MBSS Site Summary for: LIEL-114-R-2016

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-114-R-2016_Midpoint looking downstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-114-R-2016_Midpoint looking upstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on Little Elk Creek in the Little Elk Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130605.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/29/2016 and again in the summer on 7/12/2016.

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 - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 17,874 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 20.3 %
Agricultural Land Use 49.4 %
Forested Land Use 25 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 40 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 30 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Shading 60 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.57
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		686.7 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.3174 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 20 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 139
Tessellated Darter 100
White Sucker 78
Blue Ridge Sculpin 73
Margined Madtom 65
River Chub 64
Cutlip Minnow 41
Northern Hogsucker 28
Smallmouth Bass 26
Redbreast Sunfish 22
Common Shiner 19
Longnose Dace 18
Creek Chub 14
Spottail Shiner 11
Blacknose Dace 5
Pumpkinseed 4
Sea Lamprey 4
Bluegill 2
Redfin Pickerel 2
Yellow Perch 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Fowler's Toad
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Hops
Japanese Knotweed
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 27
Orthocladiinae Midge 18
Hydrobaenus Midge 14
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 11
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 6
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 4
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 4
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 4
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 4
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Crangonyx Amphipod 2
Lumbriculidae Worm 2
Polycentropus Tube Maker Caddisfly 2
Psephenus Water Penny 1
Dineutus Whirlygig Beetle 1
Prosimulium Black Fly 1
Simulium Black Fly 1
Diamesa Bloodworm 1
Antocha Crane Fly 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Corydalus Dobsonfly 1
Diphetor Mayfly 1
Prostoma Freshwater Nemertean (Ribbon Worm) 1
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 1
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 1
Argia Narrow-Winged Damselfly 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.