A comparison of nutrient levels and species diversity in Carp Lake River upstream and downstream of Wilderness Golf Course.

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to assess water quality in terms of indicator species and nutrient levels as they pertain to possible nitrogen input from the Wilderness Golf Course. Downstream of the Wilderness Golf Course we hypothesize: (1) water chemistry including pH, dissolved oxygen, alkalinity, and conductivity will be approximately the same at all 3 sites, (2) there will be higher total nitrogen (TN) and nitrate levels, (3) this nutrient increase will result in increased macrophyte and algae growth, (4) consequently, the proportion of scarpers to all other aquatic macroinvertebrate functional feeding groups will be higher, (5) there will be fewer nutrient-intolerant species including Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT), (6) and more Diptera, a group that is very tolerant of high nutrient levels, and (7) there will be decreased fish abundance and species diversity. Water chemistry and nutrients were measured at each site, and three macroinvertebrate and two fish samples were taken at each site. Nitrate (NO3-) was significantly higher downstream of the golf course at sites 2 and 3 (t-tests, p<0.00 and p<0.00) than at our upstream control site. However this nutrient increase was not high enough to affect abundance and diversity of fishes or by diversity of macroinvertebrates. It is possible that habitat quality differences among sites confounded our percent tolerant macroinvertebrate findings because site 1 was very shallow and sandy, which provides optimal conditions for tolerant macroinvertebrate species like Diptera (Weigel, 2000).