A Fresh Look at A Fresh Look at Ecological Condition Indices forEcological Condition Indices for

Southwest FloridaSouthwest Florida’’s s Urbanizing Tidal StreamsUrbanizing Tidal Streams

E.D. ESTEVEZE.D. ESTEVEZestevez@mote.orgestevez@mote.org

MOTE MARINE LABORATORY ~ SARASOTA, FLORIDA USAMOTE MARINE LABORATORY ~ SARASOTA, FLORIDA USA

Sarasota County Integrated Water Sarasota County Integrated Water Resource Management InitiativeResource Management Initiative

Watershed scale• Water supply• Flood control• Natural resources

Need for Performance

Measures

Marine

Unconsolidated (mud, sand, shell) Substrate

Floral-BasedAlgal Bed Seagrass Bed

Tidal Marsh Tidal Swamp

Key EcologicalConsiderations

Mineral-BasedConsolidated (limerock, coquina) Substrate

Faunal-Based

Coral Reef Mollusk/Worm ReefSponge Bed Octocoral Bed

Salinity regime, tidal flushing, water transparency, wave energy, storms

Biological index forBiological index forcounty streamscounty streams

Small

Tidally influenced

Urbanizing

Essential QuestionsEssential Questions

Geographic homogeneity?

Watershed heterogeneity?

Extremes in watershed condition?

Differences in associated tidal streams?

Candidate metrics?

Behavior of prototypic index?

Southeastern Plains Ecoregion (#65)65f– Southern Pine Plains and Hills 65g – Dougherty/Marianna Plains 65h – Tifton Upland/Tallahassee Hills

Southern Coastal Plains Ecoregion (#75) 75a – Gulf Coast Flatwoods 75b – Southwestern Florida Flatwoods 75c – Central Florida Ridges and Uplands 75d – Eastern Florida Flatwoods 75e – Okeefenokee Swamps and Plains 75f– Sea Island Flatwoods

Southern Florida Coastal Plains Ecoregion (#76)76a – Everglades 76b – Big Cypress 76c – Miami Ridge/Atlantic Coastal Strip 76d – Southern Coast and Islands

65f 65g

65h 75e75f

75c

75b

75d

76b76c

76d

75a

76a

Eco-regions of Florida

Panhandle

Peninsula

Northeast

Louisianan Province Carolinian Province

West IndianProvince

Streams of Southwest Florida are Similar Because Streams of Southwest Florida are Similar Because ……

…… The Coast of Southwest Florida isThe Coast of Southwest Florida isFairly Homogeneous RespectingFairly Homogeneous RespectingPhysiography Gulf Coastal LowlandsCooke, 1939Geography Western Flatlands Davis, 1943Coastal Classification West-Central Barrier Chain Davis, 1997Geology Coastal Lowlands Puri & Vernon, 1964Exposed Aquifer Surficial Miller, 1990Environmental Geology Shelly Sand and Clay Kautz et al., 1998Soils Spodosols Carlisle, 1981Sediments Holocene Quartz Sand Hayes, 1975Marine Geology Peorian Wilhelm & Ewing, 1972Shoreline Type Sandy Coast Johnson & Barbour, 1990Wave Climate Low Tanner, 1960Tides Mixed Provost, 1973

…… And Also RespectingAnd Also Respecting(Continued)

Tides Microtidal Nummedal et al., 1977Sea Level Rise Eustatic-dominated National Academy, 1987Climate Subhumid Mesothermal Henry, 1998Hurricane Risk 17.5 Percent NOAA/NWC, 2002Hydrology SWCFGW Basin Estevez et al., 1991River Type Sand-Bottomed Beck, 1965River Type Blackwater Nordlie, 1990Terrestrial Botany Pine Flatwoods Abrahamson & Hartnett, 1990Marine Botany Tropical Earle, 1969Marine Zoology Transitional Collard & D’Asaro, 1973Ecoregion Southwestern Florida Flatwoods Barbour et al., 1996

Tidal Stream NumberTidal Stream Number

20 overall in Sarasota County

(4 in Myakka River system)

16 coastal, tidal streams

One per two miles of coast

Total Undeveloped

Sarasota County Creeks

Hudso

n

Methan

y Cree

kW

hittak

er

Clower

Creek

Phillip

pi Cree

k Allig

ator

Woo

dmere

North C

reek

Catfish

Curry C

reek

Hatche

tt

Cow P

en S

lough

Myakk

ahatc

hee

Forked

Little

Salt

Cree

k

South

Creek

Gottfrie

dAing

er

Deer P

ririe C

reek

Myakk

a Rive

r

Perc

enta

ge

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

Total Wetlands

Sarasota County Creeks

Methan

y Cree

kHud

son

Clower

Creek

Whittak

er

Phillip

pi Cree

k

Little

Salt

Cree

kNort

h Cree

kW

oodm

ereHatc

hett

Curry C

reek

Alligato

r

Myakk

ahatc

hee

Catfish

Gottfrie

dAing

erFork

ed

Cow P

en S

lough

South

Creek

Myakk

a Rive

r

Perc

enta

ge

0.00

0.05

0.10

0.15

0.20

0.25

0.30

0.35

Total Impervious

Sarasota County Creeks

Deer P

ririe C

reek

Myakk

a Rive

r

Cow P

en S

lough

Forked

Little

Salt

Cree

kGott

fried

Ainger

South

Creek

North C

reek

Curry C

reek

Whit

taker

Woo

dmere

Phillip

pi Cree

k Allig

ator

Methan

y Cree

kHatc

hett

Catfish

Clower

Creek

Hudso

n

Myakk

ahatc

hee

Perc

enta

ge

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

% County Population

Sarasota County Creeks

Deer P

ririe C

reek

Ainger

Clower

Creek

Little

Salt

Cree

kNort

h Cree

k

South

Creek

Whittak

erFork

ed

Gottfrie

dHatc

hett

Myakk

a Rive

r

Cow P

en S

lough

Curry C

reek

Methan

y Cree

kCatf

ishHud

son

Woo

dmere

Alligato

r

Myakk

ahatc

hee

Phillip

pi Cree

k

Perc

enta

ge

0.00

0.05

0.10

0.15

0.20

0.25

0.30

0.35

Population Density per Acre

Sarasota County Creeks

Deer P

ririe C

reek

Ainger

Myakk

a Rive

r

Myakk

ahatc

hee

Cow P

en S

lough

South

Creek

Gottfrie

dFork

ed

Little

Salt

Cree

kWhit

taker

North C

reek

Curry C

reek

Hatche

tt Catf

ish

Phillip

pi Cree

k Allig

ator

Clower

Creek

Methan

y Cree

kHud

son

Woodm

erePe

rcen

tage

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Septic Density per Acre

Sarasota County Creeks

Deer P

ririe C

reek

South

Creek

Myakk

a Rive

rAing

erHud

son

Cow P

en S

lough

Hatche

tt

Myakk

ahatc

hee

North C

reek

Curry C

reek

Forked

Clower

Creek

Whittak

erCatf

ishGott

fried

Little

Salt

Cree

k

Methan

y Cree

k

Phillip

pi Cree

k Allig

ator

Woodm

ere

Perc

enta

ge

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

1.6

Watershed ConditionWatershed Condition……

Varies substantially

Whitaker, Hudson, Woodmere

versusSouth, Gottfried, Ainger

Location of Gottfried Creek and Ecological and Chemistry Sampling Sites

Location of Whitaker Bayou and Walker Creek, and Ecological and Chemistry Sampling Sites

Gottfried Whitaker

Percent DO< 4mg/l 36 86No. Bottom Types 21 17% Natural Bottom Types 76 47Problem Sediments No YesHardened Shorelines Present Dominant

Gottfried Whitaker

Wetland Species No. 6 3Wetland Cover Extensive SparseSeagrass Species 2 0

Gottfried Whitaker

Oyster Cover ModerateSparse

No. Mollusk Species 20 9Oligohaline Indicators 2 0Intertidal Index Candidates 3 0Total Species Richness 45 24

River sketch

Source: From Odum et al., (1984).

Next StepsNext Steps

Develop prototype tidal stream index based on

FDEP river habitat and marine benthic habitat

assessment protocols

Apply to all sixteen tidal streams

Evaluate index performance

FDEP Coordination EffortsFDEP Coordination Efforts

December 2005 meeting- Sarasota

January, February 2006 exchange of

scopes and reports

March 2006 meeting- Tallahassee

April 2006 conference call

Human Disturbance Factor Analysis (Florida system)

Landscape level Landscape Development Intensity Index

Habitat alteration Habitat assessment data

Hydrologic modificationHydrologic scoring process

Chemical PollutionAmmonia, etc.

Summary of the Landscape Development Intensity* Coefficients

Category CoefficientNatural System 1Pine Plantation 1.6Pasture 3.4Row Crops 4.5Residential (low) 6.8Residential (high) 7.6Commercial 8.0Industrial 8.3Commercial (high) 9.2Business District 10.0

*Developed by MarkBrown, University ofFlorida, based on non-renewableEnergy inputs, Odom’s “EmbodiedEnergy” concept.

Human Disturbance Factors:Quantifying NPS Pollution

Landscape level Landscape Development Intensity Index

Habitat alteration Habitat assessment data

Hydrologic modificationHydrologic scoring process

Chemical PollutionAmmonia, etc.

Curry Creek at U.S. 41 Salinity and Average DARB Watershed Rainfall 7/10/2003-8/18/2003

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

7/10

/03

15:3

0

7/12

/03

17:3

0

7/14

/03

19:3

0

7/16

/03

21:3

0

7/18

/03

23:3

0

7/21

/03

1:30

7/23

/03

3:30

7/25

/03

5:30

7/27

/03

7:30

7/29

/03

9:30

7/31

/03

11:3

0

8/2/

03 1

3:30

8/4/

03 1

5:30

8/6/

03 1

7:30

8/8/

03 1

9:30

8/10

/03

21:3

0

8/12

/03

23:3

0

8/15

/03

1:30

8/17

/03

3:30

8/19

/03

5:30

Date / Time

Salin

ity (p

pt)

0.00

0.50

1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

Rai

nfal

l (In

ches

)

Rainfall Salinity

Salinity at Curry Creek / U.S. 41 compared torainfall in the Myakka River basin

7/10/2003 – 8/18/2003

Desirable Metric Qualities

Ecologically Justified

Discriminating

Represent Integrity

Precise

Sufficient range of values

Metric Selection Criteria

Meaningful measure of ecological structure or function

Strong and consistent correlation with human disturbance

Statistically robust, low measurement error

Represent multiple categories of biological organization

Cost-effective to measure

Not redundant with other metricsException: “response signature” metrics

Attribute GroupsSYSTEM

PROCESSES

IDENTITY

TOLERANCE

RARE OR ENDANGERED

KEY TAXA

TAXONOMICCOMPOSITION

TROPHICDYNAMICS

PRODUCTIVITY

MATERIAL:CYCLES

PREDATION

RECRUITMENT

TAXARICHNESS

RELATIVE ABUNDANCE

DOMINANCE

COMMUNITYSTRUCTURE

FEEDINGGROUPS

HABIT

VOLTINISM

INDIVIDUALCONDITION

DISEASE

ANOMALIES

CONTAMINANTLEVELS

DEATH

METABOLICRATE

TOXICITY TESTS RIVPACS

INVERTEBRATE IBI

INTEGRATEDBIOASSESSMENT

LIFE HISTORYATTRIBUTES

FISH IBI

Floral Metrics

INTERTIDAL ZONATIONFILAMENTOUS ALGAE EXTENTFILAMENTOUS ALGAE COVERFLESHY ALGAE EXTENTFLESHY ALGAE COVERINTERTIDAL SAV SPECIES NUMBERINTERTIDAL SAV EXTENTINTERTIDAL SAV COVERSUBTIDAL SAV SPECIES NUMBERSUBTIDAL SAV EXTENTSUBTIDAL SAV COVER

Faunal Metrics I

INTERTIDAL BIOTURBATION EXTENTINTERTIDAL BIOTURBATION COVERSUBTIDAL BIOTURBATION EXTENTSUBTIDAL BIOTURBATION COVERINTERTIDAL BARNACLE EXTENTSUBTIDAL BARNACLE EXTENTRAZOR CLAM EXTENTNUMBER OF RAZOR CLAM COHORTS

Faunal Metrics II

INTERTIDAL OTHER CLAM EXTENTSUBTIDAL OTHER CLAM EXTENTINTERTIDAL PERIWINKLE EXTENTINTERTIDAL NERITE EXTENTBARE BOTTOM PUSHNET CRUSTACEAN ABUNDANCEVEGETATED BOTTOM PUSHNET CRUSTACEAN ABUNDANCEWOOD BORER SEVERITYFISH PATHOLOGY

Sarasota County Comprehensive Oyster Monitoring Plan, March 2006