Benign use of salt slugs on aquatic macroinvertebrates: Measuring discharge with salt during an aquatic ecology study

J. D. Muehlbauer, J. M. Duncan, M. W. Doyle

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Pulsed salt tracer injections (salt slugs) are widely used for measuring discharge in streams, particularly in small streams. However, salt slug usage in stream ecology studies is limited, possibly due to concerns that salt injections may affect biotic results. We used salt slug measurements concomitantly with macroinvertebrate sampling over the course of a summer field season and show that the realistic use of salt slugs to measure discharge at our sites was benign with respect to several common biotic community metrics. Salt slug discharge measurements may warrant more usage as a component of stream ecology studies.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1858-1863
Number of pages6
JournalRiver Research and Applications
Volume28
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2012

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Environmental Chemistry
  • Water Science and Technology
  • General Environmental Science

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