U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Fact Sheet 2008–3029

April 2008

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program Western Pilot 

Project—Information About Selected Fish and Macroinvertebrates 

Sampled from North Dakota Perennial Streams, 2000–2003

Kevin C. Vining and Robert F. Lundgren

Summary

Sixty-five sampling sites, selected by a statistical design to represent lengths of perennial streams in North 

Dakota, were chosen to be sampled for fish and aquatic insects (macroinvertebrates) to establish unbiased 

baseline data. Channel catfish and common carp were the most abundant game and large fish species in the 

Cultivated Plains and Rangeland Plains, respectively. Blackflies were present in more than 50 percent of stream 

lengths sampled in the State; mayflies and caddisflies were present in more than 80 percent. Dragonflies were 

present in a greater percentage of stream lengths in the Rangeland Plains than in the Cultivated Plains.

Introduction

The Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program 

Western Pilot Project (EMAP-West) was undertaken in North 

Dakota from 2000 to 2003 to develop tools that could be used to 

produce unbiased estimates of ecological conditions of perennial streams in the State. The EMAP-West for North Dakota 

was a cooperative effort by the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Geological Survey, and the North 

Dakota Department of Health. Information from the EMAPWest was used to establish baseline data that can be compared 

with data obtained from future monitoring and sampling 

activities. This fact sheet provides information about EMAPWest sampling activities in North Dakota and selected fish and 

aquatic insects (macroinvertebrates) sampled from streams in 

ecological regions of the State during 2000–2003.

Ecoregions of North Dakota

Ecological regions (ecoregions) have been loosely defined 

as the spatial representations of the interrelations of natural 

and human factors (Omernik, 1987). In North Dakota, natural 

vegetation, predominately prairie grass and a patchwork of 

forests along streams, was established on a variety of soils and 

topography. Since settlement, considerable animal production, 

consisting mostly of cattle, and agricultural production of crops, 

including wheat, barley, sunflowers, canola, sugar beets, soybeans, and corn, has developed across the State. All these factors contribute to the delineation of ecoregions of North Dakota.

North Dakota is covered by four level III ecoregions as 

defined by Bryce and others (1998): the Northwestern Great 

Plains, the Northwestern Glaciated Plains, the Northern 

Glaciated Plains, and the Lake Agassiz Plain (fig. 1). In another 

ecological assessment (Stoddard and others, 2005), the USEPA 

indicated that North Dakota exists within two broader regions: 

the Cultivated Plains, a flat to gently rolling landscape that has 

many wetlands and streams, and the Rangeland Plains, a rolling 

to hilly landscape that has many wetlands but few streams in the 

northeast and few wetlands but many streams in the southwest 

(fig. 1).

EMAP-West Sampling Sites

Sampling sites were selected randomly by a USEPA statistical design (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2000) 

to represent lengths of perennial streams in North Dakota from 

which unbiased baseline data would be collected. Of the 65 sites 

chosen for sampling (fig. 1), 59 sites were sampled for fish and 

62 sites were sampled for macroinvertebrates. Samples could 

not be collected at the other sites because stream conditions 

were unacceptable. Of the approximately 4,280 miles of perennial streams within the State, approximately 3,860 miles were 

represented in the fish sampling assessment (2,230 miles in the 

Cultivated Plains and 1,630 miles in the Rangeland Plains) and 

approximately 4,070 miles were represented in the macroinvertebrate sampling assessment (2,440 miles in the Cultivated 

Plains and 1,630 miles in the Rangeland Plains). No samples 

were collected from the Missouri River. EMAP-West protocols 

for fish and macroinvertebrate sampling are explained in the 

Field Operations Manual for Wadeable Streams for the EMAPWest (Peck and others, 2006). Bank electrofishing was used for 

fish sampling (fig. 2), and kick-netting was used for macroinvertebrate sampling (fig. 3).
Missouri

River

NORTH DAKOTA

Northwestern

Great Plains

Northwestern

Glaciated Plains

Northern Glaciated Plains

EXPLANATION

Cultivated Plains

Rangeland Plains

Lake

Agassiz

Plains

0

0

50

50

100 MILES

100 KILOMETERS

104° 102° 100° 98° 49°

48°

48°

47°

Sampling site

 Site visited; fish and macroinvertebrate samples collected

 Site visited; no samples collected because of unacceptable

 stream conditions

 Site visited; macroinvertebrate samples collected

 Site visited; no fish or macroinvertebrate samples collected

Figure 1. Ecoregions and EMAP-West sites used for 

sampling fish and macroinvertebrates in North Dakota 

(adapted from Tom Johnson, USEPA, written commun., 

2007).

Figure 2. Fish sampling using the bank electrofishing technique. Figure 3. Macroinvertebrate sampling 

using the kick-netting technique.
Figure 4. Percent abundance of nine selected game and large fish species collected in streams in the Cultivated Plains and the Rangeland 

Plains of North Dakota.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Channel catfish Common carp Northern pike Sauger Smallmouth bass Walleye White bass White crappie Yellow perch

PERCENT OF FISH COLLECTED

Cultivated Plains

Rangeland Plains

Selected Fish Sampled

A total of 30,910 individual fish were collected during 

EMAP-West sampling activities. In all, 56 fish species were 

identified in the Cultivated Plains (36 sampling sites) and 

40 fish species were identified in the Rangeland Plains 

(23 sampling sites). The most abundant fish sampled were fathead minnows and common shiners. Information on 9 selected 

game and large fish species (channel catfish, common carp, 

northern pike, sauger, smallmouth bass, walleye, white bass, 

white crappie, and yellow perch) are presented.

Of the 22,522 individual fish collected in the Cultivated 

Plains, only 2,192 individuals were game and large fish species. 

The most abundant of the game and large fish were channel 

catfish, which accounted for about 37 percent of the fish collected (fig. 4). Channel catfish are common to the Lake Agassiz 

Plain ecoregion where many sampling sites were located. The 

other abundant fish was the common carp, which accounted 

for one-third of fish collected. The popular game fish northern 

pike, walleye, and yellow perch each accounted for no more 

than 11 percent of fish collected. Sauger, smallmouth bass, 

white bass, and white crappie each accounted for no more than 

5 percent of fish collected.

Of the 8,388 individual fish collected in the Rangeland 

Plains, only 403 individuals were game and large fish species. 

Common carp, the most abundant fish, accounted for about 

33 percent, smallmouth bass accounted for about 27 percent, 

and northern pike accounted for about 17 percent of fish collected. Channel catfish, walleye, sauger, white crappie, yellow 

perch, and white bass each accounted for no more than about 

13 percent of fish collected (fig. 4).

Selected Macroinvertebrates Sampled

The percentages of total stream length in the Cultivated 

Plains region (39 sampling sites) and the Rangeland Plains 

region (23 sampling sites) that were sampled for each of 

5 macroinvertebrate taxa (blackfly, caddisfly, dragonfly, mayfly, 

and stonefly) are shown in figure 5. Blackflies were present in 

more than 50 percent of stream lengths in the Cultivated Plains 

and the Rangeland Plains; mayflies and caddisflies were present 

in more than 80 percent. Dragonflies were present in 70 percent 

of stream lengths sampled in the Rangeland Plains but in only 

about 29 percent of stream lengths sampled in the Cultivated 

Plains. The stonefly was the rarest of the 5 macroinvertebrate 

taxa sampled in both regions.
Figure 5. Percent of total stream length in the Cultivated Plains and Rangeland Plains regions of North Dakota that were sampled for each of 

five selected macroinvertebrate taxa.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Blackfly Caddisfly Dragonfly Mayfly Stonefly

PERCENT OF TOTAL STREA

M LENGTH

Cultivated Plains

Rangeland Plains

References

Bryce, S.A., Omernik, J.M., Pater, D.E., Ulmer, M., Schaar, J., 

Freeouf, J., Johnson, R., Kuck, P., and Azevedo, S.H., 1998, 

Ecoregions of North Dakota and South Dakota: Northern 

Prarie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota, 

accessed August 2007 at http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/

resource/habitat/ndsdeco/index.htm

Omernik, J.M., 1987, Ecoregions of the conterminous United 

States: Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 

v. 77, no. 1, p. 118–125.

Peck, D.V., Herlihy, A.T., Hill, B.H., Hughes, R.M., Kaufmann, 

P.R., Klemm, D.J., Lazorchak, J.M., McCormick, F.H., 

Peterson, S.A., Ringold, P.L., Magee, T., and Cappaert, M.R., 

2006, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment ProgramSurface Waters Western Pilot Study—field operations manual 

for wadeable streams: EPA Report EPA/620/R-06/003, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and 

Development, Washington, D.C. [variously paged].

Stoddard, J.L., Peck, D.V., Olsen, A.R., Paulsen, S.G., Van 

Sickle, J., Herlihy, A.T., Kaufmann, P.R., Hughes, R.M., 

Whittier, T.R., Lomnicky, G., Larsen, D.P., Peterson, S.A., 

and Ringold, P.L., 2005, An ecological assessment of western 

streams and rivers: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 

Oregon State University, and Dynamac Corporation, Corvallis, Oregon, 49 p.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2000, MidAtlantic Highlands Streams Assessment: EPA Report 

EPA/903/R-00/015, Washington, D.C., 64 p.