In his seminal masterpiece A Sand County Almanac (1949), wildlife ecologist Aldo Leopold advocated a “land ethic” relating people to “soils, waters, plants and animals, or collectively: the land.” This important concept guides PVCA’s stream restoration and reforestation in collaboration with many private landowners in our watershed and a host of local, state, national, and private sector agencies and organizations.
Ecosystem health and functionality depend on native species diversity. In Penns Valley, native species diversity has been drastically reduced over 200 years by agriculture, large-scale logging, and other human economic manipulation of the environment. So, the first step in restoring streams and landscapes is to assess biological diversity and physical environmental conditions.
Biologists classify streams capable of supporting natural reproduction instead of hatchery-raised fish. In the Pine Creek tributary shown here, wild native brook trout and six native forage fish species were identified. Biologists also assess and rank physical habitat conditions using a 10-parameter tool to prioritize stream restoration sites and to design appropriate habitat improvement practices.
PVCA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service work together to improve habitat for all life cycle elements for fish and other wildlife. Joint projects improve reproductive spawning habitat, security cover for juvenile fish, maintenance of a year-round stream water temperature regime at optimum seasonal levels, and a high diversity food web of aquatic insects. In a typical project on a farm located near the headwaters of Penns Creek, invasive shrubs were cleared from a stream’s banks by construction equipment. A riparian buffer of native trees was planted. Three vernal pool wetlands were also created to enhance habitat for salamanders and other amphibian species.
According to Jason Detar, PA Fish and Boat Commission Regional Fish Biologist, who surveyed the stream in 2017, this restored section of the upper Penns Creek has “more than three times the wild trout biomass as the unrestored section.” The restored stream was classified as a Class A Wild Trout stream. Only 3% of Pennsylvania waters achieve Class A designation.
Restored fish and wildlife habitat on a farm.
The loss of species diversity and abundance affects migratory songbirds, game animals and birds, resident birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Wildlife that depends on early successional or “young forest” habitats of dense thickets for reproduction, food, and security is most affected. The American Woodcock, for example, needs open, grassy courtship “singing grounds” where the male performs an acrobatic flight display to attract a mate. Further, woodcock require a mosaic of nesting and brood rearing habitat in thickets near the singing grounds. Woodcock populations have declined by 1-2% annually over the past 25 years; other “young forest-dependent” species like Golden Winged Warblers have declined even more.
Muddy Creek singing bird survey from 2017 – stars indicate locations of singing male woodcock in the Georges Valley habitat management area sponsored by PVCA
State‐wide data showing ten‐fold increase in woodcock abundance at management areas (Courtesy
Lisa Williams ‐ PA Game Commission).
The Wildlife Management Institute lists over 80 wildlife species that benefit from young forest habitat improvement. PVCA has utilized closely spaced, high-density plantings of native shrub species to quickly create habitat. Alder, grey dogwood, and aspen are prime examples with others that also produce human food.
PVCA’s work in the Upper Penns Creek Watershed will never be completed, but we are making noticeable progress which we hope and plan to continue.
By Lysle Sherwin, Certified Wildlife Biologist, The Wildlife Society; Principal, Seven Willows LLC
Footnote: Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (1962) wrote “The real wealth of the Nation lies in the resources of the earth – soil, water, forest, minerals, and wildlife.”
