MBSS Site Summary for: WO-S-003-314-97


Located on POCOMOKE R in the Upper Pocomoke River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/14/1997 and again in the summer on 7/15/1997.

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 Fair - 3.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.1 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 36,818 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 0.3 %
Agricultural Land Use 50.6 %
Forested Land Use 47.9 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 10/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 10/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 5/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		8/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 75 %
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 24.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.3 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.15
Conductivity 93 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		164.1 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 11.8 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 13 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 82
Tessellated Darter 38
Pirate Perch 16
Tadpole Madtom 15
Redbreast Sunfish 10
Eastern Mudminnow 9
Least Brook Lamprey 6
Pumpkinseed 2
Bluegill 1
Margined Madtom 1
Redfin Pickerel 1
Satinfin Shiner 1
Yellow Perch 1
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
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 18
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 16
Stegopterna Black Fly 12
Paratanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 11
Pycnopsyche Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly 9
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 5
Lype Net Tube Caddisfly 4
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Oecetis Long-Horned Caddisfly 3
Sphaerium Fingernail Clam 2
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 2
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Dicrotendipes Non-Biting Midges 1
Palaemonetes 1
Viviparus 1
Triaenodes Long-Horned Caddisfly 1
Xylotopus Midge 1
Enallagma Narrow-Winged Damselfly 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.