MBSS Site Summary for: ATKI-204-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site ATKI-204-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site ATKI-204-B-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on EAST BRANCH in the Atkisson Reservoir watershed, 8-digit code: 02130703.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/6/2008 and again in the summer on 7/18/2008.

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) Results:

An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) is a scientific tool used to identify and classify stream health. An IBI associates anthropogenic influences on a stream or with biological condition in the stream, and is formulated using data developed from biosurveys.
Details on the development and application of MBSS IBIs are in this document.
Fish IBI Good - 5.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 5,842 acres Cows standing in a stream at a site with high agricultural land use. Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
Urban Land Use 3.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 58.2 %
Forested Land Use 37.2 %


Stream showing woody debris, logs, and rocky substrate.
An example of woody debris in a stream.

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 70 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 50 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 35 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.34
Conductivity 175 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		401.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.017 mg/L

Biological Stream Condition:

Surveys of the organisms living within a stream can give indications of stream health. Species richness, or the number of different species present, as well as indicator species (species whose presence, absence or abundance can serve as a measure of environmental conditions) are informative for stream health. 		Close-up of a mayfly indicator species.

Fish Survey Results:
The following 14 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blue Ridge Sculpin 378
Rosyside Dace 125
Creek Chub 105
Bluntnose Minnow 85
Fallfish 76
Longnose Dace 57
Blacknose Dace 55
White Sucker 45
Northern Hogsucker 27
Common Shiner 19
Cutlip Minnow 16
River Chub 11
Tessellated Darter 8
Smallmouth Bass 3
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Fowler's Toad
Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Barberry
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Prosimulium Black Fly 22
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 19
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 14
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 7
Ephemerellidae Spiny Crawler Mayfly 6
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 6
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 4
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 3
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 2
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 2
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 2
Pseudorthocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 1
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 1
Orthocladiinae Midge 1
Stilocladius Midge 1
Acroneuria Golden Stoneflies 1
Antocha Crane Fly 1
Parakiefferiella European Non-Biting Midge 1
Chelifera Aquatic Dance Fly 1
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Kick net sampling for macroinvertebrates.
Sampling with a kick net.

Information disclaimer: The information and data on this page is for guidance and general planning purposes only. It should not be used to make decisions on specific matters.