MBSS Site Summary for: PATL-501-X-2015

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PATL-501-X-2015_midpoint-at-P-looking-downstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PATL-501-X-2015_midpoint-at-P-looking-upstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on PATAPSCO RIVER in the Patapsco River L N Br watershed, 8-digit code: 02130906.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/30/2015 and again in the summer on 8/10/2015.

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 - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.7 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 195,371 acres A stream flowing through a densely forested area. An example of a forested stream.
Urban Land Use 21.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 37 %
Forested Land Use 37.8 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 6/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 50 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 28 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 15 %
Embeddedness 40 %


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 25 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Redbreast Sunfish 101
American Eel 85
Common Shiner 50
River Chub 42
Satinfin Shiner 41
Bluegill 39
Northern Hogsucker 31
Smallmouth Bass 30
Rosyface Shiner 26
Tessellated Darter 20
Margined Madtom 15
White Sucker 13
Green Sunfish 11
Spotfin Shiner 10
Swallowtail Shiner 9
Rock Bass 7
Cutlip Minnow 6
Spottail Shiner 6
Fallfish 5
Black Crappie 3
Sea Lamprey 3
Striped Bass 3
Yellow Bullhead 3
Blue Ridge Sculpin 2
Bluntnose Minnow 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Wavyleaf Basketgrass
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Gammarus Amphipod 28
Cheumatopsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 21
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 19
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 11
Microtendipes Non-Biting Midges 5
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 5
Chimarra Fingernet Caddisfly 5
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 4
Psychomyia Trumpet-Net Caddisfly 2
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 2
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 2
Antocha Crane Fly 2
Potthastia Non-Biting Midges 1
Lumbriculidae Worm 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Orthocladiinae Midge 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Lepidostoma Little Brown Sedge Caddisfly 1
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 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.