MBSS Site Summary for: QA-N-047-204-96


Located on MASON BR UT2 in the Tuckahoe Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02130405.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/11/1996 and again in the summer on 9/11/1996.

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 Poor - 2.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 7,862 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 1.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 64.4 %
Forested Land Use 34.4 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 16/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 15 %
Embeddedness 65 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 65%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.1 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.5
Conductivity 149 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		240.3 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 7.7 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
Eastern Mudminnow 220
Creek Chubsucker 79
Tessellated Darter 42
Redbreast Sunfish 38
Pumpkinseed 26
Bluegill 20
Redfin Pickerel 18
Tadpole Madtom 17
Pirate Perch 10
American Eel 7
Least Brook Lamprey 5
Fallfish 2
Largemouth Bass 2
Margined Madtom 2
Chain Pickerel 1
Golden Shiner 1
Swallowtail Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Fowler's Toad

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 30
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 15
Caecidotea Isopod 8
Prosimulium Black Fly 7
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 5
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 5
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Gammarus Amphipod 4
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Coenagrionidae Narrowwinged Damselfly 2
Argia Narrow-Winged Damselfly 1
Clinotanypus Non-Biting Midge 1
Procladius Non-Biting Midge 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Peltodytes Crawling Water Beetle 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Goniobasis 1
Haliplus 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.