MBSS Site Summary for: LIEL-312-R-2003

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-312-R-2003-1006 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LIEL-312-R-2003-1007 (Opens in a new window)

Located on LITTLE ELK CR in the Little Elk Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130605.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/14/2003 and again in the summer on 8/5/2003.

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 Fair - 3.3 / 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 9,221 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 %
Agricultural Land Use 77 %
Forested Land Use 18 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 57 meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 22 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Shading 10 %
Embeddedness 55 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 55%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
pH (lab) 8.66
Conductivity 182 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		724.5 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.6 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
Tessellated Darter 170
White Sucker 124
American Eel 51
Bluegill 51
Creek Chub 44
Redbreast Sunfish 36
Swallowtail Shiner 33
Smallmouth Bass 23
Blue Ridge Sculpin 9
Satinfin Shiner 8
Largemouth Bass 6
Margined Madtom 6
Pumpkinseed 2
Black Crappie 1
Fathead Minnow 1
Northern Hogsucker 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Canada Thistle
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 13
Caenis Mayfly 10
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 9
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 9
Eurylophella Mayfly 6
Hydrobaenus Midge 5
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 5
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 4
Argia Narrow-Winged Damselfly 4
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Diamesa Bloodworm 3
Peltodytes Crawling Water Beetle 3
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 3
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 3
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 2
Stenelmis Beetle 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Helisoma 2
Clinocera Aquatic Dance Fly 2
Chaetocladius Non-Biting Midges 2
Labrundinia Non-Biting Midges 2
Orthocladiinae Midge 2
Dubiraphia Riffle Beetle 2
Macronychus Riffle Beetle 1
Enallagma Narrow-Winged Damselfly 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Oecetis Long-Horned Caddisfly 1
Gomphidae Clubtail Dragonfly 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 1
Corixidae Water Boatman 1
Curculionidae Weevil 1
Dineutus Whirlygig Beetle 1
Allocapnia Small Winter Stonefly 1
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 1
Boyeria Spotted Darner Dragonfly 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.