MBSS Site Summary for: SBPA-401-A-2008

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site SBPA-401-A-2008-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site SBPA-401-A-2008-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on SOUTH BRANCH OF PATAPSCO in the S Branch Patapsco watershed, 8-digit code: 02130908.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/18/2008 and again in the summer on 7/11/2008.

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 Fair - 3.3 / 5.0

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 39,442 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 4.5 %
Agricultural Land Use 73 %
Forested Land Use 21.5 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 9/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 7/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 16/20 (Optimal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		11/20 (Suboptimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 5 meters 		16/20 (Optimal)
Shading 65 %
Embeddedness 65 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 65%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 21.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 7.6 mg/L
pH (lab) 8.04
Conductivity 267 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		724.5 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.5654 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 20 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Bluntnose Minnow 727
White Sucker 219
Cutlip Minnow 144
Swallowtail Shiner 121
Common Shiner 100
Tessellated Darter 99
Blue Ridge Sculpin 82
Northern Hogsucker 60
Central Stoneroller 53
Smallmouth Bass 39
Redbreast Sunfish 26
Longnose Dace 10
American Eel 8
Yellow Bullhead 5
Bluegill 4
Satinfin Shiner 3
Blacknose Dace 2
Rock Bass 2
Creek Chub 1
Largemouth Bass 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Eastern Box Turtle
Northern Brownsnake
Northern Green Frog
Northern Watersnake
Spotted Salamander
Wood Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Bamboo
Garlic Mustard
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Wineberry
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 41
Ameletus Combmouthed Minnow Mayfly 12
Orthocladiinae Midge 10
Thienemanniella Non-Biting Midges 6
Ancyronyx Spider Riffle Beetle 6
Macronychus Riffle Beetle 4
Isonychia Slate Drake Mayfly 4
Prosimulium Black Fly 4
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 3
Rheotanytarsus Non-Biting Midges 3
Ephemerellidae Spiny Crawler Mayfly 3
Polycentropus Tube Maker Caddisfly 2
Centroptilum Small Minnow Mayfly 2
Sympotthastia Non-Biting Midges 2
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 2
Crangonyx Amphipod 2
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 2
Cardiocladius Non-Biting Midge 1
Brillia Non-Biting Midges 1
Chelifera Aquatic Dance Fly 1
Perlidae Common Stonefly 1
Maccaffertium March Brown And Cahill Mayfly 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.