MBSS Site Summary for: PATL-502-X-2009

Site Photos

Located on Patapsco River in the Patapsco River L N Br watershed, 8-digit code: 02130906.
This stream was visited in the spring on 8/26/2009 and again in the summer on 8/26/2009.

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 Fair - 3.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 192,607 acres Cows standing in a stream at a site with high agricultural land use. Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
Urban Land Use 8.2 %
Agricultural Land Use 58.5 %
Forested Land Use 30.9 %


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 18/20 (Optimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 12 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 75 meters 		18/20 (Optimal)
Shading 50 %
Embeddedness 25 %
Several measures of instream habitat were considered 'Optimal' at this location.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 23 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
Conductivity 300 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 16 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
American Eel 168
River Chub 85
Redbreast Sunfish 76
Rock Bass 21
Satinfin Shiner 16
Longnose Dace 10
Smallmouth Bass 9
Margined Madtom 8
Tessellated Darter 8
Northern Hogsucker 6
Bluntnose Minnow 3
Blue Ridge Sculpin 2
Blacknose Dace 1
Bluegill 1
Swallowtail Shiner 1
White Sucker 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
English Ivy
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Hops
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Mimosa
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
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.