INSTAR Sample Submission
- Log into INSTAR and click on the “Create new submission” button
- Download and save the template.
- Populate the spreadsheet, where each row is a sample. For example, if there are 12 samples, there will be 12 rows in the spreadsheet.
- Be sure to look at mandatory headers and dropdown menu cells. If a column has a dropdown menu, you can only choose from the values in the dropdown. If unsure what goes into a column, See table for information on the field values. If one still needs assistance, email NAMC staff (trip.armstrong@usu.edu or andrew.caudillo@usu.edu)
- Do not try to manually add values into dropdown columns, as the submission process will disallow.
- If sites have COMID from StreamCat, populating the COMID column will assist NAMC to accurately delineate watersheds.
- Once spreadsheet values are populated, save it as a new file and then upload it to INSTAR by clicking “Next” on the page where you downloaded the template. Drag and drop the file or navigate to the file via the website’s browse files option. INSTAR will check for discrepancies in the data. If any arise, INSTAR will return the cell number(s) that have issues. Fix those issues in the data sheet and repeat step #5.
- INSTAR provides notification after data have been accepted. Instar provides an option to download a chain of custody form or close out of the browser.
| Field | Status | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Site ID | Mandatory | The name/code you are calling a site |
| Visit ID | Optional | An optional concatenation of site and date or similar value |
| Sample Date | Mandatory | Date of sampling effort for this site |
| Jar Count | Mandatory | The number of jars this sample is in |
| Field Split (%) | Mandatory | The total % of sample being sent to NAMC. Ususally 100 unless the sample was subsampled in the field. |
| Latitude (DD) | Mandatory | Latitude (in decimal degrees, not DMS) |
| Longitude (DD) | Mandatory | Longitude (in decimal degrees, no DMS) |
| Waterbody Name | Mandatory | The name of the water body. If the waterbody has no given name, put NA |
| Ecosystem: Habitat | Mandatory | The type of habitat sampled. Choose from the dropdown |
| Sample Design | Mandatory | The style of sampling (targeted, reachwide, etc.) choose from dropdown |
| Sample Effort Standarized | Mandatory | Area or time. Choose from dropdown |
| Area (m2) or Time (min) | Mandatory | The area sampled or time sampled, based on the previous column |
| Sampler Type | Mandatory | The type of net or apparatus used to sample |
| Mesh Size (μm) | Optional | The size of the mesh of the net or apparatus used to sample |
| NHD Type | Optional | If you have a COMID, where did it come from? Choose from dropdown |
| NHD ID | Optional | COMID from StreamCat |