MBSS Site Summary for: AL-A-485-220-96


Located on POTOMAC R UT2 in the Potomac River L N Branch watershed, 8-digit code: 02141001.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/10/1996 and again in the summer on 6/24/1996.

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 Poor - 2.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.8 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 801 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 0.5 %
Agricultural Land Use 0.5 %
Forested Land Use 96.9 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality 10/20 (Marginal)
Shading 96 %
Embeddedness 45 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 16 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.82
Conductivity 105 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		140.6 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.7 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 1 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Red Salamander
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 20
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 20
Prosimulium Black Fly 17
Epeorus Mayfly 14
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 9
Isoperla Stripetail Stonefly 9
Sweltsa Stonefly 3
Peltoperla 3
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 3
Stegopterna Black Fly 2
Rhyacophila Free-Living Caddisfly 2
Clioperla Green-Winged Stonefly 1
Caecidotea Isopod 1
Ostrocerca Stonefly 1
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Eukiefferiella 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.