MBSS Site Summary for: UMON-607-H-2010

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site UMON-607-H-2010-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site UMON-607-H-2010-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on Monocacy River in the Upper Monocacy River watershed, 8-digit code: 02140303.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/14/2010 and again in the summer on 7/16/2010.

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 N R
Benthic IBI Good - 4.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 360,859 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 5.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 67.1 %
Forested Land Use 26.1 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 7/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 30 %
Embeddedness 70 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 70%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.965
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1414.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.9883 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:
Fish data is unavailable or no fish observed.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
No amphibians and reptiles noted.

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Perlesta 18
Plauditus Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 8
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 7
Crangonyx Amphipod 7
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 6
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 5
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 4
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 4
Coenagrionidae Narrowwinged Damselfly 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Heptageniidae Flathead Mayfly 3
Caenis Mayfly 2
Eurylophella Mayfly 2
Serratella Mayfly 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Parakiefferiella European Non-Biting Midge 2
Cladotanytarsus Non-Biting Midge 2
Psephenus Water Penny 2
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 1
Baetis Blue-Winged Olive Mayfly 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Empididae Dance Fly 1
Gammarus Amphipod 1
Attenella 1
Cryptotendipes 1
Nilotanypus 1
Orthocladiinae Midge 1
Leptoxis Freshwater Snail 1
Anthopotamus Golden Drake Mayfly 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Triaenodes Long-Horned 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.