Assessments and Indicators Directory: A resource of support tools for aquatic conservation.
Filters
Type of index
landscape - measure of threats or habitat condition using spatial patterns across a landscape.
species - measure of species vulnerability based on biological traits and/or potential threats.
Variable inputs
land use - metrics related to land management in a given catchment (e.g. %agriculture, %impervious surface cover), but may include reach-level proximity to land modifications (e.g. average distance to mine).
barrier density - number of dams or road crossings upstream, downstream, or within a given area
stream connectivity - total length of stream kilometers without barriers surrounding a given location
water quality - metrics pertaining to water physico-chemistry and pollution. Metrics may be site level parameters (e.g. DO, pH, etc.) or reach level (e.g. 303d EPA classification)
in-stream habitat - describe physical characterstics including metrics related to channel morphology (e.g. channel slope, width, %riffle, etc.), substrate (e.g. %gravel, embeddedness), cover (e.g. vegetation density, canopy shading), and so on.
climate change - metrics describe predicted changes in air or stream temperature and/or discharge
temperature - typically a metric of air temperature but for species scores includes stream temperature thresholds
flow - metrics pertaining to stream discharge (e.g. mean annual flows, base flow index)
Species response incorporated
yes - thresholds in species responses (P/A or abundance) to environmental gradients are used to construct index values
no - species data are not used to create index values
Data accessibility
public - data are easily accessible and downloadable from a website
proprietary - data are either housed privately by a government agency or copyright protected in a peer-reviewed publication
Example use
prioritization - identify focal sites or species for restoration and conservation
diagnosis - identify potential stressors within a specific region or watershed
evaluation - investigate the relationships between potential stressors or index and aquatic ecosystem integrity or species response
monitoring - identify focal sites or sensitive species to track through time or in response to an event
outreach - use index to educate the public or promote landowner incentive programs
About
This webpage is a living document of decision support tools for freshwater conservation. All tools provide information for the state of Missouri, although they may be the result of regional or national assessments.
Each assessment or index is summarized on an individual card. Text tags (“tags:”) serve as a visual cross-reference to the “variable inputs” filter. Links to source documents and data are provided where available (“availability:”) and a short description (“desc:”) about the tool. In some cases, a specific example (“example:”) of how the tool has been used in the past is provided.
By default all cards are displayed. To narrow the results, select filters from dropdown menus in the left panel and scroll down to see cards that match the selection. Hover over each filter heading to see definitions for the corresponding drop-menu options. Filters function as exclusive combination filters to minimize the number of displayed cards. To return to a full display, click on the “reset filters” button.
Tools available to explore
Click on icons to be redirected to source
tags: land use, barriers, water quality, climate change, temperature, flow, species response incorporated
availability: web-based map viewer, publicly downloadable final report, downloadable data
desc: Four independent indices classify threshold conditions in agricultural and urban land use, dam and road densities, water quality (303d impared streams), and climate change.
example: Wisconsin DNR investigated the relationship of Brook trout abundance in response to the land use metric, stocking, and other habitat data for the purpose of updating trout stocking guidance and identifying locations for trout reserves.
release date: 2013
last update: 2015
data source date range: 2006 - 2012
tags: land use, barriers
availability: final project report available upon request, proprietary data
desc: Quantifies and centralizes an inventory of land-use factors that potentially impact aquatic natural resources. Index represents potential cumulative threat of 35 metrics including urban and agricultural land use, road crossings, dams, and proximity to potential point source and non-point source pollution.
example: MDC biologists identified stressors in watersheds like Hickory Creek using the HTI to help inform whether or not they should be classified as priority conservation opportunity areas in regional planning.
release date: 2010
last update: 2010
data source date range: 1999 - 2006
tags: climate change, temperature, flow, connectivity, species response incorporated
availability: peer-review publication, download data here
desc: Classifies species vulnerability to environmental change. Index is based on tolerance to temperature, flow, and habitat conditions, weighted by dispersal ability, range, rarity, and connectivity surrounding occupied habitats.
example: MDC and University of Missouri cooperators used this index to propose research about the tolerance and persistance of vulnerable Notropis species under potential future climate conditions.
release date: 2016
last update: 2016
data source date range: 2000 - 2011
tags: land use, barriers, water quality, temperature, flow, species response indcorporated
availability: web-based report, downloadable data
desc: Cumulative index of land-use factors that potentially impact inland fish habitat. Index represents 31 metrics including urban and agricultural land use, road crossings, dams, water withdrawal, population density, and proximity to point source and non-point source pollution.
example: TBD
release date: 2010
last update: 2015
data source date range: 1992 - 2012
tags: land use, connectivity
availability: web-based inventory and prioritization, downloadable datasets based on user-selected criteria
desc: Tool to summarize inventoried in-stream barriers, including dams and road-related barriers or prioritize their removal. Information can be selected by area of interest, key dam characteristics, land ownership and/or stream conservaton value.
example: In 2017, the Roaring River Dam in Tenessee was removed after being identified as an aging dam that would increase stream connectivity.
release date: undetermined
last update: 2019
data source date range: undetermined
tags: land use, water quality, in-stream habitat, species response incorporated
availability: peer-reviewed publication, proprietary data
desc: Classification represents the predicted level of biotic integrity dervied from relationships between landscape-level and site-specific habitat factors that affect local fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages.
example: Has been Used to identify least-disturbed sites as potential benchmarks of ecological integrity for Missouri DNR.
release date: 2016
last update: 2016
data source date range: 2004 - 2014
tags: land use, water quality, barriers
availability: peer-reviewed publication, downloadable data
desc: Classification of watershed condition with respect to six key watershed functions: hydrologic regulation, regulation of water chemistry, sediment regulation, hydrologic connectivity, temperature regulation, and habitat provision. This index has been incorporated into the StreamCat database.
example: TBD
release date: 2015
last update: 2018
data source date range: 2000 - 2016
tags: land use, barriers, species response incorporated
availability: thesis, downloadable data
desc: Conservation value assessment for stream reaches across Missouri. Stream reach rankings are made with respect to land use, existing conservation areas, connectivity, and species vulnerability to maximize species representation.
example: TBD
release date: 2014
last update: 2014
data source date range: 2000 - 2011
tags: climate change, temperature, flow
availability: final report, proprietary datasets
desc: Provides predictive stream temperature model for wadeable streams across the state based on long-term monitoring data and relationships to environmental variables. Forecasted stream temperatures under climate model projections are available for streams in the Missouri Ozark Plateau.
example: TBD
release date: 2018
last update: 2018
data source date range: 2002 - 2015