What kid has not gone to a pond or a creek with a jar and a net?  Only those children whose lives are sadly lacking in the finer things of life.

This grouping includes all or parts of some of the other groups.

Water quality has a lot to do with the survival of these species.  Iowa has notoriously poor water quality.  Fortunately, there have been some groups who have worked to improve water quality, including fishing groups and coalitions of others.

There is a volunteer/citizen science group,  Iowater, that works to monitor and improve Iowa's water quality.

The University of Iowa Hygienics Lab has an excellent website on Iowa's Aquatic Macroinvertebrates.  This shows photos and range maps for a number of aquatic insect larva and other organisms.

There are a number of groups who conduct river cleanup events. 

Most bioblitzes include aquatic sampling if possible.  But you don't really need to know anything about what you see to get some enjoyment out of watching the critters swimming around in a jar of water dipped from the weedy part of a pond.