MBSS Site Summary for: PISC-101-B-2007

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PISC-101-B-2007-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PISC-101-B-2007-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on Paynes Branch in the Piscataway Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/3/2007 and again in the summer on 7/11/2007.

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 Good - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.9 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,126 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 85.2 %
Agricultural Land Use 5.1 %
Forested Land Use 8.3 %


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 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 60 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 29 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 94 %
Embeddedness 30 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.4 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.94
Conductivity 323 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		458.3 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.2929 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
Blacknose Dace 64
Creek Chub 63
Green Sunfish 38
Satinfin Shiner 18
Longnose Dace 13
Creek Chubsucker 7
Rosyside Dace 5
Tessellated Darter 5
American Eel 3
Common Shiner 3
Swallowtail Shiner 3
Redbreast Sunfish 2
Eastern Mudminnow 1
White Sucker 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern Snapping Turtle

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Heleniella European Non-Biting Midge 93
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 18
Orthocladiinae Midge 9
Rheosmittia Non-Biting Midges 2
Simulium Black Fly 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Micropsectra 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.