An updated survey of freshwater fishes within Letchworth State Park and surrounding area's of the Genesee River

Abstract

The goal of this study was to gather information about freshwater fishes in Letchworth State Park (42.615275° N, -77.992825° W), a portion of New York State-owned land located in the Genesee River Watershed that lacks known data about its fish diversity. Fish collection took place between 2017 and 2019 in the Genesse River upstream and downstream of the falls using electrofishing, gill, hoop, and seine netting. This was the first attempt at a comprehensive survey of this portion of the river, which allowed for a baseline to be established regarding fish biodiversity in the region. The updated total number of species found in this portion of the Genesee River was 25, 22 of which were newly identified downstream of the falls in Letchworth State Park. We encourage further collection and continuation of this survey with consistent sampling techniques to raise awareness about the importance of freshwater fish diversity in stream ecosystems across the globe.

Keywords: Genesee River; Letchworth State Park; biodiversity; conservation; fish survey.

FIGURE 1

Field study sites. The map on the left side represents the state of New York. The inset map (right side) represents the portion of the Genesse river that was sampled in Letchworth State Park and surrounding area's of the Genesee River. The fish icons represent where data were collected, at site A (42.571026° N, −78.040590° W) near Portageville, B (42.615275° N, −77.992825° W) inside park, and C (42.738133° N, −77.882228° W) near Mt. Morris. The black box inside the inset map represents Letchworth State Park. The maps also have a north arrow, a scale, and latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates which are indicated by the degree measurements and blue lines.