Mission Creek’s ecological integrity has been severely degraded due to channelization and diking undertaken since the 1950s to prevent flooding. This has adversely affected fish and wildlife and their breeding, rearing, and overwintering habitats. Annual kokanee stocks, as one example, have since declined dramatically from about one million fish in the 1940s to about 30,000 in 1996 and 16,000 in 2010. Other species at risk include Western Screech Owls, Grasshopper Sparrows, Painted Turtles, Spotted Bats, Whitethroated Swifts, Black Cottonwood, and Great Blue Heron.
Kokanee Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) |
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Western Screech Owl (Megascops kennicottii) |
Status – Red-listed Habits and Habitat
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Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarium) |
Status – Red-listed Habits and Habitat
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Western Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii) |
Status – Blue-listed Habits and Habitat
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Black Cottonwood (Populus balsamifera trichocarpa) |
Status – Habits and habitat
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Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias herodias) |
Status – blue listed Habits and Habitat
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