MBSS Site Summary for: BA-P-312-309-96


Located on THIRD MINE BR in the Loch Raven Reservoir watershed, 8-digit code: 02130805.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/11/1996 and again in the summer on 7/10/1996.

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 Good - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 4,382 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 57.6 %
Forested Land Use 42.1 %


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 16/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 18/20 (Optimal)
Shading 70 %
Embeddedness 70 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 70%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 9.8 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.35
Conductivity 136 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		281.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.5 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
Blacknose Dace 332
Creek Chub 91
Longnose Dace 86
River Chub 79
Common Shiner 66
Cutlip Minnow 62
Rosyside Dace 59
Margined Madtom 45
Northern Hogsucker 33
White Sucker 25
Brown Trout 4
Tessellated Darter 4
Bluegill 3
Central Stoneroller 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 29
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 19
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 5
Prosimulium Black Fly 4
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 3
Hemerodromia Tiny Fly 3
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 2
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Stegopterna Black Fly 2
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 2
Epeorus Mayfly 1
Nigronia Megaloptera (Dark Fishfly) 1
Drunella Blue-Winged Olive Mayfly 1
Ormosia Cranefly 1
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 1
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 1
Polypedilum 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.