Addendum to the Strawberry Creek Requirements

Last week we talked about the general requirements for the Strawberry Creek bioassessment project. In consultation with James, we determined the following requirements.

Training

Everyone will be expected to attend a group 1-2 hour training on how to sample the sites.

Sampling

All sites must be sampled within one week of each other. One of the best ways to do this might be just to take a long weekend day (Saturday or Sunday) or to do it during the week a little broken up. This should happen before the beginning of October (definitely before the rains start). Let’s set a date for training and sampling.

Sites are assigned as follows, with everyone working with at least everyone else at least once and with one person twice. This should add some level of quality control in collecting of specimen, and will allow at least two sites to be sampled in one day. Fifteen total sites are sampled and each person is required to identify three total samples (so, each person helps sample six sites):

South Fork

Site 1 Erin & Jessica

Site 2 Laura & Joe

Site 3 Georgia & Erin

Site 4 Jessica & Laura

Site 5 Joe & Georgia

Other sites

Site 6 Joe & Erin

Canyon Jessica & Georgia

Site 13 Laura & Erin

Site 14 Joe & Jessica

Site 15 Georgia & Laura

North Fork

Site 16 Erin & Jessica

Site 17 Laura & Joe

Site 18 Georgia & Erin

Site 19 Jessica & Laura

Site 20 Joe & Georgia

Sampling at the South Fork on campus is restricted to approximately a 500m stretch between the faculty glade and the confluence; sampling at the North Fork on campus is between the Chancellor’s House and the confluence; sampling at the Canyon is restricted within approximately a 100m stretch downstream of the parking lot adjacent to the fire trail. (This parking lot is the next lot on the right after Strawberry Creek Recreation Area and is approximately 300m east of the stadium.) Groups sampling at the canyon should describe the location of their sites in terms of how many meters away their sample is from the parking lot.

Visual Habitat Assessments

At each site, there will be a visual habitat assessment using forms provided. We’ll do training on this aspect of the project. This data will be use in the analysis.

Identifications

Each person will be expected to identify and count specimen in three whole samples independently. All specimens should be identified to generic (Genus) level with the exception of diptera (Chironomidae, etc). While family level is required for many of the metrics, generic level does provide much more information about the communities. Life history information for family level is often not as informative. When identifying your specimen, you will need to make a set of voucher vials. This means that for each unique genus you identify, you will need to have one vial.

These vials will be re-identified by David, who is doing his project on accuracy and consistency of identifications in a bioassessment dataset, so he will need your voucher vials as soon as you make them to begin identification. We’ll set a date for these to be done so that data can be pooled and analysis can begin.