MBSS Site Summary for: CONO-101-R-2016

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site CONO-101-R-2016-MidpointDownstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site CONO-101-R-2016-MidpointUpstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on UT to Conococheague in the Conococheague Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140504.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/23/2016 and again in the summer on 6/7/2016.

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 - 1.3 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.5 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 937 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 71.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 21.6 %
Forested Land Use 5.9 %


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 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 53 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 22 meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 75 %
Embeddedness 65 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 65%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.75
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		5573 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.5339 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 3 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 114
Green Sunfish 7
Bluntnose Minnow 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Autumn Olive
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Shrub Honeysuckle
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Lirceus Isopod 80
Gammarus Amphipod 42
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 4
Neophylax Caddisfly 2
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 2
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 1
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Tribelos 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.