987 and 1994-2005, and 2008-2012 to document the regional effects of acidic deposition and potential recovery associated with the 1990 Clean Air Act AmendmeRegionalization of Channel Geomorphology Characteristics for Streams of New York State, Excluding Long Island
Problem - Geomorphologic techniques for stream channel and bank restoration are fast becoming the techniques of choice among federal, state, county, and local agencies to reduce suspended sediment loads, reduce flood damage, improve aquatic habitat, and generally stabilize stream channels. One reason for this upswing in use is that appropriate application of these techniques has been shown to rNatural Resources of the Neversink River Watershed
Problem - A variety of factors potentially impact natural resources in the Neversink River basin and in other tributaries to the Upper Delaware River along the New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey boarders in the northeastern US. Increased urbanization within most watersheds of the Delaware River has decreased forested lands and ground permeability; fractionated forests, streams, and rivers; im - Data
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