MBSS Site Summary for: MONY-101-N-2004


Located on MONOCACY R UT 1 in the Lower Monocacy River watershed, 8-digit code: 02140302.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/2/2004 and again in the summer on 6/22/2004.

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 - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 445 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 11 %
Agricultural Land Use 54 %
Forested Land Use 30 %


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 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 7/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 56 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 25 meters 		8/20 (Marginal)
Shading 30 %
Embeddedness 35 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 19.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 9.46
Conductivity 377 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1049 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.6 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 8 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 186
Blue Ridge Sculpin 52
White Sucker 47
Longnose Dace 35
Fantail Darter 24
Central Stoneroller 6
Bluntnose Minnow 1
Potomac Sculpin 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Stiltgrass
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Diamesa Bloodworm 91
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 4
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 3
Capniidae Small Winter Stonefly 2
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 2
Simulium Black Fly 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 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.