MBSS Site Summary for: FR-P-009-347-96


Located on FLAT RUN in the Upper Monocacy River watershed, 8-digit code: 02140303.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/14/1996 and again in the summer on 8/6/1996.

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 - 4.3 / 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 6,074 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 0.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 63.1 %
Forested Land Use 35.4 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 55 %
Embeddedness 20 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 9.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.63
Conductivity 242 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1052 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.8 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 16 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Central Stoneroller 388
Blacknose Dace 132
Bluntnose Minnow 116
Greenside Darter 90
Creek Chub 69
Fantail Darter 57
Longnose Dace 46
Bluegill 18
Green Sunfish 14
White Sucker 9
Yellow Bullhead 8
Redbreast Sunfish 6
Largemouth Bass 3
Swallowtail Shiner 3
Lepomis Hybrid 1
Smallmouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Hydrobaenus Midge 36
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 35
Allocapnia Small Winter Stonefly 18
Prosimulium Black Fly 8
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 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.