MBSS Site Summary for: BALT-119-R-2004

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site BALT-119-R-2004-7 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site BALT-119-R-2004-8 (Opens in a new window)

Located on FORK BR in the Baltimore Harbor watershed, 8-digit code: 02130903.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/22/2004 and again in the summer on 6/24/2004.

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 - 1.7 / 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 218 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 91 %
Agricultural Land Use 2 %
Forested Land Use 3 %


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 7/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 4/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 30 %
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 15.1 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.64
Conductivity 159 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		776 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.6 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 2 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Eastern Mudminnow 45
Creek Chubsucker 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 62
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 39
Orthocladiinae Midge 3
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 2
Pseudosuccinea Air Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Heterotrissocladius European Non-Biting Midge 1
Pisidiidae Pill Clam 1
Lymnaeidae Pond Snail 1
Agabus Predatory Aquatic Beetle 1
Rheocricotopus 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.