MBSS Site Summary for: LPAX-287-X-2011


Located on RED HILL BRANCH in the Little Patuxent River watershed, 8-digit code: 02131105.
This stream was visited in the summer on 8/10/2011.

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 - 3.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 492 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 74 %
Agricultural Land Use 4.3 %
Forested Land Use 20 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 17/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 17/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 70 meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 5 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 15 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
No water quality measurements available for this site.

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 9 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Green Sunfish 179
Creek Chub 90
Blacknose Dace 80
Rosyside Dace 51
Longnose Dace 39
Tessellated Darter 22
White Sucker 7
Swallowtail Shiner 3
American Eel 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
No amphibians and reptiles noted.

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

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.