MBSS Site Summary for: WO-S-008-305-97


Located on POCOMOKE R in the Upper Pocomoke River watershed, 8-digit code: 02130203.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/7/1997 and again in the summer on 7/30/1997.

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 - 3.3 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Good - 4.7 / 5.0

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.)
Catchment area 32,104 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 51.4 %
Forested Land Use 47.2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 85 %
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 22 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.1 mg/L
pH (lab) 6
Conductivity 95 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		135 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 11 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 10 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Tessellated Darter 39
American Eel 23
Pirate Perch 20
Satinfin Shiner 10
Brown Bullhead 5
Eastern Mudminnow 4
Tadpole Madtom 3
Margined Madtom 2
Redfin Pickerel 2
Yellow Bullhead 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Painted Turtle
Eastern Ratsnake
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 28
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 11
Cnephia Black Fly 6
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 6
Conchapelopia Non-Biting Midges 6
Lype Net Tube Caddisfly 4
Endochironomus 4
Simulium Black Fly 3
Pycnopsyche Great Autumn Brown Sedge Caddisfly 3
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 2
Oecetis Long-Horned Caddisfly 2
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Gomphus Clubtail Dragonfly 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Orthocladiinae B 1
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 1
Hemerodromia Tiny Fly 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 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.