MBSS Site Summary for: STMA-112-R-2003

Site Photos

Located on ST MARY'S R in the St. Mary's River watershed, 8-digit code: 02140103.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/12/2003 and again in the summer on 8/26/2003.

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 - 2.7 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.4 / 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 621 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 42 %
Agricultural Land Use 24 %
Forested Land Use 32 %


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

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 10/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 9/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 5/20 (Poor)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 97 %
Embeddedness 80 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 80%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 25.3 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 2.9 mg/L
Dissolved oxygen levels measured in the stream were very low (2.9 mg/L). Many fishes and other aquatic animals cannot tolerate low levels of oxygen in the water.
pH (lab) 6.29
Conductivity 95 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		126.3 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 6.9 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 4 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Eastern Mudminnow 22
Pirate Perch 9
Chain Pickerel 3
Tadpole Madtom 2
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
American Bullfrog
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
No exotic plants noted.
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Musculium Fingernail Clam 22
Ablabesmyia Non-Biting Midge 16
Nanocladius Non-Biting Midges 15
Tubificidae Aquatic Worm 15
Micropsectra Non-Biting Midges 12
Chironomidae Non-Biting Midge 6
Diplocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 4
Crangonyx Amphipod 3
Enchytraeidae Aquatic Worm 3
Naididae Aquatic Worm 2
Synurella Amphipod 2
Tipulidae Cranefly 2
Parachaetocladius Non-Biting Midge 2
Limnephilidae Northern Casemaker Caddisfly 1
Diptera True Fly 1
Hydroporus Water Beetle 1
Hydrobaenus Midge 1
Asellidae Aquatic Sow Bug 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.