MBSS Site Summary for: UPCK-405-H-2010

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site UPCK-405-H-2010-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site UPCK-405-H-2010-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on Choptank River in the Upper Choptank watershed, 8-digit code: 02130404.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/25/2010 and again in the summer on 7/21/2010.

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 Fair - 3.9 / 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 61,902 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 1.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 53 %
Forested Land Use 43.5 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 17/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 18/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 70 meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 5 meters 		4/20 (Poor)
Shading 99 %
Embeddedness 75 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 75%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 6.92
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		273.4 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 5.7761 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:
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Gammarus Amphipod 22
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 18
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 16
Labrundinia Non-Biting Midges 15
Nanocladius Non-Biting Midges 5
Stempellinella Non-Biting Midges 5
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 5
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 2
Isoperla Stripetail Stonefly 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 2
Micrasema 2
Nectopsyche 2
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Perlidae Common Stonefly 1
Parakiefferiella European Non-Biting Midge 1
Oecetis Long-Horned Caddisfly 1
Hyalella Amphipod 1
Spirosperma Aquatic Oligochaete Worm 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Orthocladiinae Midge 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 1
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 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.