MBSS Site Summary for: NEAS-205-R-2016

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site NEAS-205-R-2016_midpoint looking downstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site NEAS-205-R-2016_midpoint looking upstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on Northeast Creek in the Northeast River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130608.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/29/2016 and again in the summer on 8/31/2016.

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 - 1.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 10,644 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 8.8 %
Agricultural Land Use 66 %
Forested Land Use 17.9 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 8/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 5/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 87 %
Embeddedness 80 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 80%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.58
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		887.9 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 5.1675 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 14 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
White Sucker 242
Creek Chub 42
Spottail Shiner 38
Pumpkinseed 25
Tessellated Darter 24
Bluegill 21
Common Shiner 18
Cutlip Minnow 18
Northern Hogsucker 14
Largemouth Bass 12
American Eel 6
Margined Madtom 4
Redbreast Sunfish 4
Banded Killifish 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern American Toad
Gray Treefrog
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Barberry
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Hops
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 40
Orthocladiinae Midge 24
Hydrobaenus Midge 7
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 6
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 4
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 4
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 3
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 2
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 2
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Stempellinella Non-Biting Midges 1
Diamesinae Non-Biting Midges 1
Labrundinia Non-Biting Midges 1
Microtendipes Non-Biting Midges 1
Helichus Beetle 1
Simuliidae Black Fly 1
Acroneuria Golden Stoneflies 1
Cladotanytarsus Non-Biting Midge 1
Goniobasis 1
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 1
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 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.