What types of macro-invertebrates inhabit the waterways of Highland Park? By: Chris Kingwill

For my project, I attempted to answer the question:  “What kinds of macro-invertebrates inhabit the waterways of Highland Park?”

For my project, I decided to target seven sites for water sample analysis:

1.     Hidden Creek

2.    The inland pond at Fink Park

3.    The Montessori reservoir at Fink Park

4.    Lake Michigan

5.    Red Oak vernal pools

6.    Millard Park ravine stream

7.    Skokie Valley bike trail pools

Both Hidden Creek and Lake Michigan were moving bodies of water while the rest were not and I thought the diversity in sites could offer the chance to strong overall biodiversity in what I could discover.  For almost the past two months, I have been looking at at least one sample from every one of these sites.  When I first started back in March, the climate had not quite warmed up yet and the majority of these ecosystems were slow to show signs of life.  By the middle of April, I was beginning to find many more animals.  

Notable Organisms' Range In Sites Surveyed

Animal	Hidden Creek	Fink Park Inland Pond	Fink Park   Reservoir	Red Oak Vernal Pools	Skokie Valley bike trail	Ravine Stream	Lake Michigan
Ostracod	NO	NO	YES	YES	YES	YES	NO
Mosquito larvae	NO	NO	NO	YES	NO	NO	NO
Leech (larvae)	NO	NO	NO	YES	NO	Maybe	NO
Snail	NO	NO	NO	YES	YES	NO	NO
Springtail	NO	NO	NO	YES	NO	NO	NO
Amphipod	NO	YES	NO	NO	NO	NO	NO
Water mite	NO	NO	NO	YES	NO	NO	NO
Nematode	NO	NO	NO	NO	NO	YES	NO
Algae of some form	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES

Based on this data, both phytoplankton and zooplankton were found along with larger invertebrates such as mosquito larvae.  Overall, there is large aquatic biodiversity in Highland Park.  The site with the most biodiversity were the vernal pools at Red Oak School.  Statistically, six of the notable types of organisms I found were from the vernal pools.  Some, such as the leech and mosquito larvae, were unique only to this location and I found them nowhere else.  Compared to the vernal pools of Red Oak, the ravine stream near Millard Park contained less biodiversity based on what I analyzed.  The site the least amount of biodiversity was Lake Michigan.  Arguably, if I had equipment that could able me to collect samples from deeper water, I think I could have found more in the Lake.  This project is significant because the macroscopic organisms consisting of phytoplankton, zooplankton, and larger invertebrates play important roles as sources of foods and sources of photosynthesis for these aquatic environments and the ecosystems they support.