MBSS Site Summary for: WILL-301-C-2001


Located on BRADDOCK RUN in the Wills Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02141003.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/6/2001 and again in the summer on 7/31/2001.

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 - 3.5 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 8,087 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 21 %
Agricultural Land Use 8 %
Forested Land Use 69 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 19/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 19/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 25 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 60 meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 65 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 65%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 15.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 10.1 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.86
Conductivity 1090 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1285 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.6 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
Blacknose Dace 27
Longnose Dace 24
White Sucker 5
Creek Chub 2
Fallfish 2
Northern Hogsucker 2
Common Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
No amphibians and reptiles noted.

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 39
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 16
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 14
Chelifera Aquatic Dance Fly 10
Orthocladiinae Midge 6
Caecidotea Isopod 4
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 3
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 2
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 2
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Peltoperlidae Roachlike Stonefly 1
Leuctridae Rolledwinged Stonefly 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 1
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Girardia Freshwater Flatworm 1
Crangonyx 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.