Factors Influencing Biological Communities and Stream Assessments In
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
FACTORS INFLUENCING BIOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES AND STREAM ASSESSMENTS IN SOUTHEASTERN COASTAL PLAIN STREAMS, USA by THERESA ANNE THOM (Under the Direction of C. Ronald Carroll ) ABSTRACT The Clean Water Act establishes the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the surface waters of the United States. Under the Clean Water Act, states have primary responsibility for setting, reviewing, revising, and enforcing water quality standards including the protection of biological integrity. Biological monitoring methods have been developed using aquatic macroinvertebrates, fishes and periphyton for a variety of aquatic habitats, including streams. The reliance on biological tools for stream assessments has greatly increased within the last ten years, primarily as a response to litigation based on TMDL development and impaired waters listing as outlined in the CWA. This work summarizes how species level data can be used for conservation initiatives and natural resource management. It also illustrates how biological community data informs management decisions such as road removal and other restoration efforts. This work shows how analysis of biological community data is greatly influenced by state policies and guidance for collecting, calculating and evaluating biological data which changes over time. Federal policies such as the Clean Water Act directly influence the types of biological monitoring conducted, mainly through state agencies. Litigation related to federal legislation also affects the types of stream assessment work conducted at the state level. These factors influence biological monitoring and stream assessments within the Southeast. This dissertation summarizes four years of data collection supporting management of aquatic resources on Eglin Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle. Over 200 biomonitoring samples were collected at 127 sites across Eglin, providing baseline characteristics of the biological communities in wadeable streams. This biological data helped identify impaired sites and potential restorative actions for natural resource managers, as well as evaluate statewide changes in bioassessment criteria. Several new species records were recorded for Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties for rare and sensitive aquatic insect taxa, including one dragonfly (Odonata) species never before described. As a result of this work, a long-term monitoring partnership program was developed, evaluated and implemented for natural resource management between the Department of Defense and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. INDEX WORDS: Streams, Bioassessment, Biomonitoring, Macroinvertebrates, Rare species, Metric recalibration, Policy, Clean Water Act, Impaired waterways, Southeast, Florida, Eglin Air Force Base, Coastal Plain, Florida Panhandle FACTORS INFLUENCING BIOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES AND STREAM ASSESSMENTS IN SOUTHEASTERN COASTAL PLAIN STREAMS, USA by THERESA ANNE THOM B.S., Emory University, 1996 M.S., The University of Georgia, 2000 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY ATHENS, GEORGIA 2005 © 2005 Theresa Anne Thom All Rights Reserved FACTORS INFLUENCING BIOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES AND STREAM ASSESSMENTS IN SOUTHEASTERN COASTAL PLAIN STREAMS, USA by THERESA ANNE THOM Major Professor: C. Ronald Carroll Committee: Catherine M. Pringle Manuel L. Pescador Judy L. Meyer Laurie A. Fowler Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia December 2005 DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the 44,147 individual aquatic macroinvertebrates who were sacrificed during the course of this project. This work attempts to inform sound natural resource management of stream ecosystems in the southeastern coastal plain. Maybe one day we will realize that fresh water really has the upper hand, as pointed out in Tom Robbins’ Another Roadside Attraction; “...human beings were invented by water as a device for transporting itself from one place to another.” iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful for the support I received from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Panama City Field Office in Panama City, Florida. Gail Carmody was exceptionally helpful as a mentor, friend and role model. My co-worker Jeff Herod continues to be a partner in crime, despite now working on the opposite coast. The Natural Resources Management staff at Eglin Air Force Base’s Jackson Guard provided many learning opportunities in the field and the office where I learned a thing or two about cleaning floors. I will miss the spring frog call surveys, butterfly surveys and the holiday parties, but probably not safety meetings. I am honored to have worked in the field with Florida Department of Environmental Protection biologists Donald Ray, Laurence Donelan, and Frank Butera, as well as Andy Rasmussen from Florida A&M University. I am also grateful for adoption by the Dragonfly Society of the Americas. Their enthusiasm for Odonata is contagious! Special thanks go to John and Linda Epler, for providing an oasis for taxonomic expertise and development, with a healthy dose of humor and skepticism. Many volunteers gave up their weekends, summers, and free time to assist with this work, and their efforts were much appreciated, especially the dedication of Veronica Mercado, Paige Green, Travis Douce, Trisha Dall and Jeneé Hensley. Student Conservation Association students Trent Jett and Hawaii Dave gave me a new perspective on “scrimps” and “crawdads.” I think we all fulfilled our lifetime requirements of using machetes in blackberry briars and have a special place in our hearts for the Total Station. The true influence of nature must also be acknowledged; specifically hurricanes CHARLEY, FRANCES, IVAN, JEANNE and DENNIS – all re-shaped the Florida Panhandle and my research projects during my time in Florida. Not to be outdone by any hurricane, in the Georgia Piedmont I thank my advisor/cheer- leader/coach/guru, Ron Carroll, and my committee; Laurie Fowler, Cathy Pringle, Judy Meyer, David Leigh and Manny Pescador, for guiding me through this process. Special thanks go to the v labs that adopted me (Judy Meyer’s Meyerfauna and the Pringle Lab). I am so lucky they put up with my senatorial ways, gave excellent feedback and support, and even shared chocolate! Thank you to my twin, who gave last minute statistical advice and even found a new locale for Awaous banana (Freshwater River Goby) on Eglin. My family was very patient, understanding and willing to be put to work in the Florida Panhandle with poisonous snakes, noxious weeds, 100% humidity, heat (no easy task for Minnesotans) and yellow flies (Tabanidae). Immense gratitude goes to my friend and training partner; fellow PhD candidate Bree Ettinger, who made sure we took our frustrations out on the bike and the road instead of our significant others. Finally, I want to acknowledge the support of my husband, Jed Schneider and our three loving cats, Rocky, Chili and Little Man. They contended with specimens, papers, books, piles, sand, office space eviction, and at times neglect, but made sure the joys of daily life weren’t completely obliterated during this “adventure.” vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................................................................................................ v CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW................................................ 1 2 RARE AND SENSITIVE AQUATIC INSECTS IN THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE.......................................................................................................... 11 3 EVALUATION OF BIOASSESSMENT METRIC CHANGES IN FLORIDA .... 61 4 EFFECTS OF NATIONWIDE POLICIES AND LITIGATION ON BIOMONITORING IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES ....................................................106 5 CONCLUSIONS......................................................................................................125 APPENDICES.................................................................................................................................... 127 Appendix A: Rare and Sensitive Aquatic Insect Species within Florida.......................... 128 Appendix B: Overall Aquatic Sample Locations on Eglin............................................... 136 Appendix C: Biomonitoring Site List and Analysis.......................................................... 195 Appendix D: Aquatic Insect Species List for Eglin Air Force Base, Florida................... 209 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function The relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem stability and function is a well-studied topic in ecology with an enormous body of literature focusing on multiple systems including terrestrial, marine and aquatic habitats (Lyons et al. 2005; Weisser and Siemann 2004; Bond and Chase 2002; Hector and Hooper 2002; Loreau at al. 2002; Wardle 2002; Kinzig et al. 2001; Chapin et al. 2000; Schwartz et al. 2000; Wilson 1999; Naeem 1998; D’Itri 1997; McGrady-Steed et al. 1997; Philipp et al. 1995; Jones and Lawton 1995; Naeem et al. 1994; Ricklefs and Schluter 1993, Frank and McNaughton 1991). An entire volume of “Issues in Ecology” published by the Ecological Society of America (Naeem 1999) was dedicated to biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and maintaining vital ecosystem processes. Mittermeier and Forsyth (1997) state; “Maintenance of biological diversity is now recognized in many circles as the single