MBSS Site Summary for: WEST-102-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site WEST-102-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site WEST-102-B-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on NORTH FORK MUDDY CREEK in the West River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131004.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/6/2008 and again in the summer on 6/2/2008.

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 - 2.3 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.4 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 544 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 5 %
Agricultural Land Use 30.8 %
Forested Land Use 63.3 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 4/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		8/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 1 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.6 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.3 mg/L
pH (lab) 5.12
Conductivity 158 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		-4.3 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.661 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 5 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Golden Shiner 11
American Eel 4
Bluegill 4
Green Sunfish 2
Brown Bullhead 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus diogenes

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Barberry
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Stegopterna Black Fly 27
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 24
Hydrobaenus Midge 19
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 14
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 8
Orthocladiinae Midge 8
Nemouridae Nemourid Stonefly 4
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 4
Neoporus 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.