MBSS Site Summary for: WO-S-003-306-97


Located on POCOMOKE R in the Upper Pocomoke River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/10/1997 and again in the summer on 7/16/1997.

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 - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.6 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 35,623 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 0.2 %
Agricultural Land Use 51 %
Forested Land Use 47.6 %


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 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 6/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 60 %
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 25.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 5.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 6
Conductivity 100 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		128.6 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 12.9 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 14 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 40
Pirate Perch 32
Tessellated Darter 22
Eastern Mudminnow 11
Redbreast Sunfish 10
Creek Chubsucker 9
Satinfin Shiner 6
Tadpole Madtom 5
Bluegill 3
Golden Shiner 3
Redfin Pickerel 3
Yellow Perch 3
Least Brook Lamprey 2
Margined Madtom 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern Painted Turtle
Northern Green 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
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 13
Phaenopsectra Non-Biting Midges 12
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 8
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 7
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 7
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 6
Gammarus Amphipod 5
Calopteryx Damselfly 5
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 4
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 2
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 2
Simulium Black Fly 2
Lype Net Tube Caddisfly 2
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Cricotopus/Orthocladius Midge 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Palaemonetes 1
Prostoia Spring Stonefly 1
Dineutus Whirlygig Beetle 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.