MBSS Site Summary for: BRET-109-H-2009


Located on Burnt Hill Creek in the Breton Bay watershed, 8-digit code: 02140104.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/30/2009 and again in the summer on 7/28/2009.

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 N R
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 588 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 6 %
Agricultural Land Use 28.7 %
Forested Land Use 64.4 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 4/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 64 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 12 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.9 mg/L
Conductivity 87 µmho/cm

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 4 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Bluegill 25
Eastern Mudminnow 6
American Eel 4
Pirate Perch 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander
Southern Leopard Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus diogenes
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Benthic data unavailable.
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.