Bioassessment III: Posters
Presiding: E Marti, Centre d'Estudis Avancats de Blanes (CSIC); C Hoagstrom, South Dakota State University
NB33B-01 1330h
Biological Assessment of Urban and Agricultural Streams in the California Central Valley (Fall 2002 Through Spring 2004)
California has over 200,000 miles of rivers and streams that are increasingly impacted from human activities. Various agencies in the state have begun to conduct bioassessment to evaluate these impacts. We conducted a pilot study to assess potential aquatic impacts of pesticides and other human activities in two urban creeks and two agricultural creeks in the fall and spring for two years (2002-04) using a modified U.S. EPA EMAP method. All creeks showed highly impacted conditions. Water quality measurements indicated below normal dissolved oxygen levels at 44% and 15% of the sites, and elevated temperatures at 70% and 73% of the urban and agricultural sites, respectively. Physical habitat scores indicated significant impacts. Diazinon and chlorpyrifos were detected at all sites (trace to 0.212 ppb). Pyrethroids were detected in water and sediment in urban sites only (trace to 27.5 ppt). High numbers of chironomidae and very low numbers of pollution intolerant species were detected in the benthic macroinvertebrate community. Urban creeks had a higher number of pollution tolerant species compared to agricultural creeks. All sites were ecologically impacted. Mulitvariate ANOVA of macroinvertebrate metrics revealed a significant difference between urban and agricultural sites (P= 0.002) and between fall and spring seasons (P=0.036).
http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/empm/pubs/ehapreps/Bioasse1.pdf
NB33B-02 1330h
Rolling Stones: Studying Aquatic Invertebrates on Hard Rock Substrates
Rock is an important habitat for aquatic insects and other invertebrates, but studying invertebrates on this substrate poses many potential problems to the ecologist. Rock is a common stream bed control material. Thus, land managers, for stream rehabilitation and erosion control/channel stability, are introducing rock to large numbers of streams, including many that previously did not contain this substrate. Two key impediments to study of rock-inhabiting invertebrates include accurate measurement of individual rock surface areas and calculating total available surface area for stream regions with overlapping layers of rock. We present an overview of concepts and methods used for study of rock-inhabiting invertebrates and provide information on new methods that enhance our ability to make easier realistic estimates. These new methods, especially one for calculating rock surface area based on weight or water displacement measurements of rocks, provide an accurate and efficient means for estimating invertebrate density. By combining recent methods to extrapolate invertebrate densities from individual rocks to estimates of total bottom densities of aquatic invertebrates for a reach or region of stream bottom area, we obtain much greater accuracy and precision in quantifying densities and estimating secondary production of rock-dwelling communities.
NB33B-03 1330h
Evaluating the Relative Magnitude of Intra- and Inter-annual Metric Variability
Understanding the magnitude of both short- and long-term temporal variability in metrics derived from lotic macroinvertebrate assemblages is important for both the design and analysis of water quality assessments. Sampling on an annual or even longer interval is common in programs that assess many sites over large geographic areas. These sampling regimes often lead sampling periods that extend over several months. Extended sampling periods can potentially influence the assessment because of phenological change in the benthic assemblage. To address the question of the effects of short- and long-term variability in common metrics, we collected benthic invertebrates every two weeks for a year from 6 sites. Within-site samples were grouped into 2 month intervals. We also collected annually from 9 sites for a period of 4 years. In general, the range of variation in metrics was similar regardless of temporal scale evaluated. For example, within-site, within-group % mayflies had coefficient of variations that ranged from 6 to 104 and within-site, among-year annual variability ranged from 9 to 111. The similarity in the ranges indicates that short-term temporal variability has the potential to confound the interpretation of long-term variability when evaluating annual or greater changes in benthic assemblage structure.
NB33B-04 1330h
Effects of Aquatic Insect Life History Patterns on Bioassessments
Aquatic insect populations vary greatly over an annual cycle. Nevertheless, given practical constraints, biomonitoring programs focusing on these animals typically have broad sampling seasons (index periods). Stated or implicit assumptions are 1) replacement by different populations with similar environmental tolerance occurs, and/or 2) metrics can be generated that are sufficiently robust or can be seasonally adjusted. To support tests of seasonal variability in macroinvertebrate metrics, we analyzed life history patterns of dominant EPT species in 3 regulated and 3 non-regulated streams. Population peaks (recruitment periods) of taxa numerically dominant in both stream types (Baetis tricaudatus, Hydropsyche spp., and Malenka cf. californica) were asynchronous, even within streamflow category. Populations of some intolerant taxonomic groups occurring in non-regulated streams (e.g., Ephemerellidae) were restricted to the fall-spring period. Other groups (e.g., Rhyacophilidae, Heptageniidae) included species that maintained high summer populations. Therefore, defining an index period for all streams in a given area is difficult because life history patterns are often site-specific. Seasonal adjustments based on statistical properties of derived metrics may be useful for describing conditions over a large area but at the site level, behavior of individual populations may need to be considered for an accurate assessment.
NB33B-05 1330h
Nutrient Status and Criteria Development for the Saint John River, Canada, Using a Weight of Evidence Approach
The Saint John River is the largest in Maine/New Brunswick (673 km in length, draining 55,000 km2) with a history of natural resource use and nutrient effluent release to the watershed since the late 17th century. Our objective was to obtain a basic understanding of the contemporary nutrient conditions of the non-tidal portion of the river in relation to historical conditions, and to consider how the contemporary river is affected by point and non-point source nutrient loadings. The study included review of historical provincial and federal water quality databases dating back to the 1960s. Current water quality monitoring programs have focused on nitrogen (nitrite, nitrate, ammonia, TKN), phosphorus (total, dissolved, and soluble reactive phosphorus), DIC/DOC, and biomass of periphyton and phytoplankton. To determine nutrient limitation, nutrient diffusing substrate studies were conducted in river reaches of known nutrient enrichment. Oxygen stable isotopes were also used to provide information on the photosynthesis to respiration ratio. A weight of evidence approach combining the results of these studies was used to determine trophic status of river reaches and to highlight areas of eutrophication. From this information nutrient criteria for the Saint John River will be proposed.
NB33B-06 1330h
Sensitivity and Reproducibility of a Family-level Macroinvertebrate Index used to Assess Acid Mine Impacts on Streams in the Western Allegheny Plateau
We report on the performance of a family-level multimetric index, the MAIS (Macroinvertebrate Aggregate Index for Streams) for assessing acid mine impaired (AMD) sites in the Western Allegheny Plateau (Ohio). Two sampling protocols were compared, one utilizing three collection techniques (kick net, dip net and Surber samples), the other using two (kick and dip net). Including Surber samples tended to increase the MAIS score, changing the classification of four out of 52 sampling events (7.7%), but substantially increased processing time. MAIS scores were positively correlated with water pH (R = -0.77) and other indicators of AMD (acidity, sulfates, conductivity, total Al, total Mn). MAIS scores at some sites were consistent over 2-3 years of repeated sampling, others were more variable. Nineteen of the 26 sites that were sampled multiple times were categorized the same each year (73%), whereas 7 were classified differently in at least one year (27%). Since rainfall, flow regime and disturbance events varied over the three years, we cannot identify whether this variation reflects sampling error or actual changes in the assemblages at each site. Nevertheless, a benefit of repeated, annual evaluation is a statistically strong baseline condition against which future changes can be assessed.
NB33B-07 1330h
Bioassessment: A Comparison of Results Obtained From Macroinvertebrate and Fish Based Indices
Biomonitoring in freshwater ecosystems is currently used for surveillance (i.e. observation of changes in a system) and for determining compliance with regulations. A subset of biomonitoring includes rapid bioassessment. Rapid bioassessment protocols can determine if a stream is supporting or not supporting a designated aquatic life use (ALU). This allows us the flexibility to designate streams as healthy along a continuum. Rapid bioassessment protocols (as follows: RBA refers to the macroinvertebrate index, IBI refers to the fish index), as set down by the EPA, acknowledge that the components of a water system, i.e. periphyton, macroinvertebrates, and fish, all respond differently to stressors. However, macroinvertebrate assemblages are commonly used due to an institutional entrenchment. In this study we examined four sites to determine the ALU utilizing both the IBI and RBA protocols and metrics as adapted to the state of Texas. We found a consistently higher ALU score with the IBI than with the RBA. The general categories for ALU(ie Exceptional, High, Intermediate, and Limited) determined by IBI and RBA only agreed for half of our test sites. These results suggest that the usage of RBA and IBI outcomes should only be used interchangeably with caution.
NB33B-08 1330h
Two-Year Comparison of a Stream Macroinvertebrate Functional Group Bioassessment Protocol for the Republic of Palau Archipelago
Macroinvertebrate functional feeding group data was collected in 2003 and 2004 to develop a rapid bioassessment protocol for Palauan streams. One reference stream, Ngardmau, was selected to test functional group ratios and associated ecosystem attributes against streams of variable impact. In both years qualitative samples were collected using 30s dip net samples in pool habitats and benthic scouring methods in cascades with additional quantitative cascade collections for sampling technique comparisons in 2004. In the reference stream riffle habitat, filtering-gatherers dominated the community (89.92% in 2003 and 47.37% in 2004) compared to all other functional groups. Among the impacted streams, riffle functional group composition was variable compared to the reference stream. In reference pool habitats, gathering-collectors and scrapers dominated in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Scrapers dominated pool habitats of impacted streams in 2004, with some functional groups missing. Changes in ecosystem attributes followed functional group variability depending on degree of impact. Functional group ratios indicated channel stability ratio ([filtering-collectors + scrapers]/[shredders + gathering-collectors]) was lowered with increasing impact, suggesting food and/or habitat quality for filtering-collectors was degraded in riffle habitats in 2003 with no trends in 2004. By this protocol streams were determined to be degraded in 2004 relative to 2003.
NB33B-09 1330h
Aquatic Invertebrates as Indicators of Water Quality
NB33B-10 1330h
Application of State Biological Assessment Protocols to the Lower Missouri River: are any Lotic Systems Non-Wadeable ?
Benthic ecologists have suggested that the biological condition of large rivers could be successfully evaluated with modifications of small stream bioassessments. The lower Missouri system contains a unique fauna with rare, large-river macroinvertebrate species that are difficult to sample and more poorly known ecologically. As part of an evaluation of 27 indicator metrics and their ability to detect cumulative stressors, an 812 km section of the lower Missouri was sampled with three methods in two key habitats. Among these, rock revetments were sampled with a D-frame kick net using the state of Missouri's biological assessment protocol developed for coarse substrate in riffles of wadeable streams. A total of 62 species of macroinvertebrates were collected, as compared to 72 species from artificial substrates deployed at the same locations. Ranges in values for the four core metrics included in the Missouri protocol (total taxa richness 24-42, EPT taxa richness 9-18, Missouri Biotic Index 5.89-6.33, Shannon-Wiener Index 1.60-2.77) were more comparable to data from perennial 4th and 5th order streams than the values from artificial substrate data. However, proposed biocriteria for wadeable streams in Missouri could not identify impairment levels among sites, and no longitudinal response gradient was apparent until an additional 8 metrics were included in the site scores. Utilization of semi-quantitative kick net protocols in large rivers can yield data comparable to wadeable streams if sampling is performed under specific conditions related to hydrology and insect colonization dynamics.
NB33B-11 1330h
Spatial And Temporal Periphyton Distributions And Ecological Indices In An Anthropogenic-Influenced Montane-Desert Great Basin Stream
The Lower Truckee River (LTR), Nevada, USA has multiple anthropogenic influences along its' gradient, including a water treatment facility, irrigation diversions, channelization, and urbanization of the watershed. The seasonal dynamics of periphyton biomass and community composition was documented in the LTR in 2000-2002, and showed biomass maxima (>150ug/cm2) in the winter (stalked diatoms) and early spring (filamentous green). Siltation tolerant genera, Eutraphentic genera, Genera Diversity, and Chlorophyll a standing stocks varied substantially along the LTR. These community characteristics were used to derive a equally weighted and normalized index. Evaluation of the index has identified a prevalent upstream to downstream decrease in scores, from 0.83 to 0.53 downstream, and potential in-stream reference conditions. This work not only provides a means to document the temporal-spatial biomass and assemblage composition for a high order montane to desert stream, it offers a preliminary periphyton based index that aids in the ecological assessment of the Great Basin region.
NB33B-12 1330h
Comparison of the Biological Health of two Second Order Streams
Similarly to other towns, Columbia, Missouri is experiencing growth through the development of its outlying land. The future development of 500 acres of land that span two second order stream's watersheds produces the possibility of significant altering of the biological structure of these streams. In order to show this change, benthic macroinvertebrates were collected in order to determine the current ecological structure of the stream. The streams have both similar topography and stream bed composition, allowing for straightforward comparison. Four sample sites on each stream were chosen and samples from each stream taken in November, January, and March of 2004-2005. This paper attempts to compare the biological health of these streams using the benthic macroinvertebrate ecological structure found through the sampling.
NB33B-13 1330h
The Effects of a Large/Rare Sub-sample on a Macroinvertebrate Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) and Associated Metrics.
It has become common practive among those who collect macroinvertebrates for water quality assessment to use a two-phase subsampling procedure, including a fixed count subsample and a large and/or rare subsample. For the past 8 years the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has supplemented a 300 organism fixed count subsample with a 15-20 minute scan for large/rare taxa. The decision to use this process was based on previous work indicating that the inclusion of a large/rare subsample substantially increased taxonomic richness. The MPCA is currently completing a statewide survey, with the intent of developing regional Indices of Biological Integrity (IBI) for the state of Minnesota. Before begining another statewide sampling rotation we decided that it would be wise to investigate the effect that the large/rare sub-sample component has on our current data set. Specifically, we wanted to examine the possibilty that the large/rare sub-sample was contributing unwanted variability to our data set, resulting in a less reliable IBI. Comparisons between each data set were made to determine the variance effects on individual metrics and IBI score.
NB33B-14 1330h
Post-Flood Recovery of Invertebrate Communities on the Salmon Streams of the Lower Kenai Peninsula, Alaska.
Cook Inlet Keeper and the Homer Soil and Water Conservation District have been partnering since 1998 to monitor water quality on the lower Kenai Peninsula's most economically, culturally, and socially important salmon streams: Anchor River, Stariski Creek, Deep Creek, and Ninilchik River. Although these rivers support abundant salmon populations and are nutrient rich, these waterways ranked only "fair" in a 1997 macroinvertebrate assessment of Kenai Peninsula salmon streams by the University of Alaska Anchorage's Environment and Natural Resources Institute, perhaps providing an early warning signal that these high priority watersheds are being degraded. These streams are under new stresses from: 1) population growth and urban sprawl; 2) widespread spruce bark beetle infestation; 3) elevated sediment and temperature levels; and 4) catastrophic flooding events in the Fall of 2002. Cook Inlet Keeper expanded its bioassessment program in 2003 and 2004 to track the biological communities in these streams and to understand flood effects on stream productivity. Preliminary results suggest that short term reductions in abundance but not diversity occurred after flood events and that chronic sediment deposition may be responsible for sub-optimal community assessments.
NB33B-15 1330h
Bioassessment of Alkaline Drainage from Coal Mines in Western Pennsylvania: A Ten-Year Study
Abandoned coal mine drainage (AMD) impacts over 6,500 km of streams in Pennsylvania. AMD alters stream pH and dissolved ions, and often produces precipitated metals that coat stream substrates. We studied 3 streams from 1994 to 2004, before and after treatment wetlands were constructed in 1997-9 to intercept discharges with high iron (60-90 ppm) and alkalinity (100-130 mg/L CaCO3) and low manganese and aluminum. Receiving streams are circumneutral with 5-40 ppm total iron and thick iron precipitate. Annual replicate sets of Surber and D nets, rock wash, and leaf packs were sampled. Regression analysis of genus level data showed statistically significant improvement in the two second-order streams. Community profiles are now statistically similar in sites upstream and downstream from AMD. The larger third stream showed moderate AMD impacts before 1997 and no statistically significant biological trends after wetlands substantially decreased levels of AMD in all three streams. This study indicated biological recovery lagged behind chemical recovery by at least 3 years. The patterns of appearance of macroinvertebrate taxa in alkaline AMD sites indicate that commonly used tolerance indices developed for organic pollution do not predict macroinvertebrate responses to AMD. Our study can provide a basis for broader benchmarks in bioassessment of coal mine pollution.
NB33B-16 1330h
A Comparison of U.S. EPA Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program Field Sampling Methods and the U.S. EPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocol II Used by USDA, Forest Service for Benthic Macroinvertebrate Studies
Two United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) macroinvertebrate sampling protocols were compared in the Mid-Atlantic Highlands region. The Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP) wadeable streams protocol results in a single composite sample from 9 transects whereas the Rapid Bioassessment Protocol (RBP) II consists of a single composite sample from 4 locations within a riffle. Separate macroinvertebrate samples were collected by U.S. EPA and United States Forest Service (USFS) using both sampling protocols from 12 streams in 2002. Samples were sub-sampled to 300 organisms and identified to lowest taxonomic level possible. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS) was used to determine major patterns in macroinvertebrate assemblages, and Bray-Curtis similarity analysis was used to explore differences in species composition between methods. No distinct differences were found between samples collected using the two sampling methods. Comparisons of taxa richness, functional feeding group, and habit between sampling methods all showed 80% or higher similarity. Although this work was reviewed by EPA and approved for publication, it may not necessarily reflect official Agency policy.
NB33B-17 1330h
Preliminary study on rapid bioassessment with benthic macroinvertebrates in the headwater streams of the Loei River and adjacent catchments, Thailand.
Thailand currently lacks formal bioassessment approaches and protocols to assist management decisions for water quality. This study aims to develop recommendations for (1) a professional level of rapid bioassessment by using benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages for streams in Thailand and (2) an appropriate technique for the volunteer monitoring groups. Eleven physico-chemical parameters were measured at each of seven reference sites and eight test sites in the Loei River and adjacent areas. The biological research methods were designed around the USEPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocols using the multi-habitat approach. Four fixed count subsamplings (100, 200, 300 and 500) were randomly removed using a standardized gridded pan to evaluate an appropriate level for bioassessment in Thailand streams. The preliminary results revealed that the test sites had BOD5 and Chorophyll a significantly higher than those reference sites. Two hundred organisms counted are adequate for bioassessment purposes. The differences between multimetric and multivariate analyses were examined.
NB33B-18 1330h
Refernce Conditions for Streams in the Grand Prairie Natural Division of Illinois
As part of the Critical Trends Assessment Program (CTAP) of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), 12 potential reference quality stream sites in the Grand Prairie Natural Division were evaluated in May 2004. This agriculturally dominated region, located in east central Illinois, is the most highly modified in the state. The quality of these sites was assessed using a modified Hilsenhoff Biotic Index and species richness of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) insect orders and a 12 parameter Habitat Quality Index (HQI). Illinois EPA high quality fish stations, Illinois Natural History Survey insect collection data, and best professional knowledge were used to choose which streams to evaluate. For analysis, reference quality streams were compared to 37 randomly selected meandering streams and 26 randomly selected channelized streams which were assessed by CTAP between 1997 and 2001. The results showed that the reference streams exceeded both taxa richness and habitat quality of randomly selected streams in the region. Both random meandering sites and reference quality sites increased in taxa richness and HQI as stream width increased. Randomly selected channelized streams had about the same taxa richness and HQI regardless of width.
http://ctap.inhs.uiuc.edu/