National Capital Region Network Biological Stream Survey Protocol Version 2.0: Physical Habitat, Fish, and Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Vital Signs

Norris, Marian; Sanders, Geoffrey

The vital sign selection process of the NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program (I&M) identified fish, macroinvertebrates, and physical habitat characteristics as a critical need for the parks of the National Capital Region Network (NCRN). In 2005, the National Capital Region Inventory and Monitoring Network (NCRN) initiated a long-term water quality and quantity monitoring program, funded in part by the National Park Service Water Resources Division. The Biological monitoring portion of the program is carried out every 6 years at 37 sites within 10 of the NCRN parks. The data collected using this protocol will provide much needed baseline information on the stream biological resources in the NCRN, particularly in terms of community structure and composition. The information will also be used to determine long term trends in community composition, as well as trends in the abundance and distribution of individual species. Parks monitored with this protocol include Antietam National Battlefield, Catoctin Mountain Park, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, George Washington Memorial Parkway, Manassas National Battlefield Park, Monocacy National Battlefield, National Capital Parks - East, Prince William Forest Park, Rock Creek Park, and Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts.The streams monitored are all part of the Potomac River Watershed. The Potomac is the second largest drainage of the nine river basins that form the 64,000 square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed. This protocol includes monitoring of three related vital signs: fish, macroinvertebrates, and physical habitat. The protocol is based on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDDNR)Maryland Biological Stream Survey (MBSS). 23 standard operating procedures (SOPs)document the methods used to collect the relevant data. The protocol was developed in 2005 by Robert H. Hilderbrand, Richard L Raesly, and Daniel M. Boward, of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences – Appalachian Laboratory (UMCES-AL) and Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MD DNR) who perform sampling and data analysis as part of the MBSS, so that data collected will be compatible with that from the rest of the state to provide a wider context for trends in the NCRN parks. The Protocol was revised and expanded (Version 2 by Norris and Sanders) in 2009 to include revisions to the MBSS program made by MD DNR for the State’s Round three sampling as well as revisions to the I&M Water Program sampling design and clarifications for NPS contractors.

National Capital Region Network Biological Stream Survey Protocol Version 2.0: Physical Habitat, Fish, and Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Vital Signs

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