About Missouri Stream Team Program
Missouri State is continuing the work of Missouri Department of Conservation and the Department of Natural Resources program of Stream Team. Their idea is to combine community, education, and awareness with stream monitoring. Volunteers are trained by Stream Team staff to monitor the following aspects of streams:
Visual Survey
Macroinvertebrate
Survey
Water
Chemistry Survey
Visual Survey - The visual survey looks what is happening in the watershed, the riparian zone, the stream band, and the stream bed for evidences of possible sources of pollutants and nutrients in the stream.
Macroinvertebrate
Survey - The macroinvertebrate survey involves looking at the aquatic bugs
in a stream in order to determine stream health. These insects are divided
into three categories: pollution sensitive, somewhat-sensitive, and
tolerant. Finding lots of different kinds of pollution sensitive insects
indicates good water quality. Some of the insects of interest include
water pennies, hellgrammites, mayfly larvae, caddisfly larvae, crayfish, and
gilled snails.
Water Chemistry Survey - The water chemistry survey will give us actual numbers such parameters as dissolved oxygen, nitrates, phosphates, ammonia, pH, turbidity, and conductivity. Stream Team provides HACH kits to perform these analyses.
This data is compiled and submitted to the organization. However, to submit your data, you must have gone through a total of 2 8-hour workshops to become familiar with sampling techniques and methods of submitting data. The training is FREE and you will receive all of the gear to perform the above procedures. If you are interested in training, click here!
Missouri State's Stream Team is growing into an active organization. We are interested in not only getting people to come out to the streams with us to help monitor streams and collect data, but to increase awareness of the importance of stream health in Missouri.
Tina testing a suspect
David and Matt collecting
stream in the rain.
bugs!