Chileno Creek Explained

Chileno Creek
Pushpin Map:USA California
Pushpin Map Size:300
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of the mouth of Chileno Creek in California
Subdivision Type1:Country
Subdivision Name1:United States
Subdivision Type2:State
Subdivision Name2:California
Subdivision Type3:Region
Subdivision Name3:Marin County
Subdivision Type4:District
Subdivision Name4:West Marin
Length:6.25miles
Source1:Laguna Lake
Source1 Coordinates:38.2078°N -122.7647°W
Source1 Elevation:226feet
Mouth:Confluence with Walker Creek
Mouth Coordinates:38.2122°N -122.8597°W
Mouth Elevation:62feet

Chileno Creek is a stream in western Marin County, California, United States. It originates west of Petaluma, California at 220-acre Laguna Lake which straddles Marin and Sonoma Counties, from which it flows west before joining Walker Creek, a tributary of Tomales Bay.

History

Chileno Creek is named for Chilean immigrants who settled the Chileno Valley, with encouragement from Adrian Godoy.[1] [2] [3]

Chileno Valley Ranch was purchased by Carlo Martinoiya, an immigrant from Cevio, Switzerland from Henry Halleck in 1862.[4] Henry Halleck served as General-in-Chief of all Union armies during the American Civil War and also served as President Abraham Lincoln's Chief of Staff. Carlo Martinoiya anglicized his name to Charles Martin and his great-great-granddaughter Sally Gale and her husband now run one of the ranches in the Chileno Valley.[5] Several of the ranches in the watershed are maintained as agricultural land by the Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT).

Watershed and course

The Chileno Creek watershed drains 20.25sqmi. The creek originates at Laguna Lake, a shallow natural lake at the head of the Chileno Valley. Although Laguna Lake is officially classified as a vernal pool, it retains some water year round.[6] The Chileno Creek watershed ranges from 1379feet to 62feet at Chileno Creek's confluence with Walker Creek.[7]

A study of Chileno Creek hydrogeomorphology found that 30% of the sediment in the watershed is blocked by small stock pond dams, and that lack of sediment causes downstream erosion and slows riparian recovery. Most of its tributaries have one or more dams as well as the mainstem such that dam density, or number of dams per drainage area, is 0.76km2.[8]

Ecology

In the early 1900s, coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) were abundant in Walker Creek, but were nearly extirpated apparently due to severe erosion and siltation secondary to overgrazing and logging operations.[9] In 1975 D. W. Kelley performed a comprehensive investigation of steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and coho salmon populations. He found small numbers of steelhead young-of-the-year in all viable habitat areas in the watershed, but only eight coho near the confluence of Chileno and Walker Creek.[10] In addition, the Soulajule Reservoir dam blocked all anadromous salmonid fish migration to Arroyo Sausal. California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) began planting coho salmon from Olema Creek into Walker Creek in 2003 with modest success.[11] In 2008 and again in 2013 coho returned to Walker Creek, Salmon Creek and Frink Canyon.[12]

Laguna Lake is used extensively by migrating and breeding waterfowl, including whistling swans (Cygnus columbianus) in winter.[6]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Durham's Place Names of the San Francisco Bay Area: Includes Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Alameda, Solano & Santa Clara Counties . David L. Durham . Word Dancer Press . 2001 . 978-1-884995-35-4 . 190 . registration .
  2. Book: Early Marin . 2nd . Jack Mason . Helen Van Cleaver Park . North Shore Books . 1976 . 153 .
  3. Book: Erwin G. Gudde . California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names . 10 February 2010 . University of California Press . 978-0-520-26619-3 . 77– . December 26, 2017.
  4. News: Swiss immigrants, offspring leave imprint on Marin County . Elliott Almond . November 24, 2015 . San Jose Mercury News . December 26, 2017 .
  5. News: Historian finds county's past in West Marin's ranches . Rob Rogers . Marin Independent Journal . October 15, 2010 . December 26, 2017 .
  6. Web site: Tomales Bay Watershed - History and Habitat . Marin County Watershed Program . December 26, 2017 .
  7. Walker Creek Watershed Stream Habitat Assessment Reports - Chileno Creek . March 2009 . California Department of Fish and Game . December 26, 2017.
  8. Book: The Challenges of Dam Removal and River Restoration . Jerome V. De Graff . James E. Evans . Geological Society of America . 21 . 978-0-8137-5821-3 . January 1, 2013 . 10.1130/REG21 .
  9. Web site: Geomorphology of the Walker Creek Watershed: Projects for Habitat Enhancement and Sediment Management . Lauren Hammack . Marin Resource Conservation District . 16 . August 10, 2005 . 2015-08-09 .
  10. The Possibility oRestoring Salmon and Steelhead Runs in Walker Creek, Marin County . D. W. Kelley . April 1, 1976 . Marin Municipal Water District . December 26, 2017 .
  11. Web site: Walker Creek Salmon Monitoring Program Final Compilation Report . Marin Municipal Water District . Garcia and Associates . Marin Water . March 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171227235333/http://www.marinwater.org/DocumentCenter/View/200 . 2017-12-27 . December 26, 2017 .
  12. News: Young, endangered coho salmon seen in Walker Creek for the first time in five years . Mark Prado . Marin Independent Journal . October 22, 2013 . December 26, 2017 .