MBSS Site Summary for: QA-N-079-308-95


Located on THREE BRIDGES BR in the Corsica River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130507.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/6/1995 and again in the summer on 7/12/1995.

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 - 4.3 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.4 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 5,540 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 0.5 %
Agricultural Land Use 70.5 %
Forested Land Use 28.3 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 9/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 3/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		14/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 10/20 (Marginal)
Shading 40 %
Embeddedness 90 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 90%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.4 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.62
Conductivity 232 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1252 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 4 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 14 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Tessellated Darter 84
Eastern Mudminnow 41
Creek Chubsucker 40
American Eel 22
Bluegill 17
Fallfish 8
Redfin Pickerel 7
Pirate Perch 3
Pumpkinseed 3
Golden Shiner 2
Satinfin Shiner 2
White Sucker 2
Brown Bullhead 1
Yellow Perch 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green 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
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 13
Eurylophella Mayfly 12
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 12
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 11
Gammarus Amphipod 8
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 6
Naididae Aquatic Worm 5
Menetus Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 3
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 3
Leptophlebia Pronggilled Mayfly 3
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 3
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 2
Centroptilum Small Minnow Mayfly 2
Corixidae Water Boatman 2
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 2
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 2
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Bithynia 1
Climacia 1
Goniobasis 1
Ferrissia Small Air-Breathing Freshwater Limpets 1
Microtendipes Non-Biting Midges 1
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Acerpenna Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 1
Polycentropodidae Trupetnet And Tubemaking Caddisfly 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.