MBSS Site Summary for: CE-P-012-210-96


Located on PRINCIPIO CR in the Furnace Bay watershed, 8-digit code: 02130609.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/14/1996 and again in the summer on 8/6/1996.

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 - 4.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 5,068 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 0.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 80.2 %
Forested Land Use 19.2 %


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 17/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 85 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. 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 21.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 10.5 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.96
Conductivity 170 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		420.5 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 18 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Common Shiner 160
Rosyside Dace 137
Margined Madtom 134
White Sucker 125
Cutlip Minnow 88
Creek Chub 84
Tessellated Darter 58
American Eel 42
Northern Hogsucker 31
Blacknose Dace 27
Swallowtail Shiner 24
River Chub 20
Bluegill 10
Satinfin Shiner 8
Blue Ridge Sculpin 5
Largemouth Bass 4
Pumpkinseed 4
Redbreast Sunfish 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Two-Lined Salamander
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Prosimulium Black Fly 60
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 5
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 4
Hydrobaenus Midge 4
Strophopteryx Early Brown Stonefly 4
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 3
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 3
Eurylophella Mayfly 3
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 2
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 2
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 2
Acroneuria Golden Stoneflies 1
Epeorus Mayfly 1
Stegopterna Black Fly 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Corydalus Dobsonfly 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Conchapelopia 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.