MBSS Site Summary for: WIRH-220-S-2013
Located on LEONARD POND RUN in the Wicomico River Head watershed,
8-digit code: 02130304.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/11/2013 and again in the summer on 8/28/2013.
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.
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Fish IBI
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Fair - 3.7 / 5.0
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Benthic IBI
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Good - 5.0 / 5.0
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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.)
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Catchment area
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13,675 acres
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Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
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Urban Land Use
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9.9 %
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Agricultural Land Use
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48.6 %
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Forested Land Use
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38.1 %
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An example of woody debris in a stream.
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Physical Stream Habitat
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Instream Habitat
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18/20 (Optimal)
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Epifaunal Substrate
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16/20 (Optimal)
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Velocity/Depth Diversity
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10/20 (Marginal)
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Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters
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18/20 (Optimal)
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Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 10 meters
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12/20 (Suboptimal)
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Shading
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85 % |
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Embeddedness
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100 % |
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The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is
very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.
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Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.
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Stream Water Quality:
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| pH (lab) |
6.43 |
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity)
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199.2 µeq/L |
| Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) |
9.9274 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.
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| Eastern American Toad |
| Eastern Snapping Turtle |
| Northern Spring Peeper |
| Southern Leopard Frog |
| Japanese Stiltgrass |
| Oriental Bittersweet |
| Paper Mulberry |
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Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
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| Genus/Family |
Common Name |
Count |
| Gammarus |
Amphipod
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16 |
| Maccaffertium |
March Brown And Cahill Mayfly
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16 |
| Isoperla |
Stripetail Stonefly
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16 |
| Stempellinella |
Non-Biting Midges
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15 |
| Cheumatopsyche |
Net-Spinning Caddisfly
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9 |
| Polypedilum |
Non-Biting Midges
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6 |
| Crangonyx |
Amphipod
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3 |
| Brillia |
Non-Biting Midges
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3 |
| Lepidostoma |
Little Brown Sedge Caddisfly
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3 |
| Eurylophella |
Mayfly
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3 |
| Orthocladiinae |
Midge
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3 |
| Simulium |
Black Fly
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3 |
| Pycnopsyche |
Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly
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2 |
| Caecidotea |
Isopod
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2 |
| Rheocricotopus |
Non-Biting Midges
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2 |
| Rheotanytarsus |
Non-Biting Midges
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2 |
| Tanytarsus |
Non-Biting Midges
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1 |
| Tvetenia |
Non-Biting Midges
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1 |
| EPHYDRIDAE |
Shore Fly
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1 |
| Ancyronyx |
Spider Riffle Beetle
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1 |
| Neoplasta |
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1 |
| Perlesta |
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1 |
| Heteroplectron |
Caddisfly
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1 |
| Erioptera |
Cranefly
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1 |
| Lype |
Net Tube Caddisfly
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1 |
| Oecetis |
Long-Horned Caddisfly
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1 |
| Orthocladius |
Non-Biting Midges
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1 |
Sampling with a kick net.
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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.