MBSS Site Summary for: WI-S-019-208-97


Located on SOUTH FORK GREEN RUN in the Upper Pocomoke River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/3/1997 and again in the summer on 6/23/1997.

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 Good - 4.3 / 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 4,168 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 0 %
Agricultural Land Use 71.9 %
Forested Land Use 27.8 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		10/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 30 %
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 30.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.49
Conductivity 130 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		232.9 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 11.7 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 10 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Pirate Perch 165
Eastern Mudminnow 81
Tadpole Madtom 58
Yellow Bullhead 36
American Eel 17
Creek Chubsucker 6
Redfin Pickerel 5
Brown Bullhead 4
Pumpkinseed 4
Golden Shiner 3
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog
Stinkpot

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 56
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 25
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 8
Nanocladius Non-Biting Midges 5
Dineutus Whirlygig Beetle 5
Dicrotendipes Non-Biting Midges 4
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 4
Triaenodes Long-Horned Caddisfly 3
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 3
Caenis Mayfly 2
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 2
Amnicola Freshwater Snail 2
Palaemonetes 1
Stegopterna Black Fly 1
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 1
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 1
Dubiraphia Riffle Beetle 1
Pyralidae Snout Moth 1
Polycentropus Tube Maker 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.