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Presented at the NABS Annual meeting, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002
in Bioassessment
ROLE OF ACID MINE DRAINAGE IMPACT, SEASON AND SAMPLING METHOD ON THE ABUNDANCE AND RICHNESS OF BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES.
C. Alexander1, K.S. Johnson1, M. Hill2, J. Last2, and C. Kanuckel2. 1Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens,OH 45701, 2Environmental Studies, Ohio University, Athens OH 45701
Macroinvertebrates were collected from more than 17 streams in Southeastern Ohio over three different seasons (spring, summer, and fall), using three sampling methods (modified Hester Dendy samplers, dip net, and Surber samplers). Taxa were identified to genus when possible, and richness and abundance were calculated for each sample. Water chemistry data was used to determine the level of acid mine drainage (AMD) impact at each site. Sites were categorized as highly impacted, moderately impacted and not impacted by AMD. Significantly more taxa were collected by dip net compared to the Surber and Hester-Dendy methods, regardless of season or AMD impact level. A one-way repeated measures ANOVA showed strong seasonal effects. Total taxonomic richness and abundance were significantly lower in spring compared to summer and fall, but the spring fauna appeared to be more sensitive to AMD impacts than the fall community. Thus, although fall and summer samples represent a more diverse aquatic community, spring sampling may provide more a more sensitive indication of AMD impact. However, spring fieldwork in this region is more difficult because of cold temperatures and high flow.
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