MBSS Site Summary for: TA-N-042-104-95


Located on SKIPTON CR UT1 in the Wye River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130503.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/22/1995 and again in the summer on 7/7/1995.

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 Fair - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 5.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 532 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 0.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 78.9 %
Forested Land Use 21.3 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 7/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 65 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.62
Conductivity 195 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		329.6 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 6 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Tessellated Darter 64
American Eel 36
Eastern Mudminnow 31
Blacknose Dace 19
Least Brook Lamprey 9
Redfin Pickerel 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 15
Psilotreta Mortarjoint Casemaker Caddisfly 10
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 10
Gammarus Amphipod 10
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 7
Pycnopsyche Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly 7
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 5
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 3
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 3
Acerpenna Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 3
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 2
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Gomphidae Clubtail Dragonfly 2
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Larsia Non-Biting Midge 2
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 1
Lepidostoma Little Brown Sedge Caddisfly 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Clinotanypus Non-Biting Midge 1
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Hydatophylax Northern Caddisfly 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Dubiraphia Riffle Beetle 1
Collembola Springtail 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.