River of Many Fish

May 07, 2008 04:34 pm

— Although it has been centuries since the Indians named it, the Ashtabula remains a “River of Many Fish” – and much more.
Matthew Smith, Northeast Ohio Scenic River assistant manager, says 76 fish species have been documented in the Ashtabula River during the past 30 years.
Many of these fish are common to Ohio streams, but a few deserve special note. For example, the Ashtabula River is one of the few river systems in Ohio to have a thriving population of the northern bigeye chub. Smith says its presence is a testimony to the uniqueness of the river habitat. Additionally, four fish species of State Special Concern are found the river – the Great Lakes musellunge, black nose shiner, lake sturgeon and northern brook lamprey.
The upper portion of the river also supports populations of colorful small fish called darters, such as the green and rainbow. While these colorful fish aren’t of interest to sports fishermen, there are plenty of other species that are. They include steelhead trout, which are not stocked in the Ashtabula River but nevertheless make their way up the stream from Lake Erie.
Other sport fish include rock and smallmouth bass, crappie, blue gill, northern pike and channel catfish.
One of the issues with sporting fish in the lower reaches of the river is the fish advisory posted by the Ohio Department of Health as a result of PCBs and other contaminants found in that stretch. The remedial dredging project that began last year and is expected to wrap up this summer holds out the hope of creating a habitat that will no longer justify the advisory.
Regan “Sig” Williams, environmental scientist with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, says two advisories apply to the river. First is a general advisory issued for all fish caught in Ohio surface water. Second is the advisory specific to the Ashtabula River, which warns against eating fish caught from the lower river.
Williams says it will take several years of testing the tissue of fish caught from the lower river before the specific advisory could be lifted. Concentrations of PCBs in the tissue samples must consistently fall below a state standard before the advisory specific to the Ashtabula is lifted.
It is also hoped the river’s status as a Great Lakes Area of Concern will be removed as a result of the dredging and subsequent habitat restoration.
The East 24th Street bridge in Ashtabula is generally considered the demarkation point between the area of the river heavily impacted by marinas, industry and other human activity and the much cleaner upper reaches.
“The upstream part of the Ashtabula River is just spectacular in its quality of water,” says Jim Bissell, curator of botany for the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
The East Branch of the river starts in a fen on the Pennsylvania/Ohio border. “We find a lot of rare species in that part of the watershed,” Bissell says.
For example, in 1988, a plant that had not been seen in Ohio since 1955 was re-discovered there.
Bissell has studied flora along the river, and especially at the Hadlock Preserve, which has a 3/4-mile stretch of mostly hardwood forest along the river. Marc Hanneman, president of the Sam Wharram Nature Club, says it is those long stretches of riparian corridor that make the Ashtabula River special among the county’s streams.
“It’s one of the most intact corridors we have,” Hanneman says.
He attributes this quality to the fact there are comparatively few property owners along the stream and many of them of them are committed to preserving the river’s quality and biodiversity.
The Hadlock Preserve is an excellent example of that diversity. Bissell says that in 2004 the lanced-leaf grape fern was documented there. The fern had not been seen in Ohio in 30 years and was considered absent from the state.
A yet unidentified species was also found with the lanced-leaf grape fern, which is less than 1 inch long.
“It’s pretty significant,” Bissell says. “As far as I know, no one has found that anywhere else.”
Queen snakes have also been found at the property and others downstream from Green Hill Road. Bissell says the significance of the snake is in its diet – because it feeds on crayfish, the stream must have good water quality to support it.
Hadlock has an impressive population of dragon flies; Bissell says they have documented at least 50 species there.
Hermit thrush and winter wren nest in the branches of the unbroken forest. Bissell suspects museum naturalists will one day spot the beautiful, blue cerulean warbler along the stream, given the conducive habitat.
“That bird is out there and I’d love to know if anybody has seen it (along the Ashtabula),” he says.
These woodlands also support populations of the West Virginia white, a forest butterfly active between mid-April and mid-May.
“It’s up and down the valley,” says Bissell. “It’s like a very noteworthy butterfly because it is declining throughout its range. It’s like the most important butterfly we have here. We’re the last stronghold.”
The geology of the river is also unique among the county’s major streams and accounts for some of the species found there. The river is eroded to bedrock in most sections and it tends to flow faster than the Grand or Conneaut. In the spring, many vernal pools are create along the flood plain, giving rise to fleeting ecosystems where salamanders, toads and frogs can flourish. “There is a tremendous diversity of amphibians in there,” Bissell says.
The broad, silted, rocky areas that are washed over with water in times of high flow also create unique environments for plants and amphibians.
“I love the flood wash areas from Green Hill Road on down to past Dewey Road,” says Bissell. “Those big flat pavements, there are a lot of neat species on those that you generally don’t find in other parts of the county.”
The flood plains that receive nourishment from the river host a diversity of plant life. The Ashtabula County Botany Challenge, a plant identification event for high school students, has traditionally been held in the Ashtabula River Gulf because of the range of flowering plants on the flood plain. Up to 29 plants have been identified in bloom at one time, says Barrie Bottorf, a challenge volunteer.
“It seems like it’s the flood plain where find our most interesting plants,” says Bruce Loomis, who works with the challenge.
Loomis, Bottorf and other local naturalists are watching the area around the new covered bridge construction on State Road. The construction required destroying a section of the flood plain that was well known for all its wildflowers. They hope the populations will return once construction is completed and the land begins to heal itself.
Much of this river system is yet to be explored by professionals like Bissell, who expects their work there will yield even more exciting discoveries.
“There is a lot of land that has not been looked at and could harbor some tremendous species,” Bissell says.

Photos

A TROUT lily is warmed by the late-April sun as it blooms along the Ashtabula River in Indian Trails Park. Wildflowers are found throughout the flood plain of the river, whose clean waters support large poopulations fish, crayfish and amphibians. CARL E. FEATHER

River of Many Fish – and More