Ensuring Avian Sanctuary: Monitoring Water Quality at Sylvan Heights Bird Park

Sylvan Heights Bird Park (SHBP) is a zoo/sanctuary in Scotland Neck, North Carolina, that holds a variety of birds ranging from common ducks to exotic birds from South America and Australia.

Site map of the Sylvan Heights Bird Park.

WaterCorps measure surface water quality (nitrate, ammonium, organic nitrogen, total suspended solids, total phosphorus, coliform) upstream and downstream of SHBP two times per month for a year and measure water quality discharged from SHBP ponds into wetland over time. This intends to ensure high water quality standards and to monitor a stream that passes through the park and 2 water wells in the park.

Once the samples are collected from the park, several tests are performed in the lab in order to observe water quality attributes such as total Kildahl nitrogen (TKN), ammonia, and phosphate levels. The technical skills employed in this project include water sampling, filtration, and the lab analysis of nutrients. 

Client: Sylvan Heights Bird Park 

Project Faculty Mentor: Dr. Ariane Peralta 

Project Owner: Nicholas Kruchten 

Key Team Members: Nicholas Kruchten, Trey Blackwell, and Camryn Landreth 

Necessary Skills: Water Sampling, Data Entry, Lab Work, Sample Filtering, Driving. 

Are you interested in working with ECU WaterCorps? 

If you are interested in working with ECU WaterCorps, please fill out the attached form and send it to water@ecu.edu. ECU WaterCorps will then review the project request and determine if we have the capability and staffing to assist with the proposed project. We encourage potential clients to directly contact us at water@ecu.edu prior to submitting the form to help with scoping the project.

Click here to download the ECU WaterCorps Client Application Form!

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