MBSS Site Summary for: CE-P-085-109-96


Located on GRANNIES BR in the Big Elk Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130606.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/20/1996 and again in the summer on 7/23/1996.

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 - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.7 / 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 217 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 1.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 56.2 %
Forested Land Use 41.9 %


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 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 65 %
Embeddedness 80 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 80%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 16.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 10.2 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.9
Conductivity 144 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		616.6 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 7.6 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
Blacknose Dace 64
Blue Ridge Sculpin 47
American Eel 9
Rosyside Dace 4
Creek Chub 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Dusky 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
Prosimulium Black Fly 23
Serratella Mayfly 15
Eurylophella Mayfly 14
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 8
Orthocladiinae A Non-Biting Midges 8
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 7
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 5
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 3
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 3
Oulimnius Riffle Beetle 2
Anchytarsus Beetle 2
Stegopterna Black Fly 2
Diamesa Bloodworm 2
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Chloroperlidae Green Stonefly 1
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 1
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 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.