To show the riparian zone s role, the aquatic biota, the woody and dominant herbaceous plants, and, to a lesser extent, the terrestrial biota were sampled. As water quality and community diversity deteriorate, a diverse assemblage of plants and animals with few individuals of each species slowly becomes a depauperate assemblage of plants and animals with many individuals of each species. The results showed that Rabbit Creek, with its intact riparian zone, has cleaner water and a more diverse community of species. This preliminary study shows the need for future research into the role of riparian zones in the Dog River watershed so water quality and community diversity will be conserved for future generations. Riparian, community diversity, Rabbit Creek, Eslava Creek Introduction Degradation of water quality and loss of community diversity in the Dog River watershed is partly due to the loss or modification of riparian zones.
Riparian forests are critical to watershed health, yet little attention is paid to their condition.
Water quality is maintained by riparian vegetation in many ways including the stabilization of slopes and stream banks by networks of tree roots which help prevent erosion, filtering of pollutants, metabolizing nutrients, and trapping of sediment. Community diversity is important for ecosystem function and is greatly affected by the integrity of the riparian zone. Riparian zones also act as a corridor for the movement of animals and plant dispersal. This study shows how important it is to restore riparian zones where they formerly were. This question was answered by sampling the aquatic biota, the woody and dominant herbaceous plants, and to a lesser extent, the terrestrial biota at two sites, one with the riparian zone intact, the other not.