MBSS Site Summary for: DIVI-111-R-2015

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site DIVI-111-R-2015_At-50m-mark-looking-downstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site DIVI-111-R-2015_At-50m-mark-looking-upstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on POLLITTS BRANCH in the Dividing Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130204.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/7/2015 and again in the summer on 6/8/2015.

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 Poor - 2.1 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,292 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 3.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 9.7 %
Forested Land Use 84.1 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 6/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 3/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 67 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 8 meters 		5/20 (Poor)
Shading 0 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 5.84
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		81.9 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 6.7658 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 8 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Tadpole Madtom 14
Creek Chubsucker 13
Pirate Perch 10
American Eel 6
Yellow Bullhead 6
Eastern Mudminnow 5
Golden Shiner 4
Brown Bullhead 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern Painted Turtle
Northern Green Frog
Southern Leopard Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Mile-A-Minute
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Simulium Black Fly 85
Dicrotendipes Non-Biting Midges 7
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 4
Triaenodes Long-Horned Caddisfly 4
Stegopterna Black Fly 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Enallagma Narrow-Winged Damselfly 2
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 2
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Oxyethira Microcaddisfly 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Hyalella Amphipod 1
Synurella Amphipod 1
Thienemanniella 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.