MBSS Site Summary for: QA-N-041-109-95


Located on ANDOVER BR in the Upper Chester River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130510.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/20/1995 and again in the summer on 7/26/1995.

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 Good - 5.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 3,125 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 0.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 41.3 %
Forested Land Use 57.8 %


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 5/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 40 %
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 25.5 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 1.5 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (1.5 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 6.68
Conductivity 250 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		430.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 11 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 71
Creek Chubsucker 54
Golden Shiner 34
Pirate Perch 23
Redfin Pickerel 20
American Eel 2
Chain Pickerel 1
Largemouth Bass 1
Pumpkinseed 1
Tadpole Madtom 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog
Pickerel 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
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 39
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 18
Simulium Black Fly 11
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 11
Stegopterna Black Fly 6
Deronectes 4
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 4
Pseudosuccinea Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 3
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 3
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Prosimulium Black Fly 2
Callibaetis Speckled Dun Mayfly 2
Procladius Non-Biting Midge 2
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Parachironomus 1
Chrysops Deerfly 1
Enallagma Narrow-Winged Damselfly 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.