Dataset provides an overview of the benthic macroinvertebrate communities in lotic systems in TRCA’s jurisdiction for the purposes of biomonitoring and bioassessment.
The data contained in the dataset were collected from 2013 - 2021 following The Ontario Benthos Biomonitoring Network (OBBN) standard sampling protocols. The dataset contains the necessary information for the calculations of biological metrics to assess stream health (not included; to be calculated at the discretion of dataset user).
"[Site Name] A unique tracking id that identifies a distinct site as distinguished by coordinates [Watershed] Name of the watershed each site is located within [Subwatershed] Name of the subwatershed each site is located within [UTM Zone], [UTM Easting], [UTM Northing] The Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) of site location to the nearest metre [Latitude], [Longitude] The XY coordinates of site location in decimal degree units [Year], [Collection Date] The calendar year and date on which the sample was collected [Phylum] Consistent Phylum name of the taxa [Class] Consistent Class name of the taxa [Order] Consistent Order name of the taxa [Family] Consistent Family name of the taxa [BMI Taxa] Consistent unique name of the taxa at the level the taxa was identified to [Common Name] Consistent common name of the taxa at the Order or Family level [Total Count] Number of Individuals in each BMI taxa [Habitat Sampled] The micro-habitat unit targeted for sampling. Based on The Ontario Benthos Biomonitoring Network (OBBN) standard sampling protocols, targeted habits include riffles and pools: Riffle areas of fast, turbulent water, often characterized by gravel/cobble substrates, and Pool areas of slow, deeper than average water associated with deposition or the impoundment of water from a flow obstruction. [Subsample Number] The sequence of transect subsamples were collected, ranged from 1-3. This number is used to differentiate the two riffles transect subsamples. [Collection Method] The sampling device with which the sample was collected. [Lab Method] The processing method with which the sample was sorted in the laboratory. "
