MBSS Site Summary for: PG-S-032-209-95


Located on MATTAWOMAN CR in the Mattawoman Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140111.
This stream was visited in the spring on 2/27/1995 and again in the summer on 6/13/1995.

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 - 2.4 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 8,471 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 11.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 20.1 %
Forested Land Use 60.2 %


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 5/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 75 %
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 18.6 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 3.2 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (3.2 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 6.29
Conductivity 101 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		130.7 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 5 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
Eastern Mudminnow 33
Tessellated Darter 15
Golden Shiner 6
American Eel 4
Chain Pickerel 4
Pumpkinseed 4
Bluegill 2
Creek Chubsucker 1
Tadpole Madtom 1
Yellow Bullhead 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Wormsnake
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Stegopterna Black Fly 165
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 24
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 5
Crangonyx Amphipod 5
Nemouridae Nemourid Stonefly 3
Stenelmis Beetle 2
Caecidotea Isopod 2
Glossosoma Little Black Caddisfly 1
Isoperla Stripetail 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.