MBSS Site Summary for: WA-A-089-312-95


Located on BEAR CR in the Sideling Hill Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140510.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/15/1995 and again in the summer on 6/14/1995.

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 Fair - 3.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 6,428 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 1.9 %
Agricultural Land Use 44 %
Forested Land Use 53.7 %


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 5/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		10/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 80 %
Embeddedness 0 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 9.1 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.25
Conductivity 160 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		180.1 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2 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 11 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 395
Creek Chub 194
Potomac Sculpin 116
Fantail Darter 87
Central Stoneroller 28
White Sucker 25
Longnose Dace 10
Rock Bass 6
Greenside Darter 5
Bluntnose Minnow 3
Green Sunfish 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Two-Lined Salamander
Northern Watersnake

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Prosimulium Black Fly 48
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 12
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 12
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 11
Acentrella Tiny Blue-Winged Olive Mayflies 8
Isoperla Stripetail Stonefly 5
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Oemopteryx Stonefly 2
Chloroperlidae Green Stonefly 2
Diphetor Mayfly 2
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Heptageniidae Flathead Mayfly 2
Rhyacophila Free-Living Caddisfly 1
Acroneuria Golden Stoneflies 1
Pycnopsyche Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly 1
Stegopterna Black Fly 1
Neophylax Caddisfly 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 1
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Microtendipes Non-Biting Midges 1
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Endochironomus 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.