Ferndale Branch (FD-01)

About the site:

FD-01 is located on Ferndale Branch north of Penrod Court in Glen Burnie, approximately 800 ft upstream of the confluence with Sawmill Creek. The site was sampled between 2017 and 2021 as part of a separate study of the Sawmill Creek watershed.  With a stream restoration project planned for 2023, the site was added to the targeted monitoring program in 2021. The site is located in a highly developed area, with 34 percent of the site’s drainage area being impervious surfaces. Construction of an extensive stream restoration project upstream of FD-01 began in early 2023.

FD01
Site FD-01
Time FrameBIBI (Condition)FIBI (Condition)aRBP (Condition)
2023 Results2.43 (Poor)--124 (Partially Supporting)
Cumulative Average (2017-2023)2.67 (Poor)2.44 (Poor)124 (Partially Supporting)
3-year Running Average2.81 (Poor)2.44 (Poor)119 (Partially Supporting)
a) Fish data were collected 2018, 2020, and 2022.

Site FD-01: In 2023, FD-01 received a BIBI score of 2.43 (Poor).  After receiving a “Fair” score in 2021, the site received a “Poor” rating in the following two years.  The 2023 sample consisted almost entirely of flies, with dragonflies and damselflies being absent from the sample for the second year in a row. 

FD-01 Summary of Insects Collected by Sample Year:

FD-01 Bug Plot

Site FD-01: The site was fished in 2018, 2020, and 2022, receiving a “Poor“ rating each time.  White sucker (Catostomus commersonii) has been the dominant species each year and in 2022 comprised over 70 percent of the sample.  American eel (Anguilla rostrata), eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki), eastern mudminnow (Umbra pygmaea), pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus), and tessellated darter (Etheostoma olmstedi) have also been found at the site.

FD-01 Summary of Fish Collected by Sample Year:

FD-01 Fish Plot

Site FD-01: In 2023, the site received an RBP score of 124 (Partially Supporting).  RBP ratings at the site have fluctuated between “Supporting” and “Partially Supporting,” with cumulative and three-year averages of 124 and 119, respectively.

Site FD-01: A geomorphological assessment was performed here in 2010 before yearly assessments began in 2017.  Despite the channel shifting to the right by approximately five feet between the 2010 and 2017 measurements, channel dimensions since 2017 have been relatively stable.

FD-01 Cross-Section Comparison:

FD-01 Geo Plot
FD-01
YearBIBI (Condition)FIBI (Condition)RPB (Condition)
20173.29 (F)---133 (S)
20182.71 (P)2.67 (P)128 (S)
20192.14 (P)--118 (PS)
20202.14 (P)2.33 (P)132 (S)
20213.29 (F)--115 (PS)
20222.71 (P)2.33 (P)147 (S)
20232.43 (P)--124 (PS)
Station Summary
 Average BIBI (SD)3-Year Average BIBI (SD)Average RPB (SD)3-Year Average RBP (SD)Average FIBI (SD)3-Year FIBI Average (SD)
FD-012.67 (0.48)2.81 (0.44)124 (7)119 (5)2.44 (0.20)2.44 (0.20)
SD = Standard Deviation