MBSS Site Summary for: WI-S-023-112-95


Located on NANTICOKE R UT2 in the Nanticoke River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130305.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/2/1995 and again in the summer on 6/27/1995.

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 Fair - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 2,073 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 2.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 48.8 %
Forested Land Use 48.3 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 85 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.23
Conductivity 70 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		90.8 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 8 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 7 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 44
Eastern Mudminnow 12
Redfin Pickerel 10
Pirate Perch 8
Creek Chubsucker 5
Brown Bullhead 3
Pumpkinseed 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog
Southern Leopard Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Stegopterna Black Fly 27
Leptophlebia Pronggilled Mayfly 12
Ostrocerca Stonefly 7
Microtendipes Non-Biting Midges 6
Hydrobaenus Midge 5
Heterotrissocladius European Non-Biting Midge 4
Prosimulium Black Fly 4
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Thienemannimyia Non-Biting Midges 4
Triaenodes Long-Horned Caddisfly 3
Crangonyx Amphipod 3
Orthocladiinae Midge 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 1
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 1
Tribelos Non-Biting Midges 1
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Optioservus Riffle Beetle 1
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 1
Hydroporus Water Beetle 1
Lype Net Tube Caddisfly 1
Apsectrotanypus Non-Biting Midges 1
Corynoneura Non-Biting Midges 1
Parakiefferiella European Non-Biting Midge 1
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 1
Pycnopsyche Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Anchytarsus Beetle 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Pseudolimnophila Crane Fly 1
Libellula 1
Limnephilus 1
Paratrichocladius 1
Viviparus 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.