MBSS Site Summary for: AA-N-034-206-97


Located on MILL CR in the Severn River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131002.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/26/1997 and again in the summer on 7/28/1997.

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 - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 1.6 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,443 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 17.7 %
Agricultural Land Use 6.8 %
Forested Land Use 75 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality 17/20 (Optimal)
Shading 80 %
Embeddedness 85 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 85%. 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 23.4 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 5.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.79
Conductivity 106 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		301 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 4.7 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 8 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Eastern Mudminnow 17
American Eel 13
Bluegill 12
Pumpkinseed 11
Golden Shiner 10
Least Brook Lamprey 6
Redfin Pickerel 2
Yellow Perch 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog
Pickerel 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
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 60
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 3
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Gammarus Amphipod 2
Chelifera Aquatic Dance Fly 1
Naididae Aquatic Worm 1
Pisidium Freshwater Pea (Pill) Clam 1
Gyraulus White Ramshorn Freshwater Snail 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Orthocladius 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.