MBSS Site Summary for: WCHE-108-R-2003

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site WCHE-108-R-2003-0810 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site WCHE-108-R-2003-0811 (Opens in a new window)

Located on FISHING CR UT2 in the West Chesapeake Bay watershed, 8-digit code: 02131005.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/6/2003 and again in the summer on 6/3/2003.

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 - 1.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.9 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 256 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 4 %
Agricultural Land Use 7 %
Forested Land Use 84 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 6/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 5 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 72 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 97 %
Embeddedness 75 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 75%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 18.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.4 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.75
Conductivity 199 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		461 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 4.2 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 2 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 5
Bluegill 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Fowler's Toad
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Gammarus Amphipod 41
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 30
Musculium Fingernail Clam 20
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 15
Diptera True Fly 7
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 3
Hydrobaenus Midge 2
Stagnicola Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker 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.