MBSS Site Summary for: BYNU-310-R-2004

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site BYNU-310-R-2004-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site BYNU-310-R-2004-2 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site BYNU-310-R-2004-3 (Opens in a new window)

Located on BYNUM RUN in the Bynum Run watershed, 8-digit code: 02130704.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/17/2004 and again in the summer on 8/5/2004.

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 Poor - 2.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 14,554 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 36 %
Agricultural Land Use 35 %
Forested Land Use 29 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 10/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 8/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 60 meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 15 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 65 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 65%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 21.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 3.2 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (3.2 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 7.54
Conductivity 265 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		568.8 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.7 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 24 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Pumpkinseed 43
Redbreast Sunfish 31
American Eel 26
White Sucker 19
Northern Hogsucker 16
Margined Madtom 12
Sea Lamprey 12
Satinfin Shiner 11
Common Shiner 8
Tessellated Darter 8
Green Sunfish 4
Largemouth Bass 4
White Perch 4
Blue Ridge Sculpin 3
Creek Chubsucker 3
Creek Chub 2
Cutlip Minnow 2
Smallmouth Bass 2
Yellow Bullhead 2
Brown Bullhead 1
Eastern Mudminnow 1
Fallfish 1
River Chub 1
Swallowtail Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern American Toad
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Hydrobaenus Midge 81
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 30
Crangonyx Amphipod 13
Rheosmittia Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 2
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 2
Limnodrilus Worm 2
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 1
Capniidae Small Winter Stonefly 1
Boyeria Spotted Darner Dragonfly 1
Oemopteryx Stonefly 1
Strophopteryx Early Brown Stonefly 1
Ptilostomis Giant Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Brachycentridae Humpless Case Maker Caddisfly 1
Leptoceridae Longhorned Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Nigronia Megaloptera (Dark Fishfly) 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.