MBSS Site Summary for: MICR-113-R-2003

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site MICR-113-R-2003-0979 (Opens in a new window)

Located on URIEVILLE LAKE UT1 UT1 in the Middle Chester River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130509.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/2/2003 and again in the summer on 6/24/2003.

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 - 3.6 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 543 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 84 %
Forested Land Use 7 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat

Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 25 meters
10/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 50 meters
15/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 98 %
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 18.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.4 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.43
Conductivity 157 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity)
228.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3.3 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 4 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Least Brook Lamprey 11
American Eel 5
Eastern Mudminnow 5
Tessellated Darter 4
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:

Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:

No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:

No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:

Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 48
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 9
Pseudorthocladius Non-Biting Midges 7
Leptophlebiidae Pronggilled Mayfly 6
Clinotanypus Non-Biting Midge 6
Apsectrotanypus Non-Biting Midges 6
Stegopterna Black Fly 5
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 4
Synurella Amphipod 4
Trissopelopia Non-Biting Midges 3
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 2
Rheosmittia Non-Biting Midges 2
Nigronia Megaloptera (Dark Fishfly) 2
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 2
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Chironominae Non-Biting Midge 1
Hydrobius Water Scavenger Beetle 1
Dineutus Whirlygig Beetle 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Helichus Beetle 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Tipulidae Cranefly 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Chaetocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Menetus Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Stagnicola Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 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.