MBSS Site Summary for: LCON-201-R-2007

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LCON-201-R-2007-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LCON-201-R-2007-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on Little Conococheague Creek in the Little Conococheague watershed, 8-digit code: 02140505.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/19/2007 and again in the summer on 6/20/2007.

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 Poor - 2.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,454 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 2.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 5.3 %
Forested Land Use 91.8 %


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 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 58 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 20 meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 10 %
Embeddedness 40 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 21.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 5.3 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.03
Conductivity 114 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		208.7 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.4007 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 10 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Green Sunfish 75
Blacknose Dace 23
Bluntnose Minnow 23
White Sucker 23
Golden Shiner 15
Creek Chub 11
Bluegill 10
Yellow Bullhead 4
Largemouth Bass 3
Pumpkinseed 3
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Canada Thistle
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 31
Prosimulium Black Fly 21
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 12
Centroptilum Small Minnow Mayfly 8
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 5
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 5
Stegopterna Black Fly 4
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 3
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 2
Simuliidae Black Fly 2
Acerpenna Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 2
Diamesa Bloodworm 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Empididae Dance Fly 1
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 1
Chironomini Non-Biting Midge 1
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 1
Labrundinia Non-Biting Midges 1
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Perlodidae Perlodid Stonefly 1
Isoperla Stripetail Stonefly 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.