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COMPARISON OF USEPA FIELD SAMPLING METHODS FOR BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATE STUDIES
Citation:
KLEMM, D. J., M. D. MOEYKENS, M. HUDY, K. A. BLOCKSOM, W. T. THOENY, AND J. K. WHALEN. COMPARISON OF USEPA FIELD SAMPLING METHODS FOR BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATE STUDIES. Presented at North American Benthological Society, New Orleans, LA, May 22 - 27, 2005.
Impact/Purpose:
The goal of this research is to develop methods and indicators that are useful for evaluating the condition of aquatic communities, for assessing the restoration of aquatic communities in response to mitigation and best management practices, and for determining the exposure of aquatic communities to different classes of stressors (i.e., pesticides, sedimentation, habitat alteration).
Description:
Two U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) 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 nine transects, whereas the rapid bioassessment protocol (RBP) II consists of a single composite sample from four locations within a riffle. Separate macroinvertebrate samples were collected by USEPA and U.S. 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. Comparison of taxa richness, functional feeding group, and habit between sampling methods all showed 80% or higher similarity.