MBSS Site Summary for: CABJ-207-B-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site CABJ-207-B-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site CABJ-207-B-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on CABIN JOHN CREEK in the Cabin John Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140207.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/24/2008 and again in the summer on 7/8/2008.

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 Poor - 1.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 8,815 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 62.9 %
Agricultural Land Use 10.1 %
Forested Land Use 26.2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 16/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 68 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 14 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Shading 75 %
Embeddedness 10 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 24.5 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 11.7 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.95
Conductivity 402 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		1145.977 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.747 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 20 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Bluntnose Minnow 115
White Sucker 96
Tessellated Darter 84
Creek Chub 49
Longnose Dace 46
Redbreast Sunfish 45
Blacknose Dace 44
Central Stoneroller 38
American Eel 23
Common Shiner 21
Spotfin Shiner 18
Silverjaw Minnow 17
Fantail Darter 12
Green Sunfish 7
Greenside Darter 7
Sea Lamprey 7
Golden Shiner 6
Potomac Sculpin 4
Swallowtail Shiner 4
Smallmouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Cambarus bartonii bartonii

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Knotweed
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 49
Hydrobaenus Midge 29
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 12
Stenelmis Beetle 6
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 4
Naididae Aquatic Worm 3
Cladotanytarsus Non-Biting Midge 3
Orthocladiinae Midge 2
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Helichus Beetle 1
Girardia Freshwater Flatworm 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.