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Assessing Macroinvertebrates as Indicators of Biotic Integrity in the Poudre River

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This study investigates the role of macroinvertebrates as bioindicators of environmental quality in the Poudre River, particularly focusing on urban impact from Fort Collins. We analyze physical, chemical, and biological data to assess biotic integrity, utilizing metrics such as richness and abundance of invertebrate species. The research employs hypothesis testing and statistical analyses, including ANOVA and regression, to evaluate the relationship between urbanization factors and biodiversity. Our findings aim to enhance understanding of watershed dynamics and inform management strategies for river conservation.

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Assessing Macroinvertebrates as Indicators of Biotic Integrity in the Poudre River

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Presentation Transcript

  1. Analysis of macroinvertebratesas indicators of biotic integrity

  2. Hypothesis development • Environmental quality of the Poudre River • Urban impact from Fort Collins • Influence assessed through physical, chemical and biological characteristics

  3. Data sampling • Environmental data • Physical data • Watershed-scale • Urbanization, road density, etc. • Reach-scale • Stream width, slope, etc. • Chemistry data • Nitrate, conductivity, etc. • Biological data • Invertebrate metrics • Taxonomic, biotic index, species traits • Epilithon • AFDM, Chl a • Benthic organic matter • AFDM

  4. Taxonomic community structure • Richness (how many taxa) • Abundance (how many individuals per taxa) • Specific taxonomic groups • Based on knowledge of group tolerance levels • % Chironomids • % Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT)

  5. Biotic index • A score that represents the species’ tolerance to disturbance • Based on observation and expert opinion, not ecological theory Abundance Tolerance Total Chironomidae 30 × 8 = 240 5.5 Lepidostomatidae 10 × 1 = 10 = 20 × 4 = 80 Baetidae 60 330

  6. Species traits • Traits are morphological, behavioral, ecological, or physiological characteristics of species • Traits link the environment to species distribution • Convert community metric (e.g., richness, abundance, biomass) into proportion of taxa with each trait state Rhithrogena 60% 40% Hydropsyche Baetis Rhyacophila Pteronarcys

  7. Descriptive statistics • Central tendency • Mean or median • Variance • Standard deviation or error • Range • Minimum and maximum • Distribution • Histogram of data

  8. Hypothesis testing • For every hypothesis, there is a null • For example • You observe that shredders eat leaf material, which is a significant portion of benthic organic matter (BOM) • Hypothesis: Shredder distribution is dependent on the quantity of BOM • Null: Shredder distribution is NOT dependent on BOM quantity • Alternative hypothesis: Small streams have more leaf litter per unit area, so shredder abundance is related to the width of streams • Null: Shredder abundance is NOT related to stream width

  9. Null hypothesis testing • Statistics test the null hypothesis • P-value is the probability that the null hypothesis is true • Or, if the data were randomly generated, P-value is the probability that you would find the same result

  10. ANOVA • Tests the means and variances of categorical data • Two or more samples per category required to calculate variance • T-test equivalent to ANOVA with only two categories

  11. Regression • Tests the variances between two sets of continuous variables • May explain relationship (positive or negative) • Will test strength of relationship (R2) • Can compute P-value

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