MBSS Site Summary for: PRUT-208-B-2007

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-208-B-2007-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-208-B-2007-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on Henson Creek in the Potomac River U tidal watershed, 8-digit code: 02140201.
This stream was visited in the spring on 4/10/2007 and again in the summer on 6/11/2007.

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 Poor - 1.6 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 4,072 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 79.5 %
Agricultural Land Use 2.7 %
Forested Land Use 16.2 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 16/20 (Optimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 9/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 62 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 23 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Shading 91 %
Embeddedness 30 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 20.9 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 6.7 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.27
Conductivity 342 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		694.6 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.3196 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 13 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Swallowtail Shiner 121
Redbreast Sunfish 84
Satinfin Shiner 42
Blacknose Dace 41
Mummichog 29
Creek Chub 21
Tessellated Darter 7
White Sucker 7
Creek Chubsucker 5
American Eel 2
Longnose Dace 2
Pumpkinseed 2
Bluegill 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes limosus

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Mile-A-Minute
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 84
Orthocladiinae Midge 8
Rheosmittia Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemannimyia group Non-Biting Midges 1
Rheocricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 1
Stenelmis Beetle 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 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.