MBSS Site Summary for: PRUT-114-R-2009

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-114-R-2009-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-114-R-2009-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on ut Henson Creek in the Potomac River U tidal watershed, 8-digit code: 02140201.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/30/2009 and again in the summer on 6/15/2009.

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 Good - 4.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 1,527 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 79.4 %
Agricultural Land Use 1.4 %
Forested Land Use 19.2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 11/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 10/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 59 meters 		10/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 22 meters 		12/20 (Suboptimal)
Shading 70 %
Embeddedness 99 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 99%. This is very high, and may adversely affect biotic communities.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 21 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.7 mg/L
pH (lab) 8.57
Conductivity 321 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		523.5 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 2.1615 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 14 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 78
American Eel 32
Creek Chub 27
Swallowtail Shiner 27
Spotfin Shiner 22
Satinfin Shiner 11
Longnose Dace 10
Bluegill 7
Banded Killifish 4
Tessellated Darter 4
Redbreast Sunfish 3
Yellow Bullhead 2
Central Stoneroller 1
Pumpkinseed 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog
Northern Spring Peeper
Northern Two-Lined Salamander

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
Shrub Honeysuckle
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 42
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 25
Hydrobaenus Midge 10
Tanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 4
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 4
Lumbriculidae Worm 3
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 3
Orthocladiinae Midge 3
Naididae Aquatic Worm 3
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 2
Limnodrilus Worm 2
Amphinemura Spring Stonefly 1
Ephemerella Sulphur Mayfly 1
Tanypodinae Non-Biting Midges 1
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 1
Tipula Crane Fly 1
Psychoda 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Cryptochironomus 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.