MBSS Site Summary for: CH-S-080-222-95


Located on MATTAWOMAN CR in the Mattawoman Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140111.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/14/1995 and again in the summer on 7/3/1995.

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 - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.4 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 31,254 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 10.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 18.6 %
Forested Land Use 67 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 3/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 1/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		2/20 (Poor)
Riffle Quality 0/20 (Poor)
Shading 95 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Poor' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 18.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 1.8 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (1.8 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 5.94
Conductivity 95 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		40 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 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 1 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Eastern Mudminnow 9
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Fowler's Toad
Pickerel Frog
Red-Spotted Newt

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Siphlonurus Gray Drake Mayfly 28
Caecidotea Isopod 22
Leptophlebia Pronggilled Mayfly 20
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 9
Eurylophella Mayfly 4
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 3
Soyedina 2
Hexatoma Crane Fly 1
Procladius Non-Biting Midge 1
Oemopteryx Stonefly 1
Polycentropus Tube Maker Caddisfly 1
Hydroporus Water Beetle 1
Promenetus 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.