MBSS Site Summary for: FR-P-168-218-96


Located on TUSCARORA CR in the Potomac River FR Cnty watershed, 8-digit code: 02140301.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/12/1996 and again in the summer on 8/21/1996.

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 Fair - 3.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.8 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 2,685 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 8 %
Agricultural Land Use 73.3 %
Forested Land Use 17.4 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 7/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 9/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 92 %
Embeddedness 0 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 9 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.72
Conductivity 345 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1663 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.2 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 12 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Bluntnose Minnow 76
Green Sunfish 33
Blacknose Dace 30
White Sucker 15
Creek Chub 14
Banded Killifish 6
Pumpkinseed 3
Fantail Darter 2
Spotfin Shiner 2
Bluegill 1
Brown Bullhead 1
Redbreast Sunfish 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Two-Lined 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
Stenelmis Beetle 15
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 11
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 11
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 10
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 5
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 4
Thienemannimyia Non-Biting Midges 4
Limonia 2
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Corydalus Dobsonfly 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.