MBSS Site Summary for: KE-N-128-122-97


Located on Unt trib Uriville Lake in the Middle Chester River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130509.
This stream was visited in the spring on 5/5/1997 and again in the summer on 8/13/1997.

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 N R
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area No data available 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 No data available
Agricultural Land Use No data available
Forested Land Use No data available


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

Physical Stream Habitat

Instream Habitat 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 8/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters
12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 10/20 (Marginal)
Shading 80 %
Embeddedness 95 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 95%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:

Water temperature 23.4 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 3.8 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (3.8 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 7.03
Conductivity 205 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity)
575.64785 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 4.917 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
Redbreast Sunfish 149
Tadpole Madtom 64
Tessellated Darter 50
Eastern Mudminnow 43
Pumpkinseed 19
Creek Chubsucker 18
Golden Shiner 18
American Eel 10
Bluegill 5
Largemouth Bass 5
Least Brook Lamprey 3
Brown Bullhead 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:

American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:

Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:

No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:

Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Benthic data unavailable.
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.