Data for: 10 years of fish species sampling in Rouge River, Michigan

Community based citizen science has increased the scope of ecological data collection and monitoring. Despite its growing popularity, citizen science methods are rarely validated. Validation is important to ensure high quality data can be used in scientific studies, monitoring, and management. The Rouge River (Michigan, USA), an Environmental Protection Agency Area of Concern, is considered a highly degraded river, but has benefited from numerous restoration projects. These projects have improved abiotic conditions in the river, but improvements to the biotic communities have not been assessed. Friends of the Rouge, a non-profit, has collected fish assemblage data throughout the river network for 10 years by seining, a sampling method they selected due to concerns including cost, safety, and fit to the organization’s volunteer-based monitoring program.
We aimed to evaluate differences between sampling fish assemblages through seining performed by citizen scientists and the electrofishin..., We compared two techniques for sampling fish assemblages in the Rouge River: seining and electrofishing. FOTR has been collecting fish assemblages data by seining in the river since 2012 at 10-20 sites yearly between April-September . At each site, and during each sampling event, they seined roughly 20 times trying to cover the variety of habitats present; and then identified, counted, and measured each fish before returning it back to the river. For most sites, they use a four-foot high and twelve-foot length, 1/8th inch mesh seine and have used four-, eight-, twelve- and twenty-foot seines in the past. Seining has been led by a small team that is a mix of FOTR staff and community volunteers well trained in fish identification and sampling protocols. The team frequently collaborates and communicates with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) and the state’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). They also confer with the University of Michigan Museum o..., , # Rouge River Fish Data 2012-2022

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.w9ghx3fxm](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.w9ghx3fxm)

1.     Community based citizen science has increased the scope of ecological data collection and monitoring. Despite its growing popularity, citizen science methods are rarely validated. Validation is important to ensure high quality data can be used in scientific studies, monitoring, and management. The Rouge River (Michigan, USA), an Environmental Protection Agency Area of Concern, is considered a highly degraded river, but has benefited from numerous restoration projects. These projects have improved abiotic conditions in the river, but improvements to the biotic communities have not been assessed. Friends of the Rouge, a non-profit, has collected fish assemblage data throughout the river network for 10 years by seining, a sampling method they selected due to concerns including cost, safety, and fit to the organization’s volunteer-based monitoring program.

2.     We...