Just in time for the holidays, one of Metro's new natural areas received unexpected visitors: coho salmon. The fish made an appearance along Baker Creek, in the Lower Tualatin Headwaters – a target of the Portland metropolitan area's 2006 bond measure.
Metro bought a conservation easement this June on 23 acres, including more than a mile along Baker Creek. The land is home to deer, red-tailed hawks, coyote and beavers. But the longtime owners never saw spawning salmon on Baker Creek, despite hearing tales from years past.
That's why Metro's natural resource technician Jeff Merrill was so surprised to find coho in the floodplain. First, he noticed movement in a pool created by a series of beaver dams. After settling in to watch, Jeff picked out one salmon, then a spawning pair. The male followed his partner as she dug a little, quivering her tail and body. Jeff counted seven Coho in all, and he's willing to bet there are more.
The floodplain's reed canary grass and the creek's muddy bottom don't seem conducive to salmon, which lay their eggs in gravel. There must be just enough gravel for spawning, Jeff says. And it doesn't hurt that Oregon is having a record coho run this year.
With a little luck and some improvements to the property, Metro hopes this won't be a one-time phenomenon. The natural areas crew began controlling invasive plants, stabilized an eroding logging road and removed a culvert. This change could lure more coho, if they find high enough water levels and a way around one super-sized beaver dam.
Like any good host, Metro leaves its guests with a standing invitation: "See you next year!"