FAUNAS OF INTERMITTENT STREAMS
Because of severe, protracted drought, most of the streams studied had ceased to flow by the close of the survey period. However, the duration of intermittency varied greatly in different streams, as did its effect in terms of the number and sizes of residual pools, water temperatures, pollution, and turbidity. Crab Creek, Beaver Creek, and a small unnamed tributary of Grouse Creek were severely affected by intermittency. Their faunas are discussed below.
In Crab Creek six collections were made from points near the mouth to the uppermost pool in which water was found. Pools near the mouth were as large as thirty feet in width and ninety feet in length, while those that were uppermost were shallow puddles averaging ten feet in length and five feet in width. The uppermost station was situated in bluestem pasture without benefit of shade from trees.
The species taken and their relative abundances based on five seine hauls at each station are shown in Table 7. At the uppermost pool (G-17) only small green sunfish were found. At G-16, next downstream, this species was joined by large numbers of black bullheads and a few redfin shiners and red shiners. G-13 was similar to G-16, but two additional species occurred there. G-12 was a clear, deep pool much larger than any at the stations upstream. Here, seven species were added to the fauna, and the percentages of Ictalurus melas and Lepomis cyanellus were much less. At G-10 Fundulus notatus, Labidesthes sicculus, and Minytrema melanops appeared. Nevertheless, fewer species (10) were captured here than at station G-12 upstream.