Relation of Environmental Characteristics to the Composition of Aquatic Assemblages Along a Gradient of Urban Land Use in New Jersey, 1996-98
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U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey RELATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS TO THE COMPOSITION OF AQUATIC ASSEMBLAGES ALONG A GRADIENT OF URBAN LAND USE IN NEW JERSEY, 1996-98 Water-Resources Investigations Report 02-4069 National Water-Quality Assessment Program A D B C A. Algae sampling equipment (pipettor, microalgal periphyton brush attached to end of hand drill, and a modified-syringe sampling device) B. Surveying channel cross sections (Photograph by Ming Chang, U.S. Geological Survey) C. Determining length and weight of a white sucker D. Collecting aquatic macroinvertebrates (Photograph by Denis Sun, U.S. Geological Survey) All photographs in this document without photo credit were taken by the author. RELATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS TO THE COMPOSITION OF AQUATIC ASSEMBLAGES ALONG A GRADIENT OF URBAN LAND USE IN NEW JERSEY, 1996-98 By Jonathan G. Kennen and Mark A. Ayers U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Water-Resources Investigations Report 02-4069 National Water-Quality Assessment Program West Trenton, New Jersey 2002 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Gale A. Norton, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Charles G. Groat, Director The use of firm, trade, or brand names in this report is for identification purposes only and does not consti- tute endorsement by the U.S. Geological Survey. For additional information, write to: Copies of this report can be purchased from: NAWQA Project Chief U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Geological Survey Mountain View Office Park Branch of Information Services 810 Bear Tavern Road, Suite 206 Box 25286 West Trenton, NJ 08628 Denver, CO 80225-0286 Information about the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program is available on the Internet through the World Wide Web at http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/nawqa_home or http://nj.usgs.gov/nawqa/. CONTENTS Page Glossary ........................................................................................................................................................ix Abstract.......................................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction.................................................................................................................................................... 2 Purpose and scope................................................................................................................................... 3 Study area................................................................................................................................................ 3 Acknowledgments................................................................................................................................... 6 Approach........................................................................................................................................................ 6 Design of land-use gradient .................................................................................................................... 8 Aggregation of anthropogenic factors used in assessment...................................................................... 8 Data collection............................................................................................................................................. 10 Stream Characteristics........................................................................................................................... 10 Habitat ............................................................................................................................................ 10 Ichthyofauna ................................................................................................................................... 11 Macroinvertebrates ......................................................................................................................... 12 Attached algae (periphyton) ........................................................................................................... 12 Water quality................................................................................................................................... 13 Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) ....................................................................................... 14 Pesticides.................................................................................................................................. 14 Trace elements and organochlorine compounds in bed sediment............................................ 14 Watershed characteristics ...................................................................................................................... 15 Interpretation of digital data ........................................................................................................... 15 Derivation of the index of impervious area .................................................................................... 16 Flow-path length and topography................................................................................................... 16 Analytical methods ...................................................................................................................................... 17 Spatial and temporal assessment........................................................................................................... 17 Univariate and multivariate approaches ................................................................................................ 17 Principal components analysis........................................................................................................ 17 Detrended correspondence analysis................................................................................................ 18 Multiple linear regression............................................................................................................... 18 Indices of aquatic community impairment ..................................................................................... 19 Partial canonical correspondence analysis ..................................................................................... 20 Analysis of benchmark communities ............................................................................................. 21 Resolution of taxonomic ambiguities and data censoring..................................................................... 21 Variability of aquatic communities.............................................................................................................. 21 Species abundance ................................................................................................................................ 21 Spatial and temporal variability in aquatic assemblages....................................................................... 39 Distinctions among benchmark community groups.............................................................................. 39 Identification of important environmental variables .............................................................................42 Indirect gradient assessment of aquatic assemblages............................................................................ 42 Significant environmental factors ......................................................................................................... 45 Environmental associations across multiple pCCA axes ...................................................................... 48 Relation of environmental characteristics to aquatic assemblages.............................................................. 55 Impervious surfaces .............................................................................................................................. 56 Hydrologic instability............................................................................................................................ 58 Effects of runoff quality ........................................................................................................................ 58 Erosion, sedimentation, and stream-channel modification ................................................................... 59 iii CONTENTS--Continued Page Trace elements....................................................................................................................................... 60 Riparian conditions and stream buffers................................................................................................. 61 Forest and wetlands............................................................................................................................... 61 Relation of land-use changes to assemblage structure of long-lived species........................................ 62 Community indices ............................................................................................................................... 62 Indicator taxa......................................................................................................................................... 62 Complementary analytical techniques......................................................................................................... 64 Summary and conclusions ........................................................................................................................... 64 References cited..........................................................................................................................................