Suburban retention ponds serve a critical role in the management and storage of storm water runoff. Retention ponds also serve as habitat for aquatic species in areas where natural wetlands have historically been depleted. The amount of lawn and agricultural land cover in the watershed can greatly influence the richness and diversity of zooplankton, macroinvertebrates, amphibians, and plants within a pond. The use of fertilizer and herbicide on suburban lawns can be toxic, reduce water quality, and change the food web. We wanted to investigate how the socioeconomics of a neighborhood may impact the water quality and biodiversity of zooplankton within the neighborhood retention pond. If individuals in suburban neighborhoods have more disposable income to devote to lawn care, then we anticipate water quality to be lower which may alter the zooplankton community. We sampled 20 suburban retention ponds for zooplankton richness and abundance as well as standard water quality measures. We used county level data to determine socioeconomic factors such as the mean neighborhood home value. We used multiple regression and principle components analysis to determine which factors were more closely correlated with zooplankton richness and diversity.
Results/Conclusions
Socioeconomic factors such as mean appraised total value of homes within a suburban neighborhood was more closely correlated to diversity and richness of zooplankton communities than abiotic factors such as productivity (chlorophyll a levels), conductivity, pond age, and nutrient levels. Management of suburban retention ponds by neighborhood homeowner’s associations included use of fountains and water dye to manage algae outbreaks. Management strategies did not appear to differ based on the socioeconomics of neighborhoods, however management did impact the overall diversity and richness of zooplankton species with dyed ponds having lower diversity and aerated ponds having higher richness. Previous work in birds and plants correlated lower socioeconomic status with lower biodiversity. However, biodiversity of zooplankton communities within suburban retention ponds follows the opposite pattern with lower socioeconomic status neighborhoods having higher zooplankton richness and biodiversity. As homeowner’s associations work to manage retention ponds and homeowners themselves make decisions on lawn care practices, the ecosystem service of providing habitat for biodiversity is often overlooked. Future work will examine individual homeowner practices and the value homeowner’s place on ecosystem services such as biodiversity compared to the aesthetic value provided by a retention pond at their neighborhood entrance.