D3106: Surface-floating pupal exuviae: A method to study Chironomidae (Diptera) community changes across an urban pond gradient

Chironomidae is a widespread and speciose family with representatives that exhibit a broad range of tolerances to anthropogenic impacts on water quality, making it an effective bioindicator in freshwater systems. Chironomidae pupal exuviae are increasingly employed in bioassessments of streams and lakes, due to the ease of collection and reduced laboratory processing time as compared to that of larval specimens. However, there is a dearth of research using the technique in urban ponds. Stormwater retention ponds have been shown to support aquatic diversity and previous research in several retention ponds in Denton, Texas have demonstrated that Chironomidae help to explain variation between ponds in response to differences in pond morphology and water chemistry. This study will expand upon that research to determine the Chironomidae community differences within ponds with varying urban influence over one year. The objective of this study is to determine if Chironomidae community structure is an effective tool that can be used as an ecological indicator in urban ponds.