MBSS Site Summary for: PATL-510-X-2010

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PATL-510-X-2010-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PATL-510-X-2010-2 (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 3/10/2010 and again in the summer on 8/5/2010.

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.
(Hint: Screen readers will announce definitions; mouse users can hover over dotted text.)
Catchment area 177,739 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 6 %
Agricultural Land Use 61.4 %
Forested Land Use 30 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 15/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 16/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		13/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 47 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 55 %
Embeddedness 25 %


Stream Water Quality:
pH (lab) 7.82
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		676.7 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.1895 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 22 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Redbreast Sunfish 122
River Chub 52
American Eel 42
Northern Hogsucker 38
Bluntnose Minnow 35
Spotfin Shiner 23
Tessellated Darter 21
Smallmouth Bass 17
Cutlip Minnow 15
Swallowtail Shiner 15
Blue Ridge Sculpin 14
Rock Bass 13
Central Stoneroller 10
Yellow Bullhead 8
Longnose Dace 6
Margined Madtom 6
Rosyface Shiner 4
White Sucker 3
Common Shiner 1
Green Sunfish 1
Pumpkinseed 1
Satinfin Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Hops
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Paulownia
Wineberry
 

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.