MBSS Site Summary for: LIEL-307-R-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-307-R-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-307-R-2008-2 (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 3/26/2008 and again in the summer on 6/3/2008.

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 Good - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 10,647 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 3.3 %
Agricultural Land Use 78.8 %
Forested Land Use 16.7 %


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 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 65 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 20 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Shading 10 %
Embeddedness 25 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 18 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 10.5 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.65
Conductivity 202 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		726.3 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.5507 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 16 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Swallowtail Shiner 346
Tessellated Darter 113
Satinfin Shiner 110
Redbreast Sunfish 81
White Sucker 69
American Eel 31
Blue Ridge Sculpin 31
Longnose Dace 25
Rosyside Dace 20
Smallmouth Bass 12
Northern Hogsucker 7
Margined Madtom 5
Blacknose Dace 2
Pumpkinseed 2
Bluegill 1
Largemouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern Painted Turtle
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Hops
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 30
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 8
Serratella Mayfly 7
Ephemerellidae Spiny Crawler Mayfly 7
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 6
Orthocladiinae Midge 5
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 5
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 4
Stenelmis Beetle 4
Psephenus Water Penny 4
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 4
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 3
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Tanytarsini Non-Biting Midges 2
Oulimnius Riffle Beetle 2
Prosimulium Black Fly 2
Berosus 2
Antocha Crane Fly 2
Parakiefferiella European Non-Biting Midge 2
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Diamesinae Non-Biting Midges 1
Girardia Freshwater Flatworm 1
Leucotrichia 1
Simulium Black Fly 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Dubiraphia Riffle Beetle 1
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 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.