Habitat Assesment"Habitat"
Habitat Assessment is the study that deals with physical measurements of the creek banks and surrounding areas by looking at how these change over time. The primary purpose of Habitat is to analyze changes in the physical environment and determine how beneficial they are. Some of the most important observations include the size of the creek, the amount of forestation of the creek, the density of plant life, and the creek's water level.
At each transect, Habitat measures the distance between transects, channel width and depth, water velocity, and sun angle, as well as bank height, width, shape, stability and angle. Further, the group also draws maps of the area surrounding the bank, dividing it into squares of 10 m by 10 m. Then, any significant vegetation, especially trees, is added to the map. Measurements of tree diameters and observations of fallen trees are the most crucial details on the maps. Habitat analyzes these maps, and looks to find healthy vegetation growth, since both meager and excessive growth is indicative of an unhealthy creek.
Habitat measurements are made twice a year, in the fall and spring, and then recorded onto data sheets. Data sheets are compiled and put online for future analysis. Habitat is the ideal group for those who want an overall view of the creek's health.
