MBSS Site Summary for: BA-N-065-215-96


Located on STEMMERS RUN in the Back River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130901.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/8/1996 and again in the summer on 7/2/1996.

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 Poor - 1.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,177 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 62 %
Agricultural Land Use 15.5 %
Forested Land Use 22.3 %


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 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 55 %
Embeddedness 70 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 70%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 23.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.36
Conductivity 402 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1364 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 5.2 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 7 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 151
Creek Chub 55
Swallowtail Shiner 4
American Eel 2
Bluegill 2
White Sucker 2
Satinfin Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Tipula Crane Fly 2
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Thienemannimyia Non-Biting Midges 2
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Dicrotendipes Non-Biting Midges 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.