INTRODUCTION

Since the 1970s, efforts have been made around the country to revitalize previous and ongoing damage to urban ecosystems due to pollution and human negligence. Major sources of pollution in urban aquatic ecosystems are construction sites and parking lots located nearby.  Shades Creek, in Birmingham, Alabama, is under close watch due to numerous businesses, a shopping mall and parking lots encroaching upon its banks.  Sediment and runoff from these businesses flow into Shades Creek as runoff and stifle its biodiversity.  Local nature organizations in Birmingham have teamed up to research and restore the creek’s health.  Samford University’s biology department is heading up this effort and is assisted by Vulcan Materials Center for Environmental Stewardship, Friends of Shades Creek, Alabama Rivers Alliance, and the Birmingham Audubon Society.  Samford University first received grants to research Shades Creek in 2002.  By testing the waters to determine the health of the creek at different sites, the extent of the damage by runoff can be found and partly treated through removing invasive species and restoring native species.  Our objective was to study the environment upstream of Brookwood Mall to compare it to previous studies completed downstream of the mall.

The following field methods were used:

1. A Trimble GeoExplorer 3 was used to take GPS points, which were then transferred to ESRI ArcMap 9 and combined with orthoimages to create a GIS map for the area studied.

2. Pools were seined with 3 meter length seine nets by moving quickly downstream with the current and lifting it out of the water to capture specimens.

3. Riffles were seined over an area of 2 square meters by holding a seine stationary and kicking up rocks and sediment upstream of the seine to force specimens into the seine for collection.

4. Areas beneath overhanging roots were seined for predatory fish by placing the seine under the roots and disturbing the sediment in the area in order to scare the fist into the seine for collection.

5. A one square meter sediment kick sample was obtained using kick nets that were placed on the creek bed while stones were overturned and sediment was kicked into the nets for collection of specimens in the sediment.

6. Insect larva and other specimens were obtained from stone washing by removing stones from the creek bed and washing them with isopropyl alcohol in order to remove specimens from the stones and to collect them in a collection tub.

7. Specimens were collected on the banks by sweeping nets over the grass in an area of 3 square meters. Specimens collected were counted, photographed, and released.

Soft-shell turtle	Black-banded darter
Two-lined salamander	Black-tailed shiner

DISCUSSION

1. The variety of macro-invertebrates collected from the sediment sample in comparison to previous research projects (Biology 203 Spring 2003 in front of Samford Univ.), indicates that there was a paucity of aquatic animal diversity in Shades Creek at Jemison Park.

2. However, the mayfly (Ephemoptera), caddisfly (Trichoptera), and stonefly (Plecoptera) EPT ratio of 16% in the sediment sample from Jemison Park was four times higher than in front of Samford during Spring 2003. 3. Macro-invertebrates collected in this study from the surface of stones showed an EPT ratio of 50%. This EPT ratio indicates that Shades Creek at Jemison Park was relatively healthy compared to the creek In front of Samford University which had an EPT ratio of 5.4% in the 2003 study.

4. The rate of pollution in sediment samples can also be represented by the extent of sediment accumulated on the invertebrate animals. Below, a helgramite (dobson fly larvae) from a healthier stream, the Little Cahaba River (right) is compared to a helgramite collected in our study at Shades Creek (left). It is apparent that our sample has a much higher level of sediment in its gills and body.

Dobsonfly larva

5. In a 2003 study of Shades Creek conducted in front of Samford University, EPT ratios were 5.4% in the stone washing samples and only 3.9% in the sediment.Within this one mile distance, negative factors such as sediment, pesticides and herbicides from residential areas, business, and the shopping mall have had major impact.