MBSS Site Summary for: MONY-103-N-2004


Located on MONOCACY R UT 1 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 Poor - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.4 / 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 201 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 5 %
Agricultural Land Use 75 %
Forested Land Use 10 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 6/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 40 meters 		5/20 (Poor)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 45 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 10 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 25.6 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.2 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.72
Conductivity 255 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		758.5 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.9 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
Blacknose Dace 4
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
No amphibians and reptiles noted.

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Simulium Black Fly 64
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 4
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 4
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 4
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Diamesa Bloodworm 3
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 3
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 2
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 2
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Rheosmittia Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Agabus Predatory Aquatic Beetle 1
Chironomidae Non-Biting Midge 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Probezzia Biting Midges 1
Erpobdellidae Leech 1
Dolichopodidae Long-Legged Fly 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.