MBSS Site Summary for: FR-B-046-127-96


Located on LITTLE CATOCTIN CR 1 UT1 in the Catoctin Creek watershed, 8-digit code: 02140305.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/5/1996 and again in the summer on 6/13/1996.

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 - 1.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.3 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 301 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 0 %
Agricultural Land Use 0 %
Forested Land Use 99.3 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 6/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 7/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality 10/20 (Marginal)
Shading 98 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 14.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.2 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.98
Conductivity 170 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		360.2 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.7 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
No Fish Observed 0
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

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

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Gammarus Amphipod 25
Prosimulium Black Fly 14
Paraleptophlebia Blue Quill Mayfly 12
Hexatoma Crane Fly 8
Eukiefferiella Non-Biting Midges 6
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 5
Diplectrona Net-Spinning Caddisfly 4
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 3
Ectopria Water Penny Beetle 3
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 2
Leuctra  Rolled-Winged Stonefly 2
Stenonema Flatheaded Mayfly 2
Rhyacophila Free-Living Caddisfly 2
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 2
Perlodidae Perlodid Stonefly 1
Oulimnius Riffle Beetle 1
Baetidae Small Minnow Mayfly 1
Capniidae Small Winter Stonefly 1
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 1
Cinygmula Dark Red Quill Mayfly 1
Lanthus Clubtail Dragonfly 1
Stegopterna Black Fly 1
Stygobromus Amphipod 1
Polypedilum 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.