MBSS Site Summary for: LOCK-108-R-2003

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site LOCK-108-R-2003-0892 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site LOCK-108-R-2003-0893 (Opens in a new window)

Located on HUNTING CR (CK) UT1 in the Lower Choptank watershed, 8-digit code: 02130403.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/19/2003 and again in the summer on 7/7/2003.

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 Poor - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.3 / 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 136 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 1 %
Agricultural Land Use 94 %
Forested Land Use 5 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 5/20 (Poor)
Epifaunal Substrate 4/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 45 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 30 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 17.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.36
Conductivity 263 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		193.6 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.4 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 1 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
No Fish Observed 0
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Caecidotea Isopod 24
Crangonyctidae Scud 24
Synurella Amphipod 16
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 10
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 7
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 4
Hydrobaenus Midge 4
Naididae Aquatic Worm 3
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 3
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 3
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 3
Lumbriculidae Worm 3
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 3
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 2
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 2
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 1
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Pseudosuccinea Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Chironomini Non-Biting Midge 1
Chaetocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Dytiscidae Predaceous Diving Beetle 1
Agabus Predatory Aquatic Beetle 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.