MBSS Site Summary for: WCHE-103-R-2017

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site WCHE-103-R-2017-MidpointLookingDownstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site WCHE-103-R-2017-MidpointLookingUpstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on UT1 Parkers Creek in the West Chesapeake Bay watershed, 8-digit code: 02131005.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/3/2017 and again in the summer on 6/15/2017.

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 Poor - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.1 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 478 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 16.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 1 %
Forested Land Use 81 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 2/20 (Poor)
Epifaunal Substrate 2/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 75 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Shading 95 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Poor' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.42
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		980.1 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.9536 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 1 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 21
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Two-Lined Salamander
Northern Water Snake
Wood Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Stiltgrass
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
GAMMARUS Amphipod 52
AMPHINEMURA Spring Stonefly 20
POLYPEDILUM Non-Biting Midges 10
HAPLOPERLA Green Stonefly 6
EPHEMERELLA Sulphur Mayfly 4
NAIDIDAE Aquatic Worm 3
TIPULA Crane Fly 3
RHEOCRICOTOPUS Non-Biting Midges 3
CHAETOCLADIUS Non-Biting Midges 3
PARAMETRIOCNEMUS Non-Biting Midges 3
CHLOROPERLIDAE Green Stonefly 2
RHEOTANYTARSUS Non-Biting Midges 2
THIENEMANNIMYIA GROUP Non-Biting Midges 1
TVETENIA Non-Biting Midges 1
LEPTOPHLEBIA Pronggilled Mayfly 1
PHAGOCATA 1
TIPULIDAE Cranefly 1
MACCAFFERTIUM March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 1
ORTHOCLADIINAE Midge 1
DIPLECTRONA Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
PARACLADOPELMA Non-Biting Midge 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.