ReWa is proud to be among the sponsors of Conestee Nature Preserve’s Nature Playscape. We hope you'll gain a better understanding of Upstate creeks while visiting Curiosity Creek.
Curiosity Creek
Welcome to Curiosity Creek! This water feature represents the creeks and streams found across the Upstate. At Curiosity Creek, we want you to explore and play with your senses!
See: What do you see in and on the rocks? What does flowing water look like? Are there any critters in the water? Is the water clear or cloudy? Are there colored leaves or other plants in the water?
Hear: What does flowing water sound like? What other wildlife can you hear around you? Perhaps the chirping of birds, rustling of a squirrel or croak of a frog?
Touch: What does the water feel like? Are the rocks smooth or rough? Is the water cold or warm?
Let’s learn more about creek and stream health!
How healthy are our streams?
A healthy functioning stream contains an entire community of living organisms (plants, animals and microbes) interacting with their surroundings. These stream ecosystems provide many benefits, such as flood control, recycling nutrients, purifying water, sustaining aquatic life and decomposing waste.
Who lives in your stream?
Rivers and streams are alive with many different species including macroinvertebrates, fish and algae. Scientists often study these species to learn more about the health of our water! Different species have varying preferences for habitat within the water. Streams create these diverse habitats with varying flows and depths that support fish and invertebrates. Pools are deep, slow-moving areas where trout, mollusks, and worms thrive, as organic debris settles there. These pools form when water flows over obstacles like logs or boulders, carving out deeper sections. In contrast, riffles are shallow, fast-moving, and turbulent, making them ideal for insects like mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies, but limiting plant life. Runs, found between pools and riffles, are deep with steady, fast-moving water and often host smaller fish, like minnows, that cannot compete for space in pools.
Have you seen me in your stream?
Keep an eye out for macroinvertebrates, they’re more than just bugs!
Aquatic macroinvertebrates are stream creatures that start their life stage in water. They are big enough to see with the naked eye (macro) and lack a backbone (invertebrate). Examples include aquatic insects, terrestrial insects in their juvenile stages, snails, crayfish, worms and clams. Macroinvertebrates can be found in many stream habitats, such as the riffle, run, or pool above vegetation, woody debris, stream sediment or packs of leaves. As they mature, these young insects (larvae) change form to spend their adult stage as flying insects such as the Dragonfly, Crane Fly or Black Fly.
Macroinvertebrates are part of the ecosystem!
Aquatic macroinvertebrates are a food source for fish and other predators. They can also tell us about the health of the stream where they live. Different types of macroinvertebrates tolerate different levels of pollution and stream conditions. Their presence, absence or abundance in a stream can be used to determine a water quality score, which can help indicate whether the water is clean or potentially polluted.
