MBSS Site Summary for: BA-P-179-125-96


Located on PARKER BR in the Little Gunpowder Falls watershed, 8-digit code: 02130804.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/9/1996 and again in the summer on 6/5/1996.

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 Fair - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 559 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 0 %
Agricultural Land Use 74.8 %
Forested Land Use 24.7 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 85 %
Embeddedness 50 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 15.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 10.2 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.97
Conductivity 90 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		295 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.3 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 11 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Rosyside Dace 146
Blacknose Dace 91
Creek Chub 60
Tessellated Darter 37
Cutlip Minnow 21
American Eel 11
White Sucker 6
Common Shiner 4
Margined Madtom 3
Northern Hogsucker 3
Longnose Dace 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 24
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 23
Acerpenna Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 6
Diamesa Bloodworm 6
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 4
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 2
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 1
Isoperla Stripetail Stonefly 1
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 1
Rhyacophila Free-Living Caddisfly 1
Epeorus Mayfly 1
Eurylophella Mayfly 1
Anchytarsus Beetle 1
Bezzia Biting Midge 1
Probezzia Biting Midges 1
Prosimulium Black Fly 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.