Effects of sampling and sub-sampling variation using the STAR-AQEM sampling protocol on the precision of macroinvertebrate metrics

Clarke, Ralph T.; Lorenz, Armin W.; Sandin, Leonard; Schmidt‐Kloiber, Astrid; Strackbein, Joerg; Kneebone, N. T.; Haase, Peter

doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-5493-8_31

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…% A + L + P), a fact also observed by other authors for comparable river types (e.g. Clarke et al 2006 % RP, % grazers&scrapers, % shredders, % gatherers/collectors; Lorenz et al 2004b, % hyporhithral, % grazers&scrapers, % gatherers/collectors, % RP). However, in our case, the functional feeding metrics showed a low variability only for PAhrJ1 and SI1 types.…”

Section: Individual Metricssupporting

confidence: 53%

“…Clarke et al (2006) observed a low standard deviation for the metric % EPT taxa for all tested stream types. Several authors (Doberstein et al 2000;Lorenz et al 2004b;Clarke et al 2006;McCord et al 2007) reported that richness metrics were the most vulnerable to information loss associated with subsampling. However, these metrics are frequently used for bioassessment (Barbour and Gerritsen 1996;McCord et al 2007).…”

Section: Individual Metricsmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…The five s/t metrics tested in our study performed the best. Clarke et al (2006) observed low standard deviation for different versions of saprobic indices and ASPT for several stream types. In our study for both these metrics (SIG3 and ASPT), a CV < 10% was observed for the 1/12 subsample for the ecoregion dataset and for all river types.…”

Section: Individual Metricsmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…Several authors tested the effect of a fixed-count approach on lake (Barbour and Gerritsen 1996;King and Richardson 2002) and river (Norris et al 1995;Doberstein et al 2000;Lorenz et al 2004b;Ostermiller and Hawkins 2004;Clarke et al 2006) samples. However, there exist only a few studies investigating the effect that fixed-fraction method has on a bioassessment.…”

Section: Methodological Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The high variability leads to an overlap between ecological quality classes making it impossible to distinguish between them (Doberstein et al 2000;Vlek et al 2004;Clarke et al 2006). Therefore, it is important to select metrics and the subsample size with low variability.…”

Section: Assessment Sample Size and Variability Of Metricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effect of fixed-fraction subsampling on macroinvertebrate bioassessment of rivers

Petkovska

Urbanič

2009

Environ Monit Assess

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We investigated the effect of different subsample fractions on the variability of benthic invertebrate metrics. The results of six fractions 1/12, 1/6, 1/4, 1/3, 5/12 and 1/2 were compared to the results of the whole samples. Over 120 metrics were tested using five datasets: ecoregion Alps and four river types. In general, variability of metrics decreased with increasing subsample size, but variability varied greatly with the selected metric group and river type. Independent of river type, the highest variation was observed for the composition/abundance group metrics and the richness metrics, whereas it was low for the diversity indices and for the metrics of the sensitivity/tolerance group and intermediate for the functional metric group. For all metric groups independent of river type, the main decrease in variability occurs up to 1/4 subsample. We suggest that the effect of subsample size on variability of metrics should be tested prior to selecting potential assessment metrics.

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Section: Individual Metricssupporting

confidence: 53%

Section: Individual Metricsmentioning

confidence: 80%

Section: Individual Metricsmentioning

confidence: 81%

Section: Methodological Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Assessment Sample Size and Variability Of Metricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effect of fixed-fraction subsampling on macroinvertebrate bioassessment of rivers

Petkovska

Urbanič

2009

Environ Monit Assess

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Determining subsampling effort for the development of a rapid bioassessment protocol using benthic macroinvertebrates in streams of Southeastern Brazil

Oliveira

Mugnai

Milhorance

et al. 2010

Environ Monit Assess

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The purpose of this study was to establish a subsampling procedure for benthic macroinvertebrates to aid in the development of a multimetric index to assess the biological condition of streams. Data from six streams that are considered minimally impaired were used. Subsampling was done using a device divided into 24 quadrats. The sediment from each quadrat was sorted, and all organisms were removed and identified. Richness metrics were the most affected by subsample size. Relative-abundance metrics were the most stable, proving that the sample was well distributed throughout the tray and abundance proportions were maintained. The results showed that the macroinvertebrate assemblage present in the six quadrats was similar to that present in the full sample. These analyses indicated that six quadrats, randomly designated, with a minimum of 200 collected specimens could be used in place of the full sample. In routine water management, managing time and costs are a major challenge; therefore, this type of simplification is absolutely necessary to ensure that a biomonitoring tool is useful for practical applications.

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Assessing the impact of errors in sorting and identifying macroinvertebrate samples

et al. 2006

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This study assesses the impact of errors in sorting and identifying macroinvertebrate samples collected and analysed using different protocols (e.g. STAR-AQEM, RIVPACS). The study is based on the auditing scheme implemented in the EU-funded project STAR and presents the first attempt at analysing the audit data. Data from 10 participating countries are analysed with regard to the impact of sorting and identification errors. These differences are measured in the form of gains and losses at each level of audit for 120 samples. Based on gains and losses to the primary results, qualitative binary taxa lists were deducted for each level of audit for a subset of 72 data sets. Between these taxa lists the taxonomic similarity and the impact of differences on selected metrics common to stream assessment were analysed. The results of our study indicate that in all methods used, a considerable amount of sorting and identification error could be detected. This total impact is reflected in most functional metrics. In some metrics indicative of taxonomic richness, the total impact of differences is not directly reflected in differences in metric scores. The results stress the importance of implementing quality control mechanisms in macroinvertebrate assessment schemes.

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Effects of sampling and sub-sampling variation using the STAR-AQEM sampling protocol on the precision of macroinvertebrate metrics

Cited by 17 publications

References 18 publications

Effect of fixed-fraction subsampling on macroinvertebrate bioassessment of rivers

Effect of fixed-fraction subsampling on macroinvertebrate bioassessment of rivers

Determining subsampling effort for the development of a rapid bioassessment protocol using benthic macroinvertebrates in streams of Southeastern Brazil

Assessing the impact of errors in sorting and identifying macroinvertebrate samples

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