Operational Plan for the Restoration of Diadromous Fishes to the ...

warmer waters stimulate mature pike to congregate near river and stream inlets in
preparation for spawning. At this time, salmon smolts may be at the greatest risk,
since they are going through physiological changes preparing them for a down river
migration through many varying habitats.
There are two connections between the Piscataquis and the West Branch
Penobscot were identified as concerns: 1) East Branch Lake has a north and south
outlet where the North flows into the West Branch Penobscot and 2) a large wetland
complex separates Ebeemee Lake, Sanborn Pond and Upper Jo-Mary Lake.
Model Limits and Summary
Measures were developed as critical habitat parameters based on: 1) the literature
on the habitat requirements of northern pike and 2) the availability of data in Maine
available for the watershed. The habitat parameters were developed first and then
applied without prior knowledge or through the direct use of the waterbody/waterway
characteristics.
The results for the waterbody and waterway models should be viewed as only
indicators of the northern pike population-habitat relationships with their primary
value being to improve decision-making in a structured approach. The models are
only one aspect of identifying the risk of northern pike introductions and should not
be relied upon solely for decision making.
1. Two ponds ranked high (Towne Pond and Oak Knoll Bog) with each pond
being less than 8 HA in area (20 acres
2. 94 waterbodies ranked as medium potential and ranged from 2 to 582 HA.
About 90 percent were less than 40 HA (about 100 acres). The five largest
waterbodies ranked as medium potential include: Endless Lake, Ebeemee
Lake, Burden Pond, Second and Third Branch Ponds, and Shirley Bog.
3. 100 waterbodies ranked as low potential and ranged from 2 to 2,841 HA. The
five largest waterbodies ranked as low potential were: Schoodic Lake, Sebec
Lake, Seboeis Lake, Lower Wilson Pond and Lake Onawa.
4. About 97 percent of the rivers and streams (2,714 km) in the watershed were
assigned a HSI value of 0.
5. Of the 3 percent (97 km) that were assigned a HSI value of 0.2 or higher,
most were located in the Piscataquis River mainsteam downstream of the
Town of Guilford and in the lower Sebec and Pleasant Rivers near the
confluence of the Piscataquis River.
6. Ninety-four percent of the river segments that were suitable potential habitat
for northern pike were rated as higher suitability (HSI values of 0.8 or 1).
The calibration/verification was completed by normalizing the ratings that Robert
VanRiper (MDIFW Biologist, Region B) provided for the northern pike lakes in
Region B. The model classification was compared to to VanRiper 's ratings and
trying to improve the classification by changing the parameter weights.
PRFP Page 258