Choosing a Protocol

Selecting a protocol to use for macroinvertebrate monitoring is an important choice.  There are numerous choices available, not all of which are right for you or your group.  Which protocol is best for you depends on what your goals are, and how much effort you are willing to expend.

First,  you should consider the abilities and interests of your group.  Are they beginners with no experience in science?  Are they willing to spend a few hours identifying the invertebrates, or only a few minutes?  One of the main differences in protocols is the level to which the invertebrates are identified.  The most simple are to Order, while more complex protocols identify to family and even species level.  Protocols that classify to order generally require no special equipment, and can be done in less than an hour.  The more specific protocols will require a microscope (generally available to teachers and through researchers), and identification will take several hours and is more difficult for novices.

If identifying to the family or species level is difficult, then why bother?  There are tradeoffs between difficulty of identification and the amount of information obtained.  Order level protocols give a general assessment of water quality, usually in 3-4 groups such as Good, Fair, or Poor.  For some monitoring groups, that information is good enough.  But for others, they wish to detect more subtle changes in water quality that requires more specific information.  More specific monitoring protocols have even been used as evidence in courts of law to enforce pollution regulations.

So, where does that leave your group?  If your group is just beginning and more or less wants to "get their feet wet," perhaps a simple protocol is best.  You can always step up to a more rigorous choice after your experience grows, or if your protocol is not giving you enough information.  A good starting protocol is from Save our Streams, a program from the Isaac Walton League.  However, if your group knows that it wants detailed information, has some experience or help in identifying, and is willing to put in a little extra time, then a more specific protocol may suit you.  A good choice is the Riverwatch protocol, available from the Mississippi Headwaters Board in Minnesota, the Illinois DNR, and possible other locations.  This protocol is often used in conjunction with some water sample or physical habitat sampling, but these sections can be omitted if you choose.  Another choice is the Rapid Bioassessment Protocol (RBP) from the US Environmental Protection Agency.