Hiking up to the next plot…
As beavers continue to expand their ranges and ecologically engineer streams and wetlands within Colorado, beaver ponds of different ages can be found throughout the landscape. Ponds of different ages have varying levels of sediment accumulation and habitat structure, which could impact which aquatic invertebrates inhabit them. This proposed research aims to determine if older beaver ponds house different aquatic invertebrate communities than newer beaver ponds. Ponds of varying ages and successional stages will be sampled in the Trail Creek drainage and the upper East River valley. Using a 1-m D-net sweep, invertebrates will be caught, identified pondside in the field, enumerated, and released back into the pond. Results will provide insight into the relationship between aquatic invertebrates and beaver engineering.