MBSS Site Summary for: MAGO-107-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site MAGO-107-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site MAGO-107-B-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on CYPRESS CREEK in the Magothy River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131001.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/10/2008 and again in the summer on 6/27/2008.

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 - 1.6 / 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 466 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 80.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 8.8 %
Forested Land Use 9.9 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 4/20 (Poor)
Epifaunal Substrate 2/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 69 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 8 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 85 %
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 23.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 5.4 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.33
Conductivity 496 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		549.2 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.9589 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 2 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Golden Shiner 19
American Eel 11
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
English Ivy
Garlic Mustard
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Privet
Tree Of Heaven
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Dicrotendipes Non-Biting Midges 7
Argia Narrow-Winged Damselfly 5
Coenagrionidae Narrowwinged Damselfly 2
Pachydiplax 2
Pericoma 1
Synurella Amphipod 1
Spirosperma Aquatic Oligochaete Worm 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 1
Dugesiidae Flatworm 1
Plathemis Long-Tailed Skimmer Dragonfly 1
Diptera True Fly 1
Limnodrilus Worm 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 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.