MBSS Site Summary for: PRFR-102-R-2004


Located on TUSCARORA UT 4 in the Potomac River FR Cnty watershed, 8-digit code: 02140301.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/1/2004 and again in the summer on 7/6/2004.

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 Poor - 1.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 126 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 12 %
Agricultural Land Use 84 %
Forested Land Use 2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 5/20 (Poor)
Epifaunal Substrate 5/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 3/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 69 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Poor' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 22.6 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 4.8 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (4.8 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 8.1
Conductivity 402 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1123 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.5 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 2 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 3
Spotfin Shiner 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 27
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 10
Hydroporus Water Beetle 7
Simulium Black Fly 6
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 6
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 6
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 3
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 3
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Neophylax Caddisfly 3
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 2
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 2
Agabus Predatory Aquatic Beetle 2
Tribelos Non-Biting Midges 2
Chironomus Non-Biting Midges 2
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 2
Allocapnia Small Winter Stonefly 2
Callibaetis Speckled Dun Mayfly 1
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Peltodytes Crawling Water Beetle 1
Helophorus Beetle 1
Brillia 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.