MBSS Site Summary for: WEST-110-R-2002


Located on MILL SWAMP BR in the West River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131004.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/12/2002 and again in the summer on 6/4/2002.

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.
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Catchment area 74 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 2 %
Agricultural Land Use 98 %
Forested Land Use 0 %


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 4/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 44 meters 		3/20 (Poor)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 31 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 20 %
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:
Water temperature 19.7 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.98
Conductivity 140 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		427.9 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 3 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
Green Sunfish 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Canada Thistle
Japanese Honeysuckle
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 19
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 17
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 10
Culicoides 8
Tanypodinae Non-Biting Midges 7
Paraphaenocladius Non-Biting Midges 6
Prodiamesa 6
Synurella Amphipod 5
Natarsia Non-Biting Midges 5
Tipulidae Cranefly 4
Probezzia Biting Midges 4
Caecidotea Isopod 4
Odontomesa Non-Biting Midge 4
Chrysogaster 3
Chironomus Non-Biting Midges 2
Ceratopogonidae Biting Midge 2
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 2
Tanytarsini Non-Biting Midges 2
Zavrelimyia Non-Biting Midges 2
Crangonyctidae Scud 1
Hydroporus Water Beetle 1
Limnodrilus Worm 1
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Bittacomorpha 1
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 1
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Gammarus Amphipod 1
Stygobromus Amphipod 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.