Biodiversity Guide - The Intertwine

egional conservation strategybiodiversity guideAppendix I Watershedshabitats. Despite these difficulties, substantialhabitat remains, and much has been protected.The Ridgefield lowlands extend north-souththrough most of the western portion of the watershedand continue northward to the Lewis andKalama River-Columbia Frontal River subbasins.The area has a mosaic of seasonal and permanentwetlands, grasslands, upland forest, ripariancorridors, oak habitats, and cropland. TheWashington Department of Natural Resourcesidentifies Mankas Prairie—a remnant prairieand oak savanna habitat area in the northeasternportion of the watershed—as a heritage site,and the upper reaches of Weaver Creek have animportant mature mixed forest-wetland complex.The state’s Priority Habitats and Species programidentifies the Ridgefield lowlands, Salmon Creek,and major low-lying tributaries as high-qualityhabitat for breeding and overwintering baldeagles and waterfowl, including winter concentrationsof dusky Canada geese, Canada geese, andwhite-fronted geese, lesser sandhill cranes, andwintering and breeding ducks. The area also supportsa diverse array of amphibians, reptiles, andmammals.The Salmon Creek subbasin provides habitatfor numerous amphibian and reptile species,including the northwestern, long-toed, Cope’s,Pacific giant, and Cascade salamanders; tailedand red-legged frogs and the western toad; thering-necked snake, rubber boa, and three speciesof garter snakes; and the painted turtle andnorthern alligator lizard.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service establishedthe Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge Complexin 1965, with a total of 5,217 acres set aside forwildlife and habitat. The Washington Departmentof Fish and Wildlife owns another 2,730acres immediately to the south, in the ShillapooWildlife Area. The Port of Vancouver also ownssome important preservation and mitigationareas. Numerous other habitat areas are protectedthrough a variety of ownerships, includingholdings along Whipple Creek, Salmon CreekGreenway, and Burnt Bridge Greenway.Several key wildlife movement corridors con-nect to the Columbia River and adjacent watersheds.The lowlands connect in all directions:west to the Columbia River and north and southto other watersheds, as well as to important wildlifeareas such as Burnt Bridge, Cougar Canyon,Whipple and Flume creeks. Upper Salmon Creekprovides a corridor through urban and agriculturalareas to forest in the upper basin.The Lower Columbia Fish Recovery Board’s2010 Lower Columbia Salmon Recovery andFish & Wildlife Subbasin Plan provides a detailedsalmon-oriented characterization of the SalmonCreek subbasin. Historically the basin supportedthousands of fall Chinook salmon, wintersteelhead, and chum and coho salmon. Salmonand steelhead numbers have declined to only afraction of their historical levels. Extinction risksare significant for all of these species, but noneof the Salmon Creek populations are consideredprimary for recovery under the Lower ColumbiaFish Recovery Board’s plan; however, the plancalls for management action to sustain these populationsat their current level of viability, to meetregional recovery objectives. Although no singlethreat is responsible for the declines in SalmonCreek’s fish and wildlife populations, a loss oftributary habitat quality and quantity accounts forthe largest relative impact. Key habitats have beenisolated or eliminated as a result of dredging,channel modifications, diking, filling, the drainingof floodplains and wetlands, and hydropoweroperation on the mainstem. These activities havealtered flows, habitat, and migration conditions.Altered habitat and competition and interbreedingwith hatchery fish have reduced productivity.The Lower Columbia Fish Recovery Board’s2010 recovery plan identifies growth management,restoration of forest, floodplain, andriparian habitat, and preservation and restorationof watershed processes and habitat conditions asimmediate salmon priorities and identifies reachspecificrestoration activities to improve fish habitat.The Clark County 2010 Stream Health Reportrecommends the following priority general actioncategories for this watershed: increase infiltrationand retention of stormwater runoff, restorestream and side channels in the middle and upperwatershed, implement development regulationsto minimize impacts, minimize the impact ofsurface and groundwater withdrawals, promotegood septic system maintenance practices, andwork with property owners to eliminate pollutionsources.Washington’s Comprehensive WildlifeConservation Strategy identifies specific areasand actions to help sensitive habitats and wildlifespecies. A recovery plan is in place in thiswatershed for several threatened or endangeredprairie species, including Fender’s blue butterfly(Icaricia icarioides fenderi), which is endangered;Willamette daisy (Erigeron decumbens var.decumbens), which is endangered; Bradshaw’slomatium (Lomatium bradshawii), which isendangered; Kincaid’s lupine (Lupinus sulphureusssp. kincaidii), which is threatened; and Nelson’scheckermallow (Sidalcea nelsoniana), which isthreatened.Active habitat restoration and preservationefforts have been under way for some time nowby the City of Vancouver, Clark County, ClarkPublic Utilities, the Port of Vancouver, the LowerColumbia Fish Recovery Board, and others. TheSalmon Creek Watershed Council provides aforum for citizens and organizations residing inClark County to participate in and partner onon-the-ground restoration, water quality, andadvocacy. Clark County’s StreamTeam organizesrestoration projects in the Salmon Creek Greenway.The Vancouver Watersheds Council issimilarly engaged in plantings, cleanups and communityeducation. Salmon Creek runs throughthe Washington State University campus, andstudents, professors and partners are engaged inrestoration and watershed education.Organizations and Partners —Salmon Creek WatershedCity of Vancouver360-487-8600www.cityofvancouver.usClark Conservation DistrictDenise Smee360-883-1987dsmee@clarkcd.orgwww.clarkcd.org/index.htmlClark County ESA ProgramJoel Rupley360-397-2022joel.rupley@clark.wa.govwww.co.clark.wa.us/esa/index.htmlClark County Parks & Recreation360-487-8311parksrec@ci.vancouver.wa.usClark Public Utilities’ StreamTeamLisa Beranek360-992-8585StreamTeam@clarkpud.comhttp://www.clarkpublicutilities.com/index.cfm/our-environment/stream-team/Lower Columbia Fish Enhancement GroupTony Meyer360-882-6671tony@lcfeg.orgwww.lcfeg.orgLower Columbia Salmon Recovery and WatershedManagement |Bernadette Graham Hudson360 425-1552www.lowercolumbiasalmonrecovery.orgSalmon Creek Watershed CouncilBianca Streif360-721-3816Bianca.streif@salmoncreekwatershed.orgwww.salmoncreekwatershed.orgVancouver Lake Watershed PartnershipLoretta Callahan360-759-4479loretta.callahan@ci.vancouver.wa.uswww.ci.vancouver.wa.us/PublicWorks/vancouverlake/index.htmVancouver Watersheds CouncilGary Bock360-852-9189info@vancouverwatersheds.orgwww.vancouverwatersheds.org/Washington Department of Ecology360-407-6000www.ecy.wa.gov/ecyhome.html278 279