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| Stone Creek |
Madison County, Montana |
Primary Project Type: Instream Restoration
Secondary Type: |
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Stone Creek is a small first and second order creek, which originates in the Rub... |
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Primary Problem: Bank Instability, Channel Incision, Over-Widened Channel, Sedimentation
Secondary Problem: |
| Main Restoration Action(s): Biotechnical slope protection, Grade control structures, Grazing management, Habitat enhancement, Road decommissioning |
| Native Fish Focus: Westslope cutthroat |
Is this project part of a watershed scale restoration? No
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| Project Dates: 1994 to 1997 |
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Initial Monitoring: 1986
Restoration Implementation: 1994 through 1997
Follow-up Monitoring: 1998 |
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Lead Agency:
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks
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| Project Location:
Stone Creek originates in the Ruby Mountains of southwest Montana as a small first and second order creek and flows into the Beaverhead River. The project section is located in the upper Stone Creek and Left Fork Stone Creek drainages above the East Bench irrigation project near the Beaverhead and Madison County boundary.
For a map of the project area, click here.
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| Project Description:
Historically, lower Stone Creek was a small ephemeral channel that flowed only during spring snowmelt and large storm events. Return flow from the East Bench irrigation project in the lower Stone Creek watershed has created perennial flow conditions in the lower Stone Creek channel. However, a long segment of Stone Creek above the irrigation canal system remains an ephemeral channel, which is a barrier that isolates a genetically pure westslope cutthroat trout population in the upper Stone Creek system. In the early 1990s, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (MTFWP) became concerned over the very low numbers of westslope cutthroat in the Left Fork and mainstem of Stone Creek. Excess sediment in the creeks had nearly brought the population to extinction. The source of the sediment was runoff from a county road built adjacent to the creek on highly erosive soils. In addition, standard road grading Best Management Practices were not being followed. Historical over-grazing in the riparian zone exacerbated the problem causing decreased bank stability and sloughing. Over time, the channel became silt-laden, over-widened and shallow in many places and deeply incised in other places, creating poor conditions for cutthroat due to lack of spawning habitat, poor bank stability and cover, reduced residual pool volume, increased stream temperatures, and high turbidity during even moderate storm events. |
| Project Goals: The goal of the project was to restore the westslope cutthroat trout population in the Left Fork and mainstem of upper Stone Creek by reducing sediment contributions to the creek and restoring channel stability and trout habitat. |
| Project Methods:
The primary focus of the upper Stone Creek restoration efforts was to decommission the county road adjacent to the creek. Secondary efforts were focused on the left fork of Stone Creek by stabilizing eroding stream banks, controlling the channel’s grade to prevent further incision of the streambed, revegetating the riparian zone, and reconstructing portions of the channel to create better trout habitat.
Click here for more information on project methods.
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Road grading Best Management Practices (BMPs) were followed and sediment basins ... |
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To provide grade control and eliminate vertical instability, a series of step-po... |
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| Monitoring Data and Collection
Methods: Upper Stone Creek and the Left Fork Stone Creek tributary were sampled for westslope cutthroat trout during the study period of 1986 to 1998. Sampling utilized Coffelt gasoline-powered or Smith Root battery-powered backpack electrofishers. Population estimates were calculated through mark-recapture or two-pass methodologies dependent upon stream size. Suspected westslope cutthroat trout were collected for genetic analysis.
Click here for more information on monitoring.
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| Was this project effective
and how was this determined? According to Dick Oswald, the Fish Biologist with Montana Fish, Game and Parks, the Stone Creek project was “the single most impressive trout habitat restoration project in Montana.” The fact that the westslope cutthroat trout population, once on the brink of extinction, is now thriving is testimony that Dick may be right. Dick believes the population response to stream restoration actions would have been greater if the area weren’t in the sixth year of a severe drought. The recovery of the cutthroat population is primarily attributed to decommissioning and relocation of the county road away from the Left Fork of Stone Creek. In a highly erodible drainage, moving the road from a location adjacent to the creek eliminated a major sediment source to the creek. However, other restoration actions such as bank stabilization, regrading, riparian planting, and fish habitat construction helped change the once silt-laden channel to an excellent habitat for the fish.
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(Before) Mainstem Stone Creek prior to restoration efforts.... |
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(After) Left Fork of Stone Creek summer 2005.... |
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| Confounding Effects/Additional
Information: |
| Project
Specs (all specs are estimates): |
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Overall Estimated Cost:
No cost information available.
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| For more information on this project
contact: |
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Dick Oswald, Phone: (406) 683-9310, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, Dillon Office, Email:
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| This information
was collected by: Kristin Keith |
| Project last updated on: 10/27/2006 |
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