MBSS Site Summary for: WEST-104-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site WEST-104-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site WEST-104-B-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on BLUEJAY BRANCH 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 - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 233 acres Cows standing in a stream at a site with high agricultural land use. Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
Urban Land Use 8.8 %
Agricultural Land Use 51.9 %
Forested Land Use 39.2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 4/20 (Poor)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 67 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 11 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 85 %
Embeddedness 25 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 16.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.7 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.18
Conductivity 199 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		99.8 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.02 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
No Fish Observed 0
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Cricket Frog
Fowler's Toad
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Stegopterna Black Fly 35
Limnodrilus Worm 20
Synurella Amphipod 13
Simuliidae Black Fly 12
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 9
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 5
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 4
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 3
Tipula Crane Fly 3
Ptilostomis Giant Casemaker Caddisfly 2
Prosimulium Black Fly 2
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 2
Tanypodinae Non-Biting Midges 2
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 2
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 1
Microvelia Small Water Strider Beetle 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Hydrobaenus 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.