1. Stream Ecology and Macroinvertebrate Sampling

2. What is a stream? A lotic habitat (flowing waters)
A transporter of inorganic and organic material
A habitat for many species of fish, insects, birds, mammals, plants, and microrganisms
stream is used to describe flowing waters (or lotic habitats). This includes rivers, creeks, branches and runs. When streams are impounded in a lake or reservoir (lentic habitats), the biological, chemical and physical characteristics of the stream often change significantly. Here we will only discuss lotic (flowing water) habitats (although habitats in large pools may have lentic properties).
Streams remove inorganic and organic materials from the landscape by water transport. This process contributes to the shape and dimensions of the stream itself. The geologic history and characteristics underneath the watershed also strongly affect the morphology of the stream.

3. What is a Benthic Macroinvertebrate?
Why use them?
Easy to collect and identify
Some are indicator species
Some are sedentary and have long life cycles, so can act as continuous monitors of water quality
Macros are aquatic insects, mollusks and crustaceans
Macros live in various stream habitats and derive their oxygen from the water
Animals retained by a net with a mesh size greater than 1/5 of a mm

4. Macroinvertebrates are affected by:
- Resource availability
- Pollution inputs (organic and inorganic)
- Available habitat
- Velocity and volume of water (flow)
Why are they
important?
- They are the link in the aquatic food chain
They eat algae, leaves,
and other small macroinvertebrates, which are then eaten by larger animals like fish, who are eaten by birds, racoons, snakes, and people

5. Why Monitor Aquatic Systems?
Provides education about streams near us
Assess the health of streams and our waterways
Build local awareness about water quality
Documents the quality of streams overtime
Detect a pollution problem
Determine places in need of restoration
May influence decision-making of local, state, and federal governments
The monitoring of streams and rivers yields an understanding of processes and patterns in the watersheds where people live, play and work.

6. What Is Point Source Pollution?
Industrial Discharge
Sewage treatment plant
Exposed leaking sewer pipe
Regulated by EPD through a permitting process
Pollutant source more easily identified (point to source)

7. What is Non-point Source Pollution?
Erosion Sediment
Fertilizers, pesticides
Animal wastes
Runoff from roads and parking lots
Illicit Spills and illegal dumping
Leaking septic systems
The #1 cause of water quality problems in North Carolina
No easily identifiable source and everyone contributes

8. Biological Communities
Definition- a group of plants, animals, bacteria, and fungi living in a particular area
Why is it important? It reflects the overall ecological integrity of a system because the organisms integrate the chemical and physical aspects of the environment
Communities vary with microhabitat

9. What is Biomonitoring?
Biological Monitoring Definition- The use of organisms and their biological responses to evaluate changes in the environment
Why important? Reveals the effects of different
pollutants or other changes in environmental changes.
The presence of macroinvertebrates indicate both the
the quality of water and habitat
This data is often collected and used to
assess the human impacts on a system

10. Kicknet Sampling Face it upstream Place rocks on net
Make sure there is a bow on the net
Kick for one minute
Ensure that water does not flow over the top of the net or escape around the sides
Together bring sides together slowly and bring net out of H20 in a forward sweeping motion
Kick net is facing upstream to the right. Note the bow in the net: this is important for creating a depositional area where insects can be accumulated. Weighting the net with rocks ensures that the net remains on the bottom of the stream. Washing large rocks by hand will greatly enhance capture success and is an important part of the procedure. When removing the kicknet from the water, ensure that no water washes over the top of the net. Bring the sides together and slowly bring the net out of the water in a forward sweeping motion. Sorting out the macroinvertebrates from the kicknet should take two people 20 minutes (see the next section). Organisms should be roughly sorted into general taxonomic groups (mayflies, stoneflies, etc) and placed into partitioned containers (e.g., ice trays) for further identification.

11. Sand/rock/gravel streambed
Stream Habitats
Riffles
Leaf packs
Vegetated margins
Woody debris
Sand/rock/gravel streambed

12. Picking a site Suitable Riffles Small Safe to wade in
Will not wash water over top of kick net
Not suitable riffle
This is perhaps as small a stream as you might wish to sample for monitoring reasons (sample nothing smaller), but this stream is more than six feet wide and is actually a fourth order stream
Pic 2- The riffle in the foreground of this picture is too large to safely or effectively wade for sampling. The section upstream of the white water (near the black pack) is more appropriate for sampling.

13. Leafpack Sampling Place pan underneath leaves Scrape material into pan
*+Leafpack accumulated behind a small log. Note the various stages of decomposition of leaves (some are green, some brown and partially decomposed). To collect this leafpack, a volunteer would carefully place a pan underneath the leaves and then gently scrape the material into the pan.
Place pan underneath leaves
Scrape material into pan
Sort and identify the macroinvertebrates

14. Pollution-sensitive Macroinvertebrates
Caddisflies
Hellegramites
Mayfly
Stoneflies
Planarian
Gilled snail
Riffle beetle adult
Water penny
A healthy stream will have various pollution sensitive macroinvertebrates present

15. Stonefly Nymph Measure 8-15mm in length (not including tails) 2 tails
2 sets of wing pads
Branched gills between legs on underside of body
Yellow to brown in color; often patterned yellow and
brown when mature
Superficially similar to certain flattened mayfly nymphs, however stonefly nymphs always have two tails, prominent antennae, and two claws at the end of each leg.
Stoneflies are not tolerant to low levels of dissolved oxygen and therefore prefer cold, swift-moving streams. The streamlined, flattened bodies of stonefly nymphs enable them to move about the rocky streambed in rapid currents

16. Mayfly Mature larvae measure to 3/4 inch in length (excluding tails)
Two rows of long hairs present on inside of front legs
2 or 3 tails
Slender antennae
The conspicuous hairs growing on the inner front legs are used for filtering food particles from the water.
Brush-legged mayflies may be minnow like with a vertically oriented head and three tails (as pictured) or may be more flattened with a horizontally oriented head and two tails.

17. Antennae reduced and inconspicuous
Caddisflies
Up to one inch in length
Build distinctive cases made of sticks, rocks, sand, plant material and/or other debris
Three pairs of legs
Antennae reduced and inconspicuous

18. Hellegramites Measure 3/4 - 4 inches in length.
Body is elongate and somewhat flattened.
Large pinching jaws.
Lateral appendages along the length of the abdomen.
Cotton-like gill tufts on underside of abdomen.
Abdomen terminates in two small prolegs, each bearing two claws.
Short inconspicuous antennae.
Feed on other aquatic insects.
Hellgrammites are usually found on the underside of large rocks in cool, slow-moving streams.
Handle hellgrammites carefully, larger individuals may deliver a painful pinch!

19. Water Penny Measures 1/4 inch in length Flat disk-like body
Head and legs concealed from above
6 legs and branched gills on underside
Prefers cold running water
Water pennies prefer cold, fast-moving streams. Their smooth, flattened bodies enable them to resist the pull of the current. Water pennies are usually found on smooth rocks where they graze on attached algae

20. Riffle Beetle Adults Riffle beetles measure approximately 1/16 to
1/4 inch in length
Body small, usually oval
Legs are long
Antennae are usually slender
Riffle beetles walk slowly underwater,
they do not swim on the surface

21. Gilled Snail Shell usually opens on right Shell opening covered by
a thin plate (operculum)

22. Pollution semi-tolerant Macroinvertebrates
Alderfly
Clam or Mussel
Cranefly
Crayfish
Damselfly
Dragonfly
Fishfly
Aquatic beetles
Sowbug
Scud
Watersnipe fly
Wherligig beetle larvae

23. Dragonfly Larva Measure between 0.5-2.0 inches in length Large eyes
Two pairs of wing pads
Large round or oval abdomen
Abdomen terminates in three small pointed structures
Can be readily distinguished from other species by the presence of a large jaw which is modified for grasping and covers the underside of the head
Prefer cool still water, often found among vegetation and leaf packs or burrowed in sediment

24. Damselfly Nymph Measure 1/2 to 1 inch in length Large eyes
3 broad flattened gills at end of abdomen
Abdomen usually much more narrow and slender than that of dragonflies
Underside of head covered by a large jaw which is modified for grasping

25. Cranefly Larva Measure 1/3-2 inches in length
Plump caterpillar-like segmented body
Head is usually retracted into the body
Milky green to brown color
Four finger-like lobes at back end of body

26. Sowbug Measure 5-20 mm in length. Clear whitish to pink in color.
Dorsoventrally flattened (side to side).
Seven pairs of legs, the first two are modified for grasping.
Found in shallow freshwater on rocks or detritus.

27. Scud Measure 5-20 mm in length. Clear whitish to pink in color.
Laterally flattened (top to bottom).
Seven pairs of legs, the first two are modified for grasping.
Found in shallow freshwater springs, streams, lakes and ponds.
Most species feed on detritus.
Scuds are an important food source for many fishes.

28. Crayfish Measure up to 6 inches in length
Have 5 pairs of walking legs, the
first pair with large pinchers
Resembles a small lobster Crayfish are usually active only at night. During the day they hide in burrows or under rocks.
Crayfish are omnivorous, eating both plants and animals.

29. Pollution-tolerant macroinvertebrates
Aquatic worm
Black Fly
Leech
Lunged snail
Midge Fly
Some macroinvertebrates can survive or even thrive in polluted water. An unhealthy stream may only have a few types of non-sensitive macroinvertebrates present

30. Midge fly Measure up to 1/2 inch in length Body small, cylindrical,
and slightly curved
Occasionally deep red in color, otherwise variously colored
Two small prolegs just posterior to head
Frequently found in bottom sediments of lakes, streams, and ponds where they feed on deposited organic material

31. Black fly Measure to 1/2 inch in length
Body cylindrical and widest posteriorly
Abdomen terminates in an attachment disc
Head usually possesses fan-like appendages
Blackfly larvae prefer cold running water and are usually found attached by the end of their abdomens to rocks, woody debris, or vegetation in the currents of rivers and streams.

32. Leech Measure 1.0 mm to 5.0 cm in length.
Typically dorsoventrally flattened.
Always have 34 segments.
Suckers at both ends.
Leeches are common in warm protected waters of lakes, ponds, streams, and marshes.
Leeches usually avoid light by hiding under rocks or among aquatic vegetation or detritus.
Silty substrates are unsuitable for leeches because they cannot attach properly.

33. Aquatic Worm Measure 1-30 mm in length, but sometimes over 100 mm.
Clear whitish to pink in color.
Body consists of 7 to 500 segments.
Segments often have bristles or hairs.
Tolerant of low dissolved oxygen concentrations.
Found in silty substrates and among debris or detritus in pods, lakes, streams and rivers.
Dense populations of Tubificids can often be found in organically polluted rivers.
Approximately 200 species in North America

34. Lunged Snail
Shell usually opens to the left
Breathe Air
No operculum

35. Calculate your results If you find: You may have:
Variety of macroinvertebrates, lots of each kind
Healthy Stream
Little variety, with many of each kind
Water enriched with organic matter
A variety of macroinvertebrates, but a few of each kind, or No macroinvertebrates but the stream appears clean
Toxic pollution
Few macroinvertebrates and the streambed is covered with sediment
Poor habitat from sedimentation

36. “We monitor because we care; We care because we are informed;
We are informed because we monitor.”
-- Cassie Champion