Comparison of Artificial Substrates in Bottom Fauna Studies on a Large River

During the summer of 1974, five types of artificial substrates and grab sampling were evaluated for sampling efficiency in pool No. 3 of the Upper Mississippi River. A total of 35 taxa of organisms were collected by the different techniques. Ponar grab sampling collected representatives of only eight taxa, whereas concrete block samplers collected 22 taxa . Intermediate in taxonomic collection were the Hester-Dendy samplers with 21 taxa, the barbecue basket samplers with 20 taxa, the Miller samplers with 17 taxa, and conservation webbing with 12 taxa. The barbecue basket samplers were the most productive, yielding at least five times as many organisms as any other sampling method. Combinations of artificial substrates which complement each other are suggested to maximize collection results