MBSS Site Summary for: PRET-106-R-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRET-106-R-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRET-106-R-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on MURPHY RUN in the Prettyboy Reservoir watershed, 8-digit code: 02130806.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/11/2008 and again in the summer on 7/7/2008.

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 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 240 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 14 %
Agricultural Land Use 75.7 %
Forested Land Use 9.9 %


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 9/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 50 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 28 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Shading 65 %
Embeddedness 40 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 18.6 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
pH (lab) 8.33
Conductivity 529 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1325.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.4382 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 6 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Creek Chub 106
Blacknose Dace 65
Blue Ridge Sculpin 3
Rosyside Dace 3
Bluegill 2
Largemouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Autumn Olive
Canada Thistle
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Norway Maple
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 26
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 17
Lumbriculidae Worm 12
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 5
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 4
Clinocera Aquatic Dance Fly 4
Orthocladiinae Midge 4
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 3
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 3
Limnodrilus Worm 2
Natarsia Non-Biting Midges 2
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 2
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 1
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 1
Centroptilum Small Minnow Mayfly 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.