Water that is cold holds more dissolved oxygen which is good for aquatic life. Smelling the water. Collecting water samples. Almost all of the water tests done on Cedar River involved testing at the site with chemical indicator tests. Determining the amount of Dissolved Oxygen.
Cedar River is full of riffles and many fish-great indicators of high levels of dissolved oxygen.
Testing the phosphate levels. The more phosphate there is, the more plant life that is sustained. Eutrophication Collecting data. Putting all of the information together helps us to determine the overall health of the river. The animals living in a stream provide the best indicators of that stream's overall health and ecological condition.