MBSS Site Summary for: CA-S-074-218-97


Located on PARKER CR in the West Chesapeake Bay watershed, 8-digit code: 02131005.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/30/1997 and again in the summer on 7/1/1997.

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 Poor - 2.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,840 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 16.9 %
Agricultural Land Use 13.7 %
Forested Land Use 69.5 %


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 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 5/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		10/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 70 %
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 20.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.5 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.01
Conductivity 200 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		624.9 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.6 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 5 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Eastern Mudminnow 148
American Eel 34
Blacknose Dace 24
Creek Chubsucker 1
Redfin Pickerel 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Black Racer
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
Crangonyx Amphipod 88
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 6
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 5
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Lumbriculidae Worm 2
Caecidotea Isopod 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 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.