Volunteering my time is important to me on local rivers and
fisheries that I guide on. For the third year in a row I’ve been a volunteer on
the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) Hammon Bar Willow Restoration
Project, working with staff and other volunteers.
It was a beautiful day with
big puffy cumulus clouds, a nice cooling breeze, and great company. The
wildflowers are going nuts in the Yuba Gold Fields right now. I’ve never seen
so many Lupine and California poppies down there in my life. If you appreciate
nature, do yourself a favor and go check them out as soon as you can. They won’t
last long.
Restoration Coordinator and Team Leader Karli Foreman used
advanced GPS and a detailed map to find the remaining pods of willows to be
recorded. My job was a little different this year, I wrote down pod
identification numbers, and how many different species of willows (Arroyo, Red,
and Gooding’s) including cottonwoods that were alive or dead, and taking
detailed notes. A few observations we noted was a very high activity of
beaver chomping away branches. This poses a problem as many of the branches
they take away have a metal ID tag on them. That’s what the GPS is for in case
the ID tag is missing. Also we came to the conclusion that many tags were
buried by several feet of cobblestones and gravel from the floods of 2017.
We worked great together as a team and put in some serious
work, 56 pods were recorded in about 4 hours of actual time on Hammon Bar. Jim,
our other volunteer measured the height of the willows and cottonwoods, as well
as the diameter of the base of selected specimens. Jim has been volunteering
since the very beginning on this willow project and had some great knowledge.
His insight was refreshing, and I learned even more about the ecology of the
Yuba River.
So why are willows and cottonwoods so important to the Lower
Yuba River? They capture woody debris which in turn controls silt, plus
provides salmon, steelhead, and trout fingerlings with cover to hide from
predators during higher flows. In some cases, they also provide adult fish with
the same type of helpful habitat. Birds, adult aquatic insects, beavers, and
rattlesnakes also benefit from the foliage.
Karli will be on site for the next few weeks collecting data
at Hammon Bar, volunteers are needed and she sure would appreciate any help.
You can contact her at 530.265.5961 ext. 216. If you have the time and want to
give back to the river you love, give her a call and lend a hand.
Though the picture above looks like we are way too serious, it’s
a great time filled with science, data, and lots of laughs. I had a great time
being next to the Yuba River and can't thank Karli and Jim enough for the
awesome company and good times. Though we did not see as much wildlife as last
year, it was still cool to see a few rising wild trout, a snowy egret, and a
few Pale Morning Dun Mayflies riding the currents of the Yuba River. It was absolutely
beautiful. For you fly anglers, the river conditions are looking really good, the
water clarity is clear, and the flows are at 2,335 cubes. If you can’t donate
your time, think of joining SYRCL or making a donation. Every penny helps with
one of the most important and wild watersheds on the west coast. See you on the
water…
2 comments:
I love those willows. For as long as you've fished the Yuba, how often do the willows change? The willow forests above the bridge have all been ripped out has this happened before in the past?
Matt, The surrounding land and foliage constantly changes with mega high water events. Some strands of willows last longer due to their location. When massive amounts of cobblestones move they either bury, or displace willows. This has been happening for thousand upon thousands of years.
Post a Comment