MBSS Site Summary for: LCON-203-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LCON-203-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LCON-203-B-2008-2 (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 3/18/2008 and again in the summer on 7/14/2008.

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 Poor - 2.5 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,223 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 2.5 %
Agricultural Land Use 2.2 %
Forested Land Use 94.8 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 9/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 9/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 59 meters 		8/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 17 meters 		10/20 (Marginal)
Shading 35 %
Embeddedness 75 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 75%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 24.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.3 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.07
Conductivity 116 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		229.7 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.4564 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 7 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 81
Creek Chub 45
Bluntnose Minnow 15
White Sucker 12
Bluegill 4
Green Sunfish 3
Pumpkinseed 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Cricket Frog
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Two-Lined Salamander
Pickerel Frog
Spotted Salamander
Upland Chorus Frog
Wood Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Autumn Olive
Canada Thistle
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Prosimulium Black Fly 75
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 6
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 4
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 3
Stegopterna Black Fly 3
Neophylax Caddisfly 3
Nemouridae Nemourid Stonefly 3
Ptilostomis Giant Casemaker Caddisfly 2
Tanypodinae Non-Biting Midges 2
Tanytarsini Non-Biting Midges 2
Perlodidae Perlodid Stonefly 2
Capniidae Small Winter Stonefly 1
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 1
Stilocladius Midge 1
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Strophopteryx Early Brown 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.