Fish community monitoring at Pea Ridge National Military Park: 2009 report
Dodd HR, Hinsey JA, Mueller SK. 2011. Fish community monitoring at Pea Ridge National Military Park: 2009 report. Natural Resource Data Series. NPS/HTLN/NRDS—2011/217. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Pea Ridge National Military Park (PERI) is located in the Ozark Highlands Ecoregion of Arkansas where karst features (sinkholes, caves, springs, and losing reaches of stream) and interactions between groundwater and surface water are common. Agriculture, primarily hay fields, is the dominant land use surrounding the park, but urbanization may become an issue as the towns of Pea Ridge and Rogers expand their current jurisdictional boundaries. Many native fish populations in the Ozark Highlands have been adversely impacted by land use changes, including habitat loss and fragmentation, sedimentation, and reduced water quality. In May 2009, Heartland Inventory and Monitoring Network (HTLN) of the National Park Service (NPS) began monitoring fish communities, physical habitat, and water quality of Pratt Creek at PERI. Four species of fish were collected in the creek. Although the fish community had moderate diversity resulting in an overall stream integrity rating of “fair”, it is composed primarily of intolerant species that require clean gravel substrate for spawning. Overall, Pratt Creek provides good water quality and physical habitat to support a native fish community typical of a headwater Ozark stream.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Dodd, Hope; Hinsey, Janice; Mueller, Samantha
- Date of Issue
- 2011-12
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- HTLN , NRSS , PERI
- Keywords
- Aquatics Fish Communities Monitoring Reports, HTLN Fish Community Brief, HTLN Fish Community Monitoring