Kansas StreamLink
...a watershed exploration
StreamLink Participant
Rochester Elementary
Indian Creek

Date: September 27, 2005
Time: 9am-12pm
HUC8: 10207010

Visual Assessment

Weather in the past 24 hours:
Clear/Sunny
Weather Today: Clear/Sunny

Major Land Uses in the watershed:
Parking lots, paved driveways, roads; Golf courses, manicured lawns, or city parks; Rural homes with septic systems; Construction

Trash at the Creek:
Broken glass, cans, plastic bottles, wrappers
Animals at the Creek: Frogs, raccoon tracks
Animals in the Creek: Fish, Water striders, water boatmen, crawdads

Stream Bank Cover (1 is the least, 10 is the greatest):
Left Bank:
Grasses (4), Woody Shrubs/Small Trees (9), Big Trees (10), Bare Soil or Sand (3), Big Rocks/Rip Rap (0), Concrete (0), Lawn (0), Other (0)
Right Bank: Grasses (6), Woody Shrubs/Small Trees (10), Big Trees (9), Bare Soil or Sand (2), Big Rocks/Rip Rap (0), Concrete (0), Lawn (0), Other (0)

Stream Bank Conditions:
Left Bank:
Steeply Sloping
Right Bank: Steeply Sloping

Habitat Types: Pools, Runs and Riffles
Shape of the Channel: Wide Banks (> 6 feet), Shallow Water (< 3 feet), Deep Banks (> 3 feet)

What's in the water?:
Naturally Occurring:
Large branches or logs; Sticks or twigs; Fallen leaves
Human Impact: none

Is the creek in the sunshine or shade?:
Shade

What type of algae are present?:
algae in spots, brown coat of algae on rocks, algae matted on rocks

Conditions in your stream: No unusual color

Embeddedness (How much silt is around the rocks, 1 is the least, 4 is the greatest): 3
Content of the Stream Bed (1 is the least, 5 is the greatest): Mud (1), Silt (2), Sand (2), Gravel (3), Cobbles (4), Boulders (0), Bedrock (5), Cement Platform (0)


Chemical Assessment

Temperature: 18 C
Dissolved Oxygen:
8 ppm
Percent Oxygen Saturation: 84%
Nitrate:
< 5 ppm
Phosphate:
1 ppm
pH:
8
Turbidity: 0

Stream Flow: 6 meters/second


Macroinvertebrate Assessment

Sensitive Species: Mayfly Nymphs, Caddisfly Larvae, gilled snails
Somewhat Sensitive Species: Clams, Cranefly Larvae
Tolerant Species: leeches

How many times did your group sample with the kick net?: N/A

Water Quality Determination (as calculated from number of species present): 14
Scale: Excellent (>22), Good (17-22), Fair (11-16), Poor (<11)

StreamLink Participants are in no way conducting professional water quality sampling. The information gathered is for educational purposes only. Students across Kansas share their creek experiences via the internet. If you have concerns about your water, please contact your local drinking water supplier or the KS Dept. of Health & Environment.