HR: 09:30h
AN: NB31B-05    [Abstracts]
TI: Don't cry if you Can't use IBI, Here Comes LDI: Evaluating Riparian Grass Filter Strips in an Agricultural Region With a Least Desired Index (LDI)
AU: * Kosnicki, E
EM: ekdy7@mizzou.edu
AF: University of Missouri - Columbia, Division of Plant Sciences Subdivision of Entomology U-18 Agriculture Building , Columbia, MO 65211 United States
AU: Sites, R W
EM: bugs@missouri.edu
AF: University of Missouri - Columbia, Division of Plant Sciences Subdivision of Entomology U-18 Agriculture Building , Columbia, MO 65211 United States
AB: Biological monitoring of habitat quality is often accomplished through the use of an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI), which employs metric scores from several reference sites (least impaired) as a means of evaluating a test site. In some regions of the world, anthropogenic activities have eliminated accessible reference sites, thus creating a challenge for managers to evaluate test sites. In such situations, a Least Desired Index (LDI) can compare test sites to "anti-reference" sites (least desired). An LDI is created with an inverse procedure to that of an IBI. Thus, test site metric scores that approach reference conditions simultaneously deviate from "anti-reference" conditions as improvements are realized. This study presents the use of an LDI for evaluating two test sites that had riparian grass filter strips established along each stream in the Dissected Till Plains ecoregion of northern Missouri. Two-way ANOVA blocking in time was used to distinguish metrics that could detect significant differences between reference and "anti-reference" sites. Performance of the LDI compared to that of an IBI showed that test site responses were identical. One test site showed moderate improvement while the other showed no improvement.
DE: 1871 Surface water quality
DE: 9901 NABS Student Award - Basic Research
SC: North American Benthological Society [NB]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly