Pass
Rating icon - Chlorophyll a Rating icon - Total Nitrogen Rating icon - Total Phosphorous Rating icon - Dissolved Oxygen Saturation

4 out of 4 indicators were rated as PASS.

All four indicators must pass for the creek to be rated as PASS.

Learn more about how this report is created

  • Size: 4,967 acres
  • Location: North Sarasota County, south Manatee County
  • Discharges into: Sarasota Bay

For more information, please see: Sarasota Bay Water Quality Management Plan (2012)

View county-wide water quality trends »

Whitaker Bayou

Whitaker Bayou

Water Chemistry Ratings | Freshwater Portion of the Creek

Creek Conditions Ratings are based on comparing nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorophyll and dissolved oxygen to water quality guidelines or regulations. Florida law defines a maximum allowable concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus, and chlorophyll a, and a minimum allowable concentration of dissolved oxygen in these streams. Learn more about these ratings and how they are calculated »

Data for the following WBIDs is averaged when compiling the data below:
  • 1936A
Chart Legend
  • Trend Line
  • Annual Mean
  • Threshold
Pass

Chlorophyll a

Score: Pass
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.0019 0.0595
Mean 0.0009 0.0013 0.00568948
Low 0.0004 0.00
No. of Samples 7 500

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Pass

Nitrogen, Total

Score: Pass
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 1.243 15.76
Mean 1.0919 0.8836 1.3701533
Low 0.884 0.0019
No. of Samples 8 444

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Pass

Phosphorus, Total

Score: Pass
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.468 2.38
Mean 0.3181 0.2822 0.19019103
Low 0.23 0.082
No. of Samples 8 457

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Pass

Dissolved Oxygen Saturation

Note: Low DO saturation also may be naturally influenced by inflows from nearby wetlands or groundwater sources.
Score: Pass
Units: percent (%) Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 102.73 262.30
Mean 76.17 69.4 36.08176
Low 56.1551 2.20
No. of Samples 12 506

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

BOD, Biochemical oxygen demand

Units: mg/l Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 2.19 175.00
Mean 1.22 0.97 20.16683
Low 1.00 0.50
No. of Samples 8 389

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Color

Units: PCU Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 320.00 330.00
Mean 87.37 68.07 31.41938
Low 60.00 20.00
No. of Samples 11 574

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Escherichia coli

Units: MPN/100ml Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 15531.00 15531.00
Mean 4862.43 2778.68 3367.61883
Low 1169.00 97.00
No. of Samples 7 146

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Ammonia + Ammonium as N

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.08 30.06
Mean 0.02 0.02 2.40468702
Low 0.008 0.00
No. of Samples 8 534

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Kjeldahl

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 1.13 15.36
Mean 0.94 0.78 1.25004996
Low 0.777 0.20
No. of Samples 8 500

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Nitrite + Nitrate as N

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.199 1.02
Mean 0.14 0.08 0.14972531
Low 0.107 0.00
No. of Samples 8 472

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

pH

Units: None Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 9.32 11.77
Mean 8.04 7.64 0.36895
Low 7.4171 6.10
No. of Samples 12 821

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Salinity

Units: PSS Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 45.4582 45.4582
Mean 0.72 0.4 2.37769
Low 0.2981 0.00
No. of Samples 12 727

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Specific conductance

Units: umho Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 66296.20 66296.20
Mean 1408.91 736.71 5916.88448
Low 608.125 0.524
No. of Samples 12 834

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Temperature, water

Units: deg F Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 185.5672 192.1758
Mean 167.72 73.32 25.69691
Low 147.92 46.40
No. of Samples 12 804

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Turbidity

Units: NTU Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 56.40
Mean 2.9 4.70256
Low 0.50
No. of Samples 0 436

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Other Measures of Creek Health:

Water Chemistry Ratings | Tidal Portion of the Creek

Creek Conditions Ratings are based on comparing nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorophyll and dissolved oxygen to water quality guidelines or regulations. Florida law defines a maximum allowable concentration of chlorophyll a and a minimum allowable concentration of dissolved oxygen in these streams. Florida has no regulatory thresholds for nitrogen or phosphorus in tidal creeks so trends are used to rate the creeks. Learn more about these ratings and how they are calculated »

Data for the following WBIDs is averaged when compiling the data below:
  • 1936
Chart Legend
  • Trend Line
  • Annual Mean
  • Threshold
Pass

Chlorophyll a

Score: Pass
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.0 0.2
Mean 0.0067 0.0108 0.03182369
Low 0.0048 0.0004
No. of Samples 5 261

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Total

We were unable to determine a trend for the data available.
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 1.2 7.0
Mean 0.9004 0.9485 1.17438725
Low 0.773 0.0018
No. of Samples 6 242

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Phosphorus, Total

We were unable to determine a trend for the data available.
Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.4 2.0
Mean 0.2494 0.2125 0.36970037
Low 0.166 0.008
No. of Samples 6 268

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Pass

Dissolved Oxygen Saturation

Note: Low DO saturation also may be naturally influenced by inflows from nearby wetlands or groundwater sources
Score: Pass
Units: percent (%) Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 116.8 827.0
Mean 66.53 65.05 66.7
Low 12.80 0.00
No. of Samples 17 650

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

BOD, Biochemical oxygen demand

Units: mg/l Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 2.2 13.7
Mean 1.73 2.33 2.27525
Low 1.00 0.543
No. of Samples 6 202

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Color

Units: PCU Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 80.0 200.0
Mean 38.36 39.63 29.16534
Low 10.00 5.00
No. of Samples 9 358

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Enterococcus Group Bacteria

Units: MPN/100ml Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 33,000.0 33,000.0
Mean 726.02 320.03 4039.35575
Low 10.00 10.00
No. of Samples 10 151

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Ammonia + Ammonium as N

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.7 1.9
Mean 0.32 0.02 0.24432746
Low 0.03 0.00
No. of Samples 6 326

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Kjeldahl

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 1.2 6.3
Mean 0.88 0.89 0.88722587
Low 0.736 0.05
No. of Samples 6 311

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Nitrogen, Nitrite + Nitrate as N

Units: mg/L Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 0.0 3.3
Mean 0.02 0.06 0.34465063
Low 0.009 0.004
No. of Samples 6 274

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

pH

Units: None Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 8.1 9.6
Mean 7.63 7.62 0.41048
Low 6.16 4.90
No. of Samples 17 2,945

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Salinity

Units: PSS Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 41.3 45.0
Mean 25.44 6.3 15.3374
Low 0.4687 0.00
No. of Samples 24 2,976

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Specific conductance

Units: umho Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 60,513.4 61,139.3
Mean 36572.37 7573.05 22803.32695
Low 941.931 320.00
No. of Samples 17 2,762

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Temperature, water

Units: deg F Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 199.3 199.3
Mean 127.62 75.55 13.78833
Low 71.42 49.10
No. of Samples 17 3,094

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean

Turbidity

Units: NTU Year
2023
Historical
period of record
High 31.3
Mean 3.72 3.36441
Low 0.62
No. of Samples 0 493

Five-year Rolling Average

  • Annual Mean
Other Measures of Creek Health:

Oysters

Because they are immobile and will tolerate a fairly wide salinity range, eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) are valuable as an indicator of the relative health of aquatic ecosystems in the tidally-influenced portions of coastal creeks. Sarasota County has established an oyster monitoring program to track the location, types, and status of oyster reefs. Data from this monitoring program is shown below. Learn more about Oysters »

Loading oyster site map...

Impervious Features

Whitaker Bayou is located within the Sarasota Bay Watershed. View details about the Sarasota Bay Watershed »

Rain that falls on land that is in a natural state is absorbed and filtered by soils and vegetation as it makes it way into underground aquifers. However, in developed areas, "impervious surfaces" impede this process and contribute to polluted urban runoff entering surface waters. These surfaces include human infrastructure like roads, sidewalks, driveways and parking lots that are covered by impenetrable materials such as asphalt, concrete, brick and stone, as well as buildings and other permanent structures. Soils that have been disturbed and compacted by urban development are often impervious as well. Learn more about Impervious Features »

The Sarasota County Stormwater Environmental Utility (SEU) mapped impervious surfaces in the County in 2013. A map showing impervious surfaces can be viewed using the Water Atlas Map Viewer tool.

27% of the land area within the Whitaker Bayou Basin is covered by impervious surfaces

Impervious Surface Coverage by Type

Land Use / Land Cover

Whitaker Bayou is located within the Sarasota Bay Watershed. View details about the Sarasota Bay Watershed »

Land use within a creek's watershed has a major effect on its water quality. In general, less development means better water quality. Land Cover/Land Use classifications categorize land in terms of its observed physical surface characteristics (e.g. upland or wetland), and also reflect the types of activity that are taking place on it (agriculture, urban/built-up, utilities, etc.). Florida uses as its standard a set of statewide classifications which were developed by the Florida Department of Transportation. Learn more about Land Use and Land Cover »

Acreage and Percentage within each Land Use / Land Cover Category for Whitaker Bayou Basin
Land Use Classification 1990 1995 1999 2005 2011 2014 2017 2020 Trend
Urban & Built-up 3,83077.1% 3,83477.2% 3,83177.1% 3,90378.6% 3,95279.6% 3,92179% 3,95179.6% 3,97079.9% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Agriculture 2144.3% 1823.7% 1883.8% 1813.6% 1813.6% 1813.6% 1783.6% 1683.4% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Rangeland 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% 40.1% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Upland Forests 2354.7% 2495% 2495% 1953.9% 1643.3% 1953.9% 1643.3% 1583.2% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Water 1302.6% 1372.7% 1402.8% 1262.5% 881.8% 881.8% 891.8% 911.8% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Wetlands 3156.4% 2324.7% 2274.6% 2294.6% 2224.5% 2224.5% 2224.5% 2214.4% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Barren Land 00% 00% 00% 00% 00% 00% 30.1% 00% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Transportation and Utilities 2384.8% 3296.6% 3296.6% 3286.6% 3567.2% 3567.2% 3557.2% 3567.2% Land Use Trend Sparkline
Land Use Chart