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THE BRIDGE CREEK RESTORATION STORY: BEAVER, BDAS & GRAZING MANAGEMENT
Author
Weber, Nick
Bouwes, Nick
Jordan, Chris
Wheaton, Joe M.
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2018
Body

Bridge Creek, a tributary to the Lower John Day River, flows through the high-desert of central Oregon and serves as an important spawning and rearing stream for Mid-Columbia Steelhead.� Much of Bridge Creek suffers from channel incision and features an overall lack of habitat complexity, hydrologic disconnection from groundwater and its floodplain, and high stream temperatures thought to be detrimental to juvenile steelhead.� However, BLM made dramatic changes to the grazing management in roughly twenty years ago, which facilitated modest recovery of riparian vegetation and supported some beaver activity. However, it was not enough to address the degraded habitat associated with channel incision. Bridge Creek became an Intensively Monitored Watershed in 2007 and restoration treatments were implemented in 2009.� The restoration approach consists of constructing in-channel structures that mimic the form and function of beaver dams (beaver dam analogues - BDAs) in order to expedite the recovery of incised stream reaches while at the same time encouraging establishment of stable beaver complexes. Monitoring results from the Bridge Creek IMW demonstrate the ability of this restoration approach to produce many of the beneficial processes associated with beaver complexes, including increased habitat complexity, groundwater and floodplain connectivity, and moderation of high summer stream temperatures.� In addition, the conditions created by the installation of artificial beaver dam structures increases the likelihood that beavers will establish persistent colonies within treated stream reaches, thereby perpetuating benefits to stream and riparian function and steelhead habitat quality. These instream and riparian improvements have important spill-over benefits to the adjacent upland ecosystems and communities that depend on them.

Language
English
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Conference Name
SRM Reno, NV