MBSS Site Summary for: FR-P-294-357-96


Located on HUNTING CR in the Upper Monocacy River watershed, 8-digit code: 02140303.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/19/1996 and again in the summer on 8/29/1996.

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 - 4.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.5 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 14,497 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 4.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 28.3 %
Forested Land Use 66.4 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 17/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 9/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality 9/20 (Marginal)
Shading 78 %
Embeddedness 68 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 68%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 19 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.49
Conductivity 150 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		583.1 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.1 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 18 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Potomac Sculpin 90
Blacknose Dace 40
Bluegill 33
Blue Ridge Sculpin 27
Fallfish 27
Creek Chub 23
Greenside Darter 23
Central Stoneroller 17
Longnose Dace 17
White Sucker 16
Common Shiner 12
Redbreast Sunfish 12
Bluntnose Minnow 11
Spotfin Shiner 7
Green Sunfish 4
Pumpkinseed 2
Fantail Darter 1
Northern Hogsucker 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
No amphibians and reptiles noted.

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Prosimulium Black Fly 20
Stenelmis Beetle 13
Hydrobaenus Midge 10
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 10
Limnodrilus Worm 6
Crangonyx Amphipod 5
Eurylophella Mayfly 3
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 2
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Helius 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.