MBSS Site Summary for: CE-P-019-210-97


Located on BASIN RUN in the Octoraro Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02120203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/4/1997 and again in the summer on 6/10/1997.

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 Fair - 3.7 / 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 7,180 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 0.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 59.1 %
Forested Land Use 39.7 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 18/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 17/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 18/20 (Optimal)
Shading 75 %
Embeddedness 35 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 19.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 9.3 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.49
Conductivity 186 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		573.2 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 4.4 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 15 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Longnose Dace 205
American Eel 150
Blacknose Dace 110
Rosyside Dace 82
Cutlip Minnow 46
Tessellated Darter 21
Margined Madtom 6
Brown Trout 5
Creek Chub 3
White Sucker 3
Northern Hogsucker 2
Common Shiner 1
River Chub 1
Rock Bass 1
Smallmouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 47
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 33
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 12
Diamesa Bloodworm 10
Clinocera Aquatic Dance Fly 3
Prosimulium Black Fly 3
Strophopteryx Early Brown Stonefly 3
Chloroperlidae Green Stonefly 1
Dicranota Hairy-Eyed Cranefly 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 1
Antocha Crane Fly 1
Hemerodromia Tiny Fly 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.