MBSS Site Summary for: PRFR-202-X-2017

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRFR-202-X-2017-MidpointDownstream (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRFR-202-X-2017-MidpointUpstream (Opens in a new window)

Located on Little Catoctin Creek in the Potomac River FR Cnty watershed, 8-digit code: 02140301.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/27/2017 and again in the summer on 7/25/2017.

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 - 1.8 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 2,918 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 7.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 68.9 %
Forested Land Use 22 %


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 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 12/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 62 meters 		15/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 17 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 35 %
Embeddedness 55 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 55%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


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 15 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Bluegill 170
Common Shiner 110
Central Stoneroller 79
Blacknose Dace 75
Bluntnose Minnow 72
Redbreast Sunfish 60
Nocomis Sp. 55
Green Sunfish 44
Longnose Dace 40
White Sucker 31
Yellow Bullhead 27
Largemouth Bass 17
Creek Chub 12
Silverjaw Minnow 6
Fantail Darter 5
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Snapping Turtle
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Barberry
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Tree Of Heaven
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
ORTHOCLADIUS Non-Biting Midges 52
TANYTARSUS Non-Biting Midges 36
RHEOTANYTARSUS Non-Biting Midges 30
RHEOCRICOTOPUS Non-Biting Midges 7
PARATANYTARSUS Non-Biting Midges 6
THIENEMANNIMYIA GROUP Non-Biting Midges 4
STENELMIS Beetle 3
PROSIMULIUM Black Fly 2
DIAMESA Bloodworm 2
CHIMARRA Fingernet Caddisfly 2
POLYPEDILUM Non-Biting Midges 2
ABLABESMYIA Non-Biting Midge 1
DICROTENDIPES Non-Biting Midges 1
SIMULIUM Black Fly 1
PHAENOPSECTRA 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.