| Summary: | With numerous bioassessment methodologies available, a regional protocol needs to be developed to ensure that results are comparable. A regional assessment protocol was developed that includes collecting five benthic macroinvertebrate samples, identifying organisms to genus, and calculating the following metrics: Number of Taxa, Total Number of Individuals, Simpson's Diversity Index, Shannon's Diversity Index, Percent Contribution of Dominant Taxa, Hilsenhoffs Biotic Index, and Percent Contribution of Dipterans. Once the protocol was developed, it was used to assess the Bayou Chico
tributaries and watershed. All three tributaries had been significantly impacted by human activity as had the watershed as a whole. This study indicates that a regional protocol could be developed and is appropriate for biomonitoring at the watershed scale.
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