MBSS Site Summary for: WEST-102-X-2014


Located on NORTH FORK MUDDY CREEK in the West River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131004.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/2/2014 and again in the summer on 6/26/2014.

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 Fair - 3.9 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 347 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 20.6 %
Agricultural Land Use 28.1 %
Forested Land Use 49.2 %


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 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 5/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 30 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 45 meters 		5/20 (Poor)
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:
No water quality measurements available for this site.

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 4 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Green Sunfish 88
Golden Shiner 5
Bluegill 2
Largemouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Cope's Gray Treefrog
Eastern American Toad
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Pickerel Frog
Ring-Necked Snake
Southern Leopard Frog

Crayfish:
Cambarus diogenes

Exotic Plants:
English Ivy
Japanese Barberry
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 15
Synurella Amphipod 11
Erioptera Cranefly 7
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 6
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 6
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 6
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 5
Stegopterna Black Fly 5
Stygobromus Amphipod 5
Caecidotea Isopod 5
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 4
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 4
Neoporous Predaceous Diving Beetle 3
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 3
Chrysops Deerfly 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 2
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 2
Cryptochironomus Non-Biting Midges 2
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 2
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 2
Tanypodinae Non-Biting Midges 1
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 1
Georthocladius 1
Mesosmittia 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Chironomini 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.