October 29, 2015

Recently, the Bureau of Environmental Services’ (BES) watershed team joined U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists to survey fish in Southwest Portland’s Tryon Creek.

The survey counted hundreds of native critters, including cutthroat trout, sculpin, crawdads, and fathead minnow.

Monitoring the abundance of fish helps us track how our watershed restoration projects are working.

Tryon Creek is one of Portland’s five watersheds. Our new Watershed Report Cards include A-F grades for temperature, pollutant levels, tree canopy, wildlife numbers, and more. Currently, Tryon averages about a B or B-. The information gathered in the fish survey will give us important data so we can improve the watershed and earn that A grade!

Healthy watersheds protect public health, make our community more livable, and support native fish and wildlife. 

Check out BES’ website for more information about Tryon Creek and the Watershed Report Cards.