Poplar River Macroinvertebrate and Habitat Survey

We surveyed the biota and stream habitat of the lower mainstem of the Poplar River in August 2007 to obtain baseline information on stream assemblages as part of a TMDL (total maximum daily load) study for turbidity. Four sites were selected along the Poplar River within the last 3 km before it enters Lake Superior. Data collected included macroinvertebrate community composition, in-stream habitat structure and stream bottom substrate types, and sediment particle size distribution. Poplar River data generated from each sample site were compared to data from 24 other North Shore stream sites to better place the Poplar River's condition into a regional context. A more nuanced analysis of the Poplar River's condition will require a longer sampling time frame (i.e., routine monitoring every few years) as well as comparison with other large rivers along the North Shore (which we currently do not have in our database). Based on samples from August 2007, our determination is that the Poplar River's macroinvertebrate community places the stream at the poorer end of the condition spectrum relative to other non-urban North Shore streams that we have sampled over the last 12 years.