Appoquinimink River || Army Creek || Blackbird Creek || Broadkill River || C and D Canal East || Cedar Creek || Delaware Bay Drainage || Delaware River Drainage || Dragon Run Creek || Leipsic River || Little Creek || Mispillion River || Murderkill River || Red Lion Creek || Smyrna River || St. Jones River
Blackbird Creek
Background The Blackbird Creek watershed drains a portion of southern New Castle County. Blackbird Creek flows into the Delaware River just upstream from Delaware Bay. The Blackbird Creek watershed is dominated by forest, wetlands and agriculture.
Water Quality The nutrient and bacteria TMDLs for the Blackbird Creek watershed require 40% reductions in phosphorus and nitrogen loads and 80% reduction in bacteria loads. The designated uses for the Blackbird Creek include primary recreation, secondary recreation, fish, aquatic life and wildlife, industrial water supply, and agricultural water supply in freshwater segments. This watershed has sites sampled for a consistent suite of environmental contaminants. These contaminants are broadly classified as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds (SVOCs), Pesticides, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and Metals as listed using USEPA and DNREC defined standards. When sites are adjacent to water bodies sediment samples are collected to assess potential impact from a site on the health of the waters. Learn more information specific to this watershed from the DNREC Advanced Facility Search Tool.
Plants and Wildlife Delaware's Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), Division of Fish and Wildlife conducts on-going inventories of natural communities as well as rare and declining species, (e.g., state and globally-rare plants, birds, insects, mussels, reptiles, and amphibians). It maintains a database, both electronic and manual, of its findings throughout the state. Learn more about the wildlife and plant communities in this watershed from the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife Conservation Programs. In addition, the Division of Fish and Wildlife, working with the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration - Water Resources Center, maintains online databases about plants and plant communities in Delaware. Learn more about the plant communities in this watershed from the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife.
Recreation and Culture The Blackbird Creek Reserve provides many recreational opportunities within the watershed. The Reserve boasts several miles of trails through upland and marsh areas, a canoe/kayak launch, restoration demonstration areas as well as a variety of programs and volunteer opportunities. The Reserve also supports ongoing research and monitoring, field studies, citizen monitoring programs, and training opportunities. The Blackbird State Forest, located on the border of New Castle and Kent counties, is the northernmost state forest. It has miles of trails that are used for hiking, cross country skiing, running, bicycling, and horseback riding. There is also a paved nature trail designed for wheelchair accessibility. The trail system connects primitive campsites and picnic areas. Blackbird State Forest is also open to hunting and catch and release fishing by perimt.
Further Resources For more detailed information on this watershed, its water quality and resources, check out the following resources: Delaware TMDLs Delaware Whole Basin Reports CCMP for the Delaware Estuary  View of Blackbird Creek from Delaware Wildlands Roberts Farm Photo credit: Brenna Ness | Quick facts ▲ Square Miles: 31.0 Population*: 6,030 States: DE Counties: DE: New Castle *Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2019.
Land cover (total)† ▲ †Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office for Coastal Management. 2016 C-CAP Regional Land Cover. Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) Regional Land Cover.. |