MBSS Site Summary for: BELK-306-R-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site BELK-306-R-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site BELK-306-R-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on BIG ELK CREEK in the Big Elk Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130606.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/3/2008 and again in the summer on 6/10/2008.

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 - 4.3 / 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 34,848 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 4.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 70.5 %
Forested Land Use 24.1 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 50 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 65 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Shading 60 %
Embeddedness 15 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 24 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.5 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.61
Conductivity 204 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		456.8 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.9048 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 21 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blue Ridge Sculpin 245
Longnose Dace 98
White Sucker 86
American Eel 59
Common Shiner 45
Margined Madtom 31
River Chub 29
Tessellated Darter 29
Satinfin Shiner 24
Northern Hogsucker 19
Redbreast Sunfish 13
Rosyface Shiner 11
Sea Lamprey 6
Smallmouth Bass 5
Spottail Shiner 5
Swallowtail Shiner 3
Blacknose Dace 2
Least Brook Lamprey 2
Rosyside Dace 2
Banded Killifish 1
Cutlip Minnow 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern American Toad
Eastern Red-Backed Salamander
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Watersnake
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

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

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 18
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 17
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 15
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 10
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 7
Corbicula Basket Clam 4
Antocha Crane Fly 4
Leucotrichia 3
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 2
Hemerodromia Tiny Fly 1
Micrasema 1
Petrophila 1
Synorthocladius 1
Clinocera Aquatic Dance Fly 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Corydalus Dobsonfly 1
Robackia European Non-Biting Midge 1
Girardia Freshwater Flatworm 1
Prosimulium Black Fly 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Lymnaeidae Pond Snail 1
Macronychus Riffle Beetle 1
Microcylloepus Riffle Beetle 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.