Proceedings of the 2003 Georgia Water Resources Conference, held April 23-24, 2003, at the University of Georgia.A proposal for a water supply reservoir in
the Tallapoosa River system in Northwest Georgia has
called attention to the potential effects of a large
impoundment on the faunal resources of the system.
The Tallapoosa and Little Tallapoosa Rivers and their
tributaries support species assemblages found nowhere
else, including five endemic fishes, two endemic
crayfishes, and an endemic snail, in addition to a
federally threatened mussel (Lampsilis altilis). We are
analyzing survey data collected in 1990 and in 2002 to
estimate species distributions, abundances, and changes
in both of these factors relative to changes in land use.
These data will be useful to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and others for designing conservation strategies
for the unique fauna of the Tallapoosa River system

Freeman, Byron J.

Freeman, Mary C.

Irwin, Elise R.

Peterson, James

Storey, Jesslyn C.

Straight, Carrie A.

Scholarly Materials And Research @ Georgia Tech

DISTRIBUTION OF ENDEMIC AND IMPERILED FAUNAOF THE TALLAPOOSA RIVER SYSTEM OF GEORGIAJesslyn C. Storey1, Carrie A. Straight2, Byron J. Freeman3, James Peterson4,Elise R. Irwin5 and Mary C. Freeman6AUTHORS:  1Research Technician, 2Research Ecologist, Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; 3Senior Public ServiceAssociate, Institute of Ecology and Assistant Director, Georgia Museum of Natural History, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; 4UnitBiologist, U.S. Geological Survey Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602; 5UnitBiologist, U.S. Geological Survey Alabama Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849;  and6Ecologist, U.S. Geological Survey Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602.REFERENCE:  Proceedings of the 2003 Georgia Water Resources Conference, held April 23-24 2003, at the University of Georgia.  Kathryn J.Hatcher, editor, Institute of Ecology, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.    Abstract.  A proposal for a water supply reservoir inthe Tallapoosa River system in Northwest Georgia hascalled attention to the potential effects of a largeimpoundment on the faunal resources of the system.The Tallapoosa and Little Tallapoosa Rivers and theirtributaries support species assemblages found nowhereelse, including five endemic fishes, two endemiccrayfishes, and an endemic snail, in addition to afederally threatened mussel (Lampsilis altilis).  We areanalyzing survey data collected in 1990 and in 2002 toestimate species distributions, abundances, and changesin both of these factors relative to changes in land use.These data will be useful to the U.S. Fish and WildlifeService and others for designing conservation strategiesfor the unique fauna of the Tallapoosa River system.INTRODUCTIONThe Piedmont portion of the Tallapoosa Riversystem, located in west Georgia and east Alabama,harbors unique faunal assemblages that currently are afocus of management concerns.  The upper TallapoosaRiver system (i.e., from the system’s headwaters inPaulding and Carroll counties, Georgia, to the Fall Linenear Tallassee, Alabama) drains approximately 8540km2, 1813 km2 of which are located in Georgia andinclude the Tallapoosa River, the Little TallapoosaRiver and their tributaries.  Five species of fishes, twocrayfishes and one aquatic snail are known to beendemic to the upper Tallapoosa system.  Because thesespecies’ ranges are restricted to the upper Tallapoosa,their existence could be jeopardized by watershedactivities (e.g., land use changes, streamimpoundments) that result in changes in flow regimesor aquatic habitat conditions.  The upper Tallapoosasystem also contains a protected mussel species,Lampsilis altilis, federally listed as threatened.Accordingly, plans to construct a regional water supplyreservoir in the Tallapoosa system in west Georgia havefocused concerns on potential effects of reservoirconstruction on endemic and other species of concern,and on the status of these species in general.Our objectives are to describe the presently knowndistributions of aquatic species of concern in the upperTallapoosa system, and to examine evidence of species’status, in order to provide information useful toresource management agencies.  In this paper, wepresent new data on the distribution of Lampsilis altilisand summarize distributions of five endemicTallapoosa fishes: the lipstick darter (Etheostomachuckwachatte ), Muscadine darter (Percina sp.),Tallapoosa shiner (Cyprinella  gibbsi), Tallapoosasculpin (Cottus sp.), and Tallapoosa darter (Etheostomatallapoosae) in the Georgia portion of the basin.  Wealso discuss occurrences of the stippled studfish(Fundulus bifax), which occurs almost exclusively inthe upper Tallapoosa.   All of the fishes discussed inthis paper, with the exception of Cottus sp., are listed asprotected animals of Georgia. To evaluate potentialchanges in aquatic communities in relation to watershedactivities, we compare fish assemblage and land usedata for sites sampled in both 2002 and 1990.METHODS   Data from several upper Tallapoosa River surveyswere available for estimating species distributions inGeorgia.  When the West Georgia Reservoir wasinitially proposed in the late 1980’s, B. J. Freeman(Freeman 1990) and Georgia DNR biologists surveyedfishes in the Georgia portion of the Tallapoosa system.This work provided the most comprehensive coverageof fishes from the upper Tallapoosa to date.  Surveysconducted during the 1990’s (Irwin and Peyton 1997;Irwin et al. 1998; Pierson 1999) provided additionaldata for selected species of concern.  C. Stringfellowand J. Zuiderveen (unpublished data) surveyed formussels at selected Georgia locales during 2001. Weused data from these surveys, along with data collectedduring the present study, to describe the distributions oftarget species in Georgia.    Aquatic surveys were conducted in autumn 2001 andsummer 2002 in streams ranging from first to fifthorder (drainage area <1 to > 700 km2).  Sites included asubset of the locales sampled in 1990 (Freeman 1990),to provide comparative data for assessing changes infish assemblages relative to changes in land cover.  Forthis comparison, we chose 22 sites from the 1990survey, distributed across the system, and resampledthese site in summer 2002 using similar samplingprotocols.  Most sites were accessed at road crossings.We employed backpack electrofishers, seines anddipnets to sample fishes in all available habitats at eachsite (as was done in 1990), typically coveringapproximately 20 times wetted stream width or tworiffle-pool sequences.  All captured fishes wereidentified and measured; most were returned to thestream.  Voucher specimens and those of uncertainidentification were anesthetized with TricaineMethanesulfonate, preserved in 10% formalin, andreturned to the University of Georgia for identification.Mussel surveys entailed visual searches using viewbuckets, and by snorkeling.  Live native mussels werephotographed, measured and returned to the stream.Relict shell material was collected and returned to theUniversity of Georgia for identification.   Locales for all sites were plotted at 1:24,000 scaleusing ArcView GIS.  Land use data in the catchmentsupstream from the 22, 1990 locales resampled in 2002were examined for amount of change between 1992 and1998.  Land use was estimated from coveragesprovided by the UGA Natural Resources SpatialAnalysis Laboratory, based on 1992 and 1998 Landsatthematic mapper imagery (NARSAL, 2001 and Dr. E.Kramer, UGA, unpublished data). To evaluate changesin fish assemblages, we tested whether significantlymore sites had higher observed richness of (1) allspecies or (2) stream-dependent species, in 1990(compared to 2002) than expected by chance, using achi-square test.  We also tested whether any of thetarget fish taxa were observed at significantly moresites in only 1990 or 2002 than expected by chance.RESULTS Three of the endemic Tallapoosa fishes were foundthroughout the Georgia portion of the upper TallapoosaRiver system. Populations of Etheostoma tallapoosae,Cottus sp. and Cyprinella gibbsi occurred in over halfthe collection sites sampled, in streams ranging fromfirst- (E. tallapoosae and Cottus sp.) or second- (C.gibbsi) to fifth-order streams.  Percina sp. was alsofound in both the upper Tallapoosa and LittleTallapoosa systems, in third- to fifth-order streams.  Incontrast, Etheostoma chuckwachatte was collectedexclusively in the upper Tallapoosa River system, i.e.,with no occurrences in the Little Tallapoosa portion ofthe drainage (Figure 1), in third to fifth order streams.We did not collect Fundulus bifax in Georgia duringthis study.  The only recent record of the stippledstudfish in Georgia is Freeman’s 1990 collection of thespecies in the Little Tallapoosa River (Figure 1). Fish assemblages in the Little Tallapoosa systemwere also distinguished from those in the upperTallapoosa by the occurrence of four fish species thatlikely reflect historical contact with the ChattahoocheeRiver system. Within the upper Tallapoosa Riversystem, Percina nigrofasciata , the blackbanded darter,is only found within the Little Tallapoosa portion of thedrainage.  Luxilus zonistius, the bandfin shiner, shows asimilar pattern, occurring in the Little Tallapoosa butnot in the upper Tallapoosa above the Little Tallapoosa-Tallapoosa junction.  In this study we also found in theLittle Tallapoosa system two taxa previously unknownfrom the Tallapoosa drainage, Campostoma pauciradii(the bluefin stoneroller) and a bullhead catfish(Ameiurus sp.) related to A. brunneus. Campostomapauciradii and A. brunneus, as well as P. nigrofasciataand L. zonistius are common in the Chattahoocheesystem, which lies adjacent to the Little Tallapoosasystem.Lampsilis altilis was only collected in the upperTallapoosa River system (Figure 1).  Live specimenswere encountered in 2002 in the Tallapoosa mainstem,Little River, Beach Creek, Brooks Creek and WatermillCreek. In 2001, Stringfellow and Zuiderveen(unpublished data) observed live L. altilis in theTallapoosa mainstem and Little Creek. Irwin et al.(1998) found live specimens in McClendon Creek andBig Creek. Comparison of data for 22 sites collected in 1990 and2002 did not show large-scale changes in either fishassemblages or land cover.  Thirteen sites had higherrichness in 1990 (12 including only stream-dependentspecies), which is not significantly different from 50%of sites as expected by chance (chi-square test, p>0.1).None of the five endemic fishes occurred atsignificantly more sites only in 1990 than only in 2002.C. gibbsi, E. tallapoosae, Percina sp. and Cottus sp.occurred at 17-19 sites in both years; we located E.chuckwachatte  at 4 more sites in 2002 than in 1990.Overall, these data do not provide evidence of largechanges in fish assemblages or distributions of thetarget taxa across the 22 sites. Land cover data alsoshowed relatively little change in the watersheds abovethese sites.  Urban land cover in 1998 ranged from 0.1to 4% in the 22 watersheds, and increased by amaximum of 1.1% from 1992.  Deciduous and mixedforest ranged from 31 to 48% in 1998, and haddecreased by a maximum of 11%.DISCUSSIONThe Tallapoosa River system in Georgia isbiologically unique, having a suite of endemic aquaticspecies, and assemblages comprising speciescombinations, that occur nowhere else.   The fiveknown endemic fishes in the upper Tallapoosa composeabout 8% of the native fish fauna, a rate of endemismthat is actually higher than other recognized faunalhotspots in the Mobile Basin (e.g., 4.4 % in the Etowah;Burkhead et al. 1997).  Aquatic fauna differ not onlyacross systems, such as among branches of the MobileBasin, but also within systems, and understandingfaunal patterns within systems is necessary forsuccessful conservation.  Within the upper Tallapoosadrainage, assemblages differ between the LittleTallapoosa and Tallapoosa headwaters.  Etheostomachuckwachatte  occurs only in the Tallapoosa mainstemand tributaries, a pattern that persists through Alabama(Freeman 1990; Mettee et al. 1996). Fundulus bifax hasonly been collected in Georgia from the LittleTallapoosa system; the species also occurs in theTallapoosa mainstem and tributaries below theTallapoosa-Little Tallapoosa junction (Mettee et al.1996; E. R. Irwin, unpublished data). Cashner et al.(1988) noted that F. bifax is relatively widespread butlocally rare.  Low population sizes and almost totalrestriction to the upper Tallapoosa system render thespecies vulnerable to extirpation or extinction, similarto the apparent extirpation of a closely related species(F. stellifer) in the Cahaba River AL (Cashner et al.1988, Mettee et al. 1996).The Little Tallapoosa system is also distinguished bythe occurrence of species unknown elsewhere in thedrainage (e.g., Campostoma pauciradii, as reportedhere).  Genetic diversification within drainages alsocontributes to faunal diversity.  In fact, Dr. Leos Kraland colleagues (State University of West Georgia,Carrollton, Georgia; personal communication to MCF)have discovered genetic differences betweenpopulations of E. tallapoosae and C. gibbsi in differentportions of the system.  Thus, even though these twoendemic species are widespread within the upperTallapoosa, populations effectively form at least two,geographically separated, taxonomic units.Studies from other basins in Georgia (Schleiger 2000,Walters 2002) and elsewhere in North America (Pauland Meyer 2001) have related changes in stream fishassemblages coincident with landscape urbanization.Assemblage shifts in urbanizing watersheds typicallyinclude declines of sensitive species and increasingdomination by widespread, habitat generalists (e.g.,Lepomis spp.).  We have not found strong evidence ofsimilar faunal changes in the Tallapoosa system;however, the watersheds in our study did notexperience large land cover changes over the studyperiod.  Conservation strategies for Tallapoosa aquaticfauna, if implemented soon, thus have an enhancedprobability of success.Management concerns in the upper Tallapoosasystem include habitat degradation as a result of uplanddevelopment, stream impoundment and hydrologicalteration.  The occurrence of Lampsilis altilis andEtheostoma chuckwachatte primarily in the upperTallapoosa mainstem and its larger tributaries elevatesthe importance of protecting habitat and flow regimesin these portions of the system.  Effective faunalconservation will also require strategies for protectingsufficient smaller-stream habitat to ensure persistenceof populations of endemic species across their rangesand to protect unique assemblage types.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSWe thank Hal Bryan and Carson Stringfellow forsharing their unpublished records for Lampsilis altilis.LITERATURE CITEDBurkhead, N. M., S. J. Walsh, B. J. Freeman and J. D.Williams.  1997.  Status and restoration of theEtowah River, an imperiled southern Appalachianecosystem.  pp. 375-444 in G. W. Benz and D. E.Collins (eds) Aquatic fauna in peril: thesoutheastern perspective.  Special Publication 1,Southeast aquatic Research Institute, Lenz Designand Communications, Decatur, GA, 554 p.Cashner, R. C., J. S. Rogers and J. M. Grady.  1998.Fundulus bifax, a new species of the subgenusXenisma from the Tallapoosa and Coosa Riversystems of Alabama and Georgia.  Copeia1988:674-683.Freeman, B. J.  1990.  Report on fishes in theTallapoosa River drainage system in Georgia.Final report submitted to the Georgia Departmentof Natural Resources, Atlanta GA.Irwin, E. R. and J. S. Peyton.  1997.  Distribution ofTallapoosa sculpin Cottus sp. cf. bairdi andTallapoosa darter Etheostoma tallapoosae intributaries of the Tallapoosa River above the fallline.  Final report submitted to AlabamaDepartment of Conservation and NaturalResources, Montgomery AL.Irwin, E. R., G. Kowalski and D. Buckmeier.  1998.Distribution of endemic and threatened fauna in theUpper Tallapoosa River.  Final Report, U. S. Fishand Wildlife Service.  Daphne, AL.Mettee, M. F., P. E. O’Neil and J. M. Pierson.  1996.Fishes of Alabama and the Mobile Basin.  OxmoorHouse, Birmingham, AL. 820 p.Natural Resources Spatial Analysis Laboratory,University of Georgia.  2001.  Landcover ofGeorgia 1998.Paul, M. J. and J. L. Meyer.  2001.  Streams in theurban landscape.  Annual Review of Ecology andSystematics 32:333-365.Pierson, J. M.  1999.  Status of the lipstick darter(Etheostoma chuckwachatte) and the undescribed“muscadine darter” (Percina (Alvordius) sp.) in theTallapoosa River system of Alabama and Georgia.Report to the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service,Office of Endangered Species.Schleiger, S. L.  2000.  Use of an index of bioticintegrity to detect effects of land uses on streamfish communities in west-central Georgia.Transactions of the American Fisheries Society129:1118-1133.Walters, D. M.  2002.  Influence of geomorphology andurban land cover on stream fish assemblages in theEtowah River basin, Georgia.  PhD dissertation,University of Georgia, Athens GA.

Distribution of endemic and imperiled fauna of the Tallapoosa River system of Georgia

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Distribution of endemic and imperiled fauna of the Tallapoosa River system of Georgia

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