Unionid Distribution Within Nearshore Portions of 10

Streams in Northwest Ohio

Trevor Prescott

Cleveland State University

Master of Science Candidate

Nearshore?

Estuaries/Flooded River Mouths Attempted to get as close to the lake as

possible Private property

Businesses / Residential Other access points

Methods

Streams

Western portion Cedar Creek, Turtle Creek, Toussaint

River Central portion

Yellow Swale, South Creek, Raccoon Creek

Eastern portion Plum Brook, Old Woman Creek,

Cranberry Creek, Chappel Creek

Cedar Creek

Small riparian zone, incised banks ~ 10 – 30 feet

Surrounded by agriculture 50%+ canopy cover CPOM, garbage, Corbicula Generally hard, cobble substrate 3 – 5 feet deep

Cedar Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Lasmigona complanata 2 1

Lasmigona compressa 0 1

Leptodea fragilis 1 1

Ligumia nasuta 0 5

Pyganodon grandis 0 12

Toxolasma parvum 0 3

Turtle Creek

Very small to no riparian zone, banks ~ 6 feet higher than stream

10 feet of riparian at most on northern bank Agriculture to south, marina to north No canopy cover Other life observed Very soft substrate 1 – 6 feet deep, wide open stream

Turtle Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Leptodea fragilis 2 9

Potamilus alatus 0 2

Pyganodon grandis 14 18

Quadrula pustulosa 0 1

Quadrula quadrula 42 10

Toxolasma parvum 1 0

Toussaint River

Similar to Turtle Creek but bigger Surrounded by variety of landscapes

Recovering riparian, residential, agriculture

Wide river, slow current No canopy cover Soft, muddy substrate

Toussaint River Results

Species Alive Dead

Amblema plicata 1 2

Leptodea fragilis 1 1

Obliquaria reflexa 6 5

Potamilus alatus 0 2

Pyganodon grandis 3 12

Quadrula quadrula 32 13

Strophitus undulatus 0 1

Toxolasma parvum 2 2

Utterbackia imbecillis 9 1

Yellow Swale

Established, larger riparian zone Residential areas outside of riparian Canopy cover near banks Wide stream, slow current Soft muddy substrate with pockets of

sand

Yellow Swale Results

Species Alive Dead

Lasmigona complanata 1 4

Pyganodon grandis 27 77

Quadrula quadrula 1 0

Toxolasma parvum 5 19

Utterbackia imbecillis 0 2

Uniomerus tetralasmus 1 3

South Creek North = established riparian zone of

trees and shrubs. Muddier substrate than southern portion,

not as muddy as Turtle or Toussaint Diverse wildlife Canopy cover near banks

South = Riparian of cattails and grass 50/50 sand and mud substrate No canopy cover

Residential outside of riparian zone

South Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Lasmigona complanata 3 2

Leptodea fragilis 12 5

Pyganodon grandis 37 31

Quadrula quadrula 5 0

Toxolasma parvum 0 5

Utterbackia imbecillis 0 7

Raccoon Creek

Near/Under route 6 bridge Area of mud and deposition (70/30 mud

to sand) To the north

90 – 100% canopy cover Similar to Cedar Creek Allochthonous input Hard substrate Thinner stream

Raccoon Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Lasmigona complanata 10 2

Pyganodon grandis 3 3

Strophitus undulatus 0 3

Plum Brook

Healthy, wide, gently sloping riparian on banks

Part of Erie co. metroparks 3 substrate types

Hard, compact mud Soft mud, vegetation covered Soft mud, free of vegetation

Canopy cover near banks

Plum Broom Results

Species Alive Dead

Leptodea fragilis 7 0

Pyganodon grandis 11 0

Toxolasma parvum 13 3

Utterbackia imbecillis 2 0

Old Woman Creek

Gently sloping, wide riparian on banks No agriculture near preserve, only

residential Canopy cover near banks Soft muddy substrate Healthy stream with diverse wildlife

Old Woman Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Leptodea fragilis 0 3

Pyganodon grandis 3 11

Quadrula quadrula 2 1

Toxolasma parvum 1 1

Utterbackia imbecillis 0 2

Cranberry Creek

Generally thin riparian zone Residential/agricultural to the upstream Marina downstream Culverted under route 6

More compact, thin stream Semi-compact, muddy substrate

“Medium softness”

Cranberry Creek Results

Species Alive Dead

Lasmigona complanata 5 1

Pyganodon grandis 9 2

Quadrula quadrula 1 0

Toxolasma parvum 1 1

Chappel Creek

Thin to no riparian Shrubs, residential lawns backed up to

creek upstream Parking lot, thin riparian downstream Variance in depth

Very little to no canopy cover Unique substrate

Cobble, gravel over hard, muddy substrate

No mussels – live or dead

Water Chemistry Data

Stream Chloride Turbidity Alkalinity Nitrite Silicate Sulfate P

(ppm) (JTU) (ppm) (ppb) (ppm) (ppm) (ppb)

Cedar 107.3 17.7 185 2.0 7.606 65.4 109

Turtle 32.3 92.4 161.9 5.8 3.213 56.7 312

Toussaint 74.4 68.2 190.4 5.2 2.425 98.1 265

Yellow 39.6 55.1 206.4 2.8 5.329 60.0 137

South 50.9 51.3 206.4 0.5 3.372 804.6 233

Racoon 116.4 21.6 187.1 22.9 1.238 786.4 145

Plum 61.1 21 117.7 0.8 0.264 40.0 127

OWC 64.3 30.5 132.8 0.6 2.096 26.4 112

Cranberry 35.5 17.7 119.8 29.5 41.0 925 1504

Chappel 62.9 23.3 150.1 1.2 35.9 15.3 89

Generalities

Healthy tendencies Wider riparian Wider stream (bankfull width) Less incision on banks Less canopy cover Less agriculture in close proximity

Future Work/Analysis

GIS Analyze land use/cover patterns Error-check sites

Problems Scale of analysis – How far away from

the stream should land use/cover be analyzed?

Topography? Literature on small streams

Questions