Buffalo Creek Watershed
Get to know Buffalo Creek, an Important Bird Area and High Quality Watershed. Cover Photo: Dave Brooke
Watershed Overview
Buffalo Creek, a 34.4-mile tributary of the Allegheny River, drains 171 square miles of eastern Butler, western Armstrong, and a very small portion of northern Allegheny Counties in western Pennsylvania. Forests and farms dominate much of the landscape.
Headwaters in Chicora
Extensive Forests
Agriculture
Flows into the Allegheny River in Freeport
Headwaters in Chicora
The main stem of Buffalo Creek originates in Chicora (Butler County), then flows 34.4 miles to where it it meets the Allegheny River in Freeport (Armstrong County). Photo: George Reese
Extensive Forests
Forest is the dominant land use in the watershed, covering 82.8 square miles. These large tracts of forest provide important habitat for species of conservation concern such as the Wood Thrush, help keep local streams clean, and contribute to a picturesque landscape for residents and visitors. Photo: George Reese
Agriculture
Agriculture is the second largest land use in Buffalo Creek, accounting for 52.5 square miles. Photo: George Reese
Flows into the Allegheny River in Freeport
The mouth of Buffalo Creek is located in Freeport (Armstrong County), where it meets the Allegheny River. All rain and snow that falls within the 171 square mile watershed eventually flows out at this point and becomes part of the Allegheny River.
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Recreating in Buffalo Creek
Buffalo Creek contains some of PA's Best Fishing Waters for Stocked Trout (PA Fish and Boat Commission), unique bird-watching opportunities, the 21-mile Butler-Freeport Trail, and much more!
Buffalo Creek Nature Park
Todd Nature Reserve
State Gamelands
DHALO Fishing Area
Butler-Freeport Community Trail
Buffalo Creek Nature Park
Buffalo Creek Nature Park (BCNP) is Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania's news public nature site. Located at 154 Monroe Road in Sarver, BCNP is conveniently located between Little Buffalo Creek and the Butler-Freeport Trail. In addition to regular environmental education programming, this location has a pavilion, Audubon Nature Store, concessions, restrooms, and a classroom and indoor event space.
Todd Nature Reserve
Located at 367 Kepple Road in Sarver, Todd Nature Reserve (TNR) is a 220-acre nature reserve that is owned and operated by Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania. Visitors will find almost 5 miles of trails , regular naturalist-led programming, and unique habitat at TNR.
State Gamelands
DHALO Fishing Area
The Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lure Only (DHALO) section of Buffalo Creek is a 3.7-mile that is designated as one of PA's Best Fishing Waters for Stocked Trout. Information on access can be found here .
Butler-Freeport Community Trail
The Butler-Freeport Trail is a 20-mile, crushed limestone rail trail. Popular activities include biking, hiking, geocaching, and cross-country skiing. Much of this trail follows Buffalo and Little Buffalo Creeks. For more information, including trailheads, visit www.butlerfreeporttrail.org.
Photo: George Reese
Unique Habitat and Rich Biodiversity
An Audubon-designated Important Bird Area, Buffalo Creek is an area of high biological diversity and home to many species of conservation concern.
Important Bird Area
Important Mammal Area
Wetlands
Natural Heritage Areas
High Quality, Cold Water Fisheries
Hemlock Trees
Naturally-Reproducing Trout Streams
Important Bird Area
Buffalo Creek is an Important Bird Area - a region vital to birds and biodiversity. This region's breeding bird population was recognized as exemplary as early as the 1880s. According to eBird , Buffalo Creek is home to over 150 species; 42 of those species are designated as Species of Greatest Conservation Need in the 2015-2025 PA State Wildlife Action Plan. Photo: Dave Brooke
Important Mammal Area
In addition to being an Important Bird Area (IBA), Buffalo Creek also contains a majority of the the Long Run Mine Category 4 Important Mammal Area (IMA). IMAs are sites or regions that include habitat critical to mammal survival. This IMA is home to the Endangered Indiana Bat. Photo: Ann Froschauer/USFWS
Wetlands
Wetlands provide important habitat, filter pollutants, and reduce the impacts of flooding. Large wetland areas are found in the central and upper main-stem watersheds as well as along the floodplain of Little Buffalo Run. Photo: Dave Brooke
Natural Heritage Areas
Eleven (11) Natural Heritage Areas (NHA) are located within the Buffalo Creek Watershed. NHAs are sites that have been identified as areas that support rare plants or animals, exemplary ecological communities, and Pennsylvania’s native species biodiversity. Explore Butler County NHAs here and Armstrong County NHAs here .
High Quality, Cold Water Fisheries
Buffalo Creek is designated as a High-Quality watershed, which is one of Pennsylvania's special protection designations for streams. Streams in the northwestern part of the watershed are High Quality-Coldwater Fisheries; coldwater streams aren't common and support a rich diversity of species. Photo: George Reese
Hemlock Trees
Extensive areas of Hemlock (White Pine) - Northern Hardwood forest communities are found along the steep and narrow ravines of tributary streams in Buffalo Creek. Hemlocks are vital elements of the local ecosystem -- they shade the streams (keeping them cool), provide year-round cover, support over 200 species of insects, many uncommon birds, and much more!
Hemlocks are threatened by the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid - an invasive forest pest. Learn more from PA DCNR and Penn State Extension.
Naturally-Reproducing Trout Streams
PA Fish and Boat has identified 4 stream segments within the watershed where trout naturally reproduce.
A majority of Buffalo Creek, Little Buffalo Creek, and Patterson Creek, as well as portions of Little Buffalo Run and Cornplanter Run are stocked for trout. The lower reaches of Buffalo Creek and Little Buffalo Creek provide a regionally notable Smallmouth Bass fishery.
Photo: George Reese
Challenges
Conservation challenges in Buffalo Creek include loss of habitat to development, forest fragmentation, stormwater impacts, Marcellus Shale gas extraction, erosion, sedimentation, nutrients, invasive species, abandoned mine drainage, and the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid. The recently completed Buffalo Creek Watershed Conservation Plan 10-year Update found that almost 70% of the main stem of Buffalo Creek is impaired (i.e. doesn't meet water quality standards). Over 37% of the entire watershed’s streams are impaired.
Impaired Waterways
Resource Extraction
Monitoring
Development
Invasive Species
Impaired Waterways
Over 37% of the stream miles in Buffalo Creek are impaired. A stream is considered impaired if it fails to meet one or more water quality standards. Examining impairment data is a useful way to understand what areas of a watershed are most impacted by pollution and also what the sources of pollution are.
According to PA Department of Environmental Protection (2019), the top 6 sources of pollution in Buffalo Creek are:
1. Source Unknown (34.6 miles)
2. Agriculture (27.1 miles)
3. Onsite wastewater (21.2 miles)
4. Natural sources (18.6 miles)
5. Acid mine drainage (16.8 miles)
6. Urban runoff/storm sewers (8.1 miles)
Photo: Dr. Patrick Shirey
Resource Extraction
Historic and contemporary resource extraction activities impact the landscape and therefore ecosystem health of Buffalo Creek. Coal, limestone, clay, and sandstone have been mined in the watershed. Oil was first extracted from the watershed in the 1880s. There are over 220 Marcellus Shale extraction permits within Buffalo Creek. See page 2-18 for a detailed review of resource extraction activities in the watershed.
Photo: Shuvaev, Wikimedia
Monitoring
Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania is partnering with Duquesne University, Chatham University, and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy to conduct additional monitoring in Buffalo Creek. This data will be used to better understand sources and impacts of pollution, identify opportunities to address improve water quality and habitat, and better understand watershed biodiversity. Funding for these monitoring programs has been provided by the PA Department of Environmental Protections' Growing Greener Fund, Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds, and Natural Resource Conservation Service's Regional Conservation Parterships Program.
Development
Some portions of the watershed are experiencing heavy development, such as the Sarver area. When development replaces forests and farmland, local habitat and waterways can be negatively impacted. Protecting habitat and water quality doesn't have to mean "no development." When development uses techniques such as Low-Impact Development and/or green stormwater infrastructure , impacts to the local environment can be minimized.
Photo: Pixneo
Invasive Species
Non-native, invasive plants, insects, and animals threaten the ecosystem health of Buffalo Creek. Examples of species that are significantly impacting Buffalo Creek include:
- Japanese knotweed : Knotweed rapidly invades disturbed areas, forming a monoculture and displacing native species.
- Garlic mustard : Garlic mustard can grow in dense shade or sunny sites, quickly forming a monoculture and displacing native species. The presence of garlic mustard impacts the breeding success of the West Virginia Whit e, a rare butterfly found in Buffalo Creek. West Virginia White butterflies can mistake garlic mustard for their host plant; when their eggs are laid on garlic mustard, the caterpillars die because they are unable to feed.
- Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) : HWA is a non-native pest related to aphids that can damage and kill hemlock trees. Hemlocks are a critical component of the Buffalo Creek ecosystem.
To learn more about invasive species and what you can do to lessen their damage, explore these links: