MBSS Site Summary for: PAXU-103-R-2004

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PAXU-103-R-2004-62 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PAXU-103-R-2004-65 (Opens in a new window)

Located on PATUXENT R UT 9 in the Patuxent River upper watershed, 8-digit code: 02131104.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/9/2004 and again in the summer on 6/3/2004.

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 Poor - 1.9 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 364 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 70 %
Agricultural Land Use 4 %
Forested Land Use 25 %


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 4/20 (Poor)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 7/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 65 meters 		4/20 (Poor)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 36 meters 		6/20 (Marginal)
Shading 95 %
Embeddedness 100 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 100%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 17.8 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.8 mg/L
pH (lab) 6.77
Conductivity 346 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		303.1 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 0.9 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
Blacknose Dace 100
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Dusky Salamander
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 5
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 5
Crangonyx Amphipod 4
Naididae Aquatic Worm 3
Limnophyes Non-Biting Midge 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Chironomidae Non-Biting Midge 2
Parametriocnemus Non-Biting Midges 2
Tipulidae Cranefly 2
Smittia European Non-Biting Midge 2
Gordiidae Horsehair Worm 1
Orthocladiinae Midge 1
Stygobromus Amphipod 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Tanypodinae 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.