The aquatic habitat guides are a companion to the Northeast aquatic habitat classification. They provide users with a compact fact sheet describing each of the mapped habitats, and provide information on the ecology and conservation status of the habitat, including:

  • Map of the regional distribution
  • Photo of example habitat and typical species
  • Description, ecological setting, and similar habitat types
  • State distribution and acres of riparian buffer conserved
  • Crosswalks to the state classifications
  • Places to visit this habitat
  • Associated fish, and species of concern
  • Distribution of securement
  • Land cover classes in riparian buffer
  • Density of dams
  • Cumulative upstream impervious surfaces
  • Risk of flow alteration by dam storage

Habitats are organized by macrogroups defined by stream size and tidal class. The structure is as follows:

Macrogroups

Headwaters and Creeks​
Small Rivers​
Medium Rivers​
Large Rivers​
Tidal Rivers

The aquatic habitat classification data is now available as an online interactive web mapping service. Click the image below to explore the habitats!

 Explore the Data