MBSS Site Summary for: FIMI-306-H-2009


Located on UT to Fifteen Mile Creek in the Fifteen Mile Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140511.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/6/2009 and again in the summer on 8/10/2009.

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 N R
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 4,027 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 8 %
Agricultural Land Use 6.9 %
Forested Land Use 85 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat

Instream Habitat 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 7/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 74 meters
11/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 6 meters
11/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 20 %
Embeddedness 0 %


Stream Water Quality:

Water temperature 30 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
Conductivity 602 µmho/cm

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 17 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Central Stoneroller 50
Creek Chub 28
Rock Bass 20
Fantail Darter 18
Rainbow Darter 15
Redbreast Sunfish 13
Blacknose Dace 11
Green Sunfish 10
Greenside Darter 6
Smallmouth Bass 6
Creek Chubsucker 5
Bluntnose Minnow 4
Potomac Sculpin 3
White Sucker 3
Largemouth Bass 2
Bluegill 1
Longnose Dace 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:

Northern Watersnake

Crayfish:

No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:

Garlic Mustard
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
Shrub Honeysuckle
Tree Of Heaven
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:

Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Benthic data unavailable.
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.