MBSS Site Summary for: OCTO-102-C-2001

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site OCTO-102-C-2001-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site OCTO-102-C-2001-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on LOVE RUN in the Octoraro Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02120203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/16/2001 and again in the summer on 7/24/2001.

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 Good - 4.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 613 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 2 %
Agricultural Land Use 81 %
Forested Land Use 17 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 44 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 41 meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 92 %
Embeddedness 17 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 21 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.1 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.38
Conductivity 180 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		647.3 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 10 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 101
Rosyside Dace 56
Creek Chub 40
American Eel 26
Tessellated Darter 16
White Sucker 8
Bluegill 5
Cutlip Minnow 5
Brown Trout 4
Longnose Dace 1
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:
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 47
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 14
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 11
Oulimnius Riffle Beetle 6
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 5
Leptophlebia Pronggilled Mayfly 4
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 3
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 3
Neophylax Caddisfly 3
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 3
Epeorus Mayfly 2
Eurylophella Mayfly 2
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Habrophlebia Prong-Gilled Mayfly 1
Leuctridae Rolledwinged Stonefly 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Clinocera Aquatic Dance Fly 1
Probezzia Biting Midges 1
Prosimulium Black Fly 1
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 1
Rhyacophila Free-Living Caddisfly 1
Acroneuria Golden Stoneflies 1
Chloroperlidae Green Stonefly 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.