Stream Ecology:

Freshwater ecology is the study of all aspects of the ecologic aquatic systems, including rivers, lakes and ponds. It includes the community ecology of these ecosystems, as well as ecosystem processes, interactions with adjacent terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and conservation and restoration. Freshwater ecosystems play a fundamental ecological role and provide economically important products and services.

They provide critical habitats for a large number of aquatic plants, fishes, reptiles, birds and mammals. They host many migratory and threatened species of birds, reptiles and fish. Freshwater ecosystems naturally share resources between habitats.

The ecosystems in rivers and streams, for example, bring salts and nutrients from the mountains to lakes, ponds, and wetlands at lower elevations, and eventually they bring those nutrients to the ocean. These waterways also enable migrating species, like salmon, to bring nutrients from the ocean to upstream freshwater ecosystems.

Even though it might not seem it, freshwater ecology is really important to not only the animals but people as well. We use a lot of freshwater resources as energy sources but if the water ecology is not healthy then the water is not healthy which means that it is not able to be used for power.

The Butternut Creek Geology and it's Watershed:

Watershed and watershed geology is a very important topic, especially when the geology and rock makeup can decide a lot about quality. One of the most important things to know is the rock makeup around the water, it can decide some parameters of water quality, good or bad. Geology affects where and how the water moves, considering that it can also bring more pollutants into the water from runoff. Not only is geology about knowing what a watershed is, it should be a must when it comes to testing water quality. A watershed is an area of land that drains all streams and rivers to a common outlet, like a reservoir, bay, ocean, etc. Knowing your watershed is important when it comes to testing your quality and trying to understand why it is how it is, like pinpointing a point that needs to be fixed. If somewhere upstream has the same problem you can assume that the source can either be something common between the two areas or just somewhere upstream. One of the biggest problems with watersheds and it’s geology is flooding and erosion. With the erosion, it makes some of the rivers and streams weaker to the amount of water they can hold, which increases flooding and loss of land. Flooding can ruin agriculture, housing, and some lands permanently. Watersheds and their geology are vital to know about and to take care of, but at the same time, we have to acknowledge their naturally occurring problems and their human-made problems.

Like I have said before a watershed is an area of land that drains streams and rivers to a specific point, while geology is mostly about the rock structure and land around the water. One of the most important issues we should look at is erosion. Erosion has led to increased pollution and sedimentation in streams and rivers. It even plugs the waterways and causes declines in fish and other species. Why am I saying erosion is worse than flooding? Because erosion can lead to flooding and/or make it worse. Flooding itself can ruin agriculture, housing, and also affect some lands permanently. Most erosion is common around areas that contain sedimentary rock makeups because the sediments are easier to break down over time.

In the Susquehanna watershed, there tends to be a lot of flooding. It’s known as one of the most flood-prone watersheds in the country. It’s flooded roughly 14 times since 1810. In a specific part of the Susquehanna watershed, the Butternut, there is some short flooding history, having flooded a couple of times in the past. The Butternut specifically, in the data I found from 2017, is that erosion was a concern. Most of the rock makeup around the butternut is found to be shale-- which is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock, composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals. Just by that definition, it can show why the Butternut erodes easily, which leads to more flooding as one part of the Susquehanna watershed.

Water Quality Tests

Water Temperature

Dissolved Oxygen

What is dissolved oxygen(DO)? Dissolved oxygen is the amount of oxygen by mg/L, in a body of water. Dissolved oxygen, along with many other factors, is very important to stream ecology. Stream ecology is how aquatic life affects the water in which they live. The health of the stream relies on proper dissolved oxygen levels, along with the health of the creatures living in them. Stream ecology is an important factor, not only to aquatic life, but to us humans as well.

What is the perfect amount of dissolved oxygen? Dissolved oxygen levels should range from 6.5mg/L to 8mg/L and between 80-120 percent. However, if levels stay above 115 to 120 percent, aquatic life ceases by an alarming rate, and fish obtain a disease called Gas Bubble disease. If DO levels get too low, the aquatic life moves so they can actually breathe. So, how does DO levels work? DO levels are dependent on multiple variables including water temperature and the structure of the stream.

Water temperature is important because the colder the water is, the more dissolved oxygen it has (and vice versa). The structure of the stream is even more important. Curves, waterfalls, rocks, all of these factor into how much DO is in the water. If you have ever gone to a waterfall, or even seen one on TV, you can see froth at the bottom, that is oxygen being mixed into the water. However, DO levels can increase and decrease a lot simpler than that. By just shaking some water around increases the amount of oxygen, and leaving water untouched decreases, and sometimes completely dilutes the oxygen levels.

Dissolved oxygen is not only important for aquatic life, but it is also important for us land creatures. For example, if the DO levels were not in the right range to sustain life, we would lose a massive amount of food such as fish, seaweed, crabs, shrimp, and many other delicious treats. Not only is this a danger for hunger for humans in many parts of the world, but the animals that rely on this type of food too. A less important quality oxygen gives in the water is flavor. With more dissolved oxygen in said water, the better it tastes.

So the next time you think about how fish don’t need oxygen to live, or the water doesn’t need oxygen in it, think again, because dissolved oxygen is everything to the health of aquatic life and us land creatures. Increasing these levels are quite simple, from injecting pure oxygen, to just agitating the water.

Macroinvertebrates

Macroinvertebrates are extremely important when determining water quality. When it comes to water quality today, there is tons of pollution which is shown quite well in macroinvertebrate species and numbers. Since the development of fertilizers and the problems with leaking septic tanks and sewage, the effects on aquatic creatures have been notable. As pollution increases in the water environment, the species of macroinvertebrates change from intolerant species to tolerant species.

Nowadays, we have many different types of what some might call “effectants”. These are things such as fertilizers, pesticides, sewage leaks, and things of that nature. Fertilizers have high concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen, which is good for getting large quantities of crops, but bad for freshwater ecosystems. Fertilizers and sewage leaks are extremely bad for freshwater ecosystems since they create large algae blooms. The problem with algae blooms like this is that it causes less biodiversity in streams since vertebrates struggle to find food and either die or leave the location as a result. Not only do algae blooms affect biodiversity, but it can also completely rid the area of aquatic vertebrates and invertebrates since it uses so much oxygen.

Fertilizers were first made of manure and this was used for hundreds of years. As time progressed, fertilizers were more chemically made. In fact, the first chemical fertilizers were developed in the 19th century. Great for crop growing, but still ultimately bad for freshwater ecosystems. Surprisingly enough, septic tanks were also first made in the 19th century. It doesn’t come as a surprise that water quality and pollution problems started in the 19th century.

When it comes to telling water quality with macroinvertebrates, you look for species over number. For instance, you want to see a large variety of ‘intolerant’ invertebrates. Intolerant macroinvertebrates are extremely sensitive to water pollution. Some examples of these species are water pennies, caddisfly larvae, stonefly nymphs, and mayfly nymphs. Everything has to be at perfect levels for them to survive. What you don’t want to see a large variety of are ‘tolerant’ macroinvertebrates. These macroinvertebrates thrive in more polluted water since they don’t need much to survive. Almost no dissolved oxygen? No problem for these invertebrates. Large amounts of leeches, blackfly larvae, midge larvae, and aquatic worms for example show that there is most likely a decent amount of pollution in the water. You’ll find that tolerant and intolerant species are almost 100% never together in the same area since they can’t survive in the same conditions.

When determining water quality of a freshwater stream, the information we know about macroinvertebrates is extremely important. The tolerance of the different species and algae blooms can show how much pollution is in the water.

Land-Use

What is land use? Land use is what involves the management and modification of natural environments or wilderness areas. These places are called fields, pastures and managed woods. Does land use affect steam ecology and water quality? Well you see, all land uses have an effect on water and the environment whether they’re good or bad. Beginning around 8,000 years ago agriculture land use started, which caused some bad effects on water because of chemicals used. But that does not mean that all land use has a bad effect on water.

How does land use affect a freshwater ecosystem? Many different things can affect freshwater ecosystems. Land use can cause pollution in the water, most of the times this is caused by humans or run off. What is wrong? Runoff is water that is “running down” the land surface into a water source. When this run off goes back into a water source it can take things with it such as chemicals, garbage, ect. This affects the water quality and water levels.Increased streambank erosion due to higher peak in the flow of the water and period of very low flow due to the decreased base flow add stress for many organisms. This can cause organisms to not do their jobs in the water. Urban developments have been linked to environmental problems such as air pollution, water pollution and loss of wildlife habitat.

Here is some background information on Land Use, everyday land gets used by people and animals. In about 10,000 BC farming began during the fertile crescent which farming caused land use. Some of the chemicals they use today can be super harmful to water quality and can kill animals. Some more background information is some of the land use practices around the Butternut. The land uses practices are agricultural.

Weather and Climate

The problem that connects the effects and presence of climate, weather, and temperature, in and near streams and rivers can be hard to identify. This is because the effects of this can be unpredictable, minor, or hard to notice. The most important issue is the change in the climate and weather themselves. Climate change is not only a change in the temperature but also change in moisture conditions, wind belts, and how it affects life on earth especially in water and specifically in streams and rivers. The issue that is climate change alters what we consider “normal” inside a stream and drastically changes the qualities inside of a stream. This is a debated topic and its debate makes it harder to spread knowledge of it as a significant problem. Global climate change is not in our faces daunting us with fear which makes it once again harder to spread as a major concern. The issue is gradually increasing over time and more and more people are starting to see the issue, however, there are not enough people recognizing it as such and not enough people doing things to change or reverse the issue. This problem has not yet been solved and will not be any time soon. As it relates back to stream chemistry, even less people are seeing climate change as a threat. Its complications inside of water chemistry go unnoticed and untreated, even though its effects concern every aspect of the stream.

With the issue of climate change comes a massive amount of change inside of the stream. This essay will focus on a few of these stream qualities affected by climate change. The first is dissolved oxygen. Imagine you have a nice cold can of coca-cola and you are sitting outside enjoying your drinks as you take in the sun, but now you realize you forgot to mow the lawn so you have to put your pop away for later. If you leave it outside it will get warm and that amazing refreshing carbonation will go away. That fizz is called dissolved oxygen, and it gets released by the liquid much quicker in warmer temperatures. So if the global temperature rises it will cause all of the bodies of water on Earth to release their dissolved oxygen quicker. This oxygen is required for the animals to live and for the stream to stay healthy. This could end in large populations of fish migrating permanently or dying.

The second of these qualities is conductivity of heat and electricity. With a greater temperature the higher this conductivity will get. Even normal weather patterns will lead to increase in conductivity like the road salts used in the winter season, they will enter the stream and increase conductivity. This could in turn alter many other qualities in a negative way. The stream being sampled, the Butternut, the main cause in this change is the road salt for the harsh winters in upstate New York.

Almost everything in a stream is affected by weather and a massive change in climate, even if it is over time, can create catastrophic changes in the life and qualities of a stream. The problem will never get solved unless humans change their way of life. Sadly, I do not think this will happen especially in my lifetime. The smartest and only thing we can do now is to study and stay educated on the effects of this change and keep prepared for whatever could happen. To keep up with the change is the best way to adapt and help the streams adapt too.