MBSS Site Summary for: PISC-208-R-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PISC-208-R-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PISC-208-R-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on PISCATAWAY CREEK in the Piscataway Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/13/2008 and again in the summer on 7/29/2008.

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 - 4.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 7,911 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 39.9 %
Agricultural Land Use 18.2 %
Forested Land Use 39.7 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 3 meters 		8/20 (Marginal)
Shading 75 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.5 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 5 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.09
Conductivity 168 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		422.2 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 5.7819 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 17 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Spottail Shiner 128
Redbreast Sunfish 54
Green Sunfish 43
Tessellated Darter 43
Creek Chubsucker 38
Satinfin Shiner 27
Eastern Mudminnow 18
American Eel 12
White Sucker 11
Eastern Mosquitofish 10
Sea Lamprey 10
Bluegill 9
Fallfish 9
Margined Madtom 6
Creek Chub 5
Yellow Bullhead 4
Pumpkinseed 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Gray Treefrog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 54
Hydrobaenus Midge 44
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 6
Pseudochironomus Non-Biting Midge 4
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 1
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 1
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 1
Chironomini Non-Biting Midge 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Simulium Black Fly 1
Strophopteryx Early Brown Stonefly 1
Potthastia Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Stempellinella 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.