Eno River State Park: A Summer Institute Investigation

Introduction

The week of Monday, July fifth was field week for the students at the Summer Institute. We set out to study the area of the Nuese River Basin. We were comparing data from different locations on the Eno and Falls Lake. We spent Wednesday the seventh at Eno River State Park, examining the wildlife and taking readings on the water's current,ph balance,etc. The air temperature was over 100 but everyone at the Summer Institute pitched in for the sake of the investigation.

On the Water

After learning how to use the CBL and different probes we were succesful in collecting data from the water. Each group was assigned a different thing to probe for such as temperature, dissolved oxygen, etc. Then each group took a reading at several different sites, varying in debth. Another thing we did was finding the discharge of the stream. We found it to be 12ft. for every 3 seconds. In varying places the water was found to be between 27.2 and 28.8 degrees celcius. The warmer tempersture was found in a shallow pool in the sun. Some of the cooler temperatures were found where the water had more of a current. The ph balances that were found ranged from 7.73 to 10.7. The higher number was found in an isolated puddle full of alge. The lower readings were found in where there was a faster current. Where there were few rocks the dissolved oxygen was found to be between 6.3 and 8.1. Where the was a higher concentration of rocks the dissolved oxygen level was in between 6.6 and 6.7.

The Wildlife

Before even serching for the area's natural wildlife we came across it rather unexpectedly. While taking a sidetrip to the site of a million+ year old volcanic rock we came across a black snake about four feet in lenghth. It was met with mixed reactions: oohs, and ahhs, and screams. Other snakes were found during the course of the day , none that I saw but still resulting in a frantic moment or two. To take a look at the smaller residents of the area we brought out a kick-net and shook up the water grasses aound it. We then commenced to dump the contents of the net into a water filled pan to further examine its specimens. We found many more living creatures than I expected we would, some I had never seen, and some that we couldn't identify, even with the help of our sheet of water creatures. We found such living things as:

caddisfly larvae
stonefly nymph
freshwater clam
freshwater worms
water penny
hellgrammite
right-handed pouch snail

We also found other things that we cold not identify, such as a clearish white organism that looked like two connected circles. We suspected it was a lrvae of some kind.

For More Information on Eno River State Park, Click Here

Other Experiences of the Day

The teachers of the Summer Institute gave us a challege. We were to complete a scavenger hunt of the leaves on our leaf indentification sheet. Many came close to suceeding but skipped over a leaf or two, and some were stumped when it came to finding a holly but some succeeded and were rewarded with pizza. Another of the activities was participated in by few. That was swimming in the Eno. Some prefered to stay on shore and talk and when my friends and I jumped in they could not be convinced to join us. We did convert a few to our cause but even in our small numbers we enjoyed spending time in the water we now know so much about.

Comments on the Trip

"I liked the leaves scavenger hunt because it made me a little bit more familiar with the different types of leaves."-Sara Wienke "I liked the river because we got to do some on site research and we had a lot of fun."-Jenna Ingersoll "I had a lot of fun on the field trip. I liked the water because we got to measure the depth and average it. The water looked pretty clean too."-Jennifer Tant "That day was fun. I learned a lot."-Eric McAden

To see pictures of the trip to Eno River State Park, click here.