Do you like to explore? Walk through streams? Care about water quality? If you answer yes to those questions, then this community science project, to explore water quality and stream health, is perfect for you. 

Maine Audubon and the Department of Environmental Protection are recruiting Stream Explorers who can help survey large aquatic insects (macroinvertebrates) in streams in southern Maine. We use macroinvertebrates as environmental indicators since some require cold, clean water and high-quality habitat while others can tolerate warm, polluted water or poor habitat quality. Macroinvertebrates are also an important food source and they’re often the basis for much of the stream food web. So the presence or absence of different macroinvertebrates can inform us about both water quality and the ecological health of a stream. Organizations like the Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District have survey kits for Stream Explorers to borrow. 

To become a Stream Explorer you need to watch two online training sessions on how to find and identify approximately 40 "Least and Most Wanted" aquatic insects that are indicators of stream health and then visit one to three streams between May and October. During your survey you will search for macroinvertebrates and send in the collected data. We provide training, equipment, maps of the survey streams, data forms, and instructions. We recommend you conduct your surveys in pairs for safety reasons.

You can watch Part 1 of the online training here and Part 2 of the training here. Once you watch the videos, email hyoung@maineaudubon.org for a list of survey sites. You’re also welcome to choose a stream that’s of interest to you, even if it’s not on the list! Then email the District to sign out the kit and start surveying!

More information on the Stream Explorers Program:

Email conserve@maineaudubon.org 
Call Hannah Young, 207-781-2330 x219

This project was funded by a grant from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund and The Onion Foundation.