Mt Hood Area – Oregon Conservation Strategy

Area is located within Mount Hood National Forest and includes the headwater streams of Hood, Clackamas, Sandy and White Rivers.

COA ID: 107

Recommended Conservation Actions

De-commission unnecessary roads
Improve and maintain forest health; use prescribed fire and silivculture methods to attain desired future condition.
Increase in-channel habitat complexity.
increase vegetated buffers on non-fishing bearing streams to protect water quality , quality and micro-habitat elements for sensitive amphibians.
Manage caves and old mines for bat conservation
Manage grazing and recreational uses to protect fish and wildlife habitat and protect water quality.
Minimize road construction near streams occupied by amphibians.
Protect and enhance amphibian breeding sites.
Protect and expand Ponderosa pine habitat.
Protect and improve headwater stream habitats
Protect and restore riparian habitat. Expand Riparian Reserve boundaries.
Protect and restore wetlands.
Protect, enhance, and create grasslands and forest openings for wildlife habitat diversity
Reduce inputs of herbicides, fertilizers and other chemicals
Replace culverts that impede amphibian passage.

Local Conservation Actions and Plans

Conservation Assessment for the Cascade Torrent Salamander (2011)
Draft ESA Recovery Plan for Hood River Bull Trout (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 2005)
East Fork Irrigation District: Fish Passage and Diversion Project
ESA Recovery Plan for Lower Columbia Steelhead (National Marine Fisheries Service, 2013)
Habitat Conservation for Landbirds in the Coniferous Forests of Western Oregon and Washington (2012)
Hood River Basin Aquatic Habitat Restoration Strategy (2006)
Hood River Subbasin Plan for Fish and Wildlife (2004)
Hood River Watershed Action Plan (2014)
Hood River Watershed Assessment (1999)
Important Bird Areas of Oregon
Lower Columbia River Conservation & Recovery Plan for Oregon Populations of Salmon & Steelhead (Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, 2010)
Proposed Focused Investment Partnership: Hood River
Road De-commissioning Project Map for Upper White River and Boulder Creek Subwatersheds
White River National Wild and Scenic River Environmental Assessment

Potential Partners

Special Features

General

Adjacent to Mount Hood Wilderness, Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness, Roaring River Wilderness, and Badger Creek Wilderness areas
Area contains several rivers designated as Wild and Scenic.
Includes Bonney Butte, an important funnel for migratory raptors which has been a Hawk Watch international monitoring station since 1994.
Includes glacial fed streams and alpine meadow habitats.
Supports multiple rare amphibian species.
Supports only known remaining breeding population of Oregon Spotted Frog on Mount Hood National Forest.

Previously Associated With

2006 COA ID WC-03 (Mt. Hood area)

Protected Areas

Badger Creek Wilderness
Bear Paw Forest Camp
Fifteen Mile Creek
Hood River, East Fork
Mount Hood National Forest
Mount Hood Wilderness
Roaring River Wilderness
Routson Park
Salmon River
Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness
Still Creek
Warm Springs Reservation

Ecoregions

East Cascades

The East Cascade ecoregion extends from the Cascade Mountains’ summit east to the warmer, drier high desert and down the length of the state. This ecoregion varies dramatically from its cool, moist border with the West Cascades ecoregion to its dry eastern border, where it meets sagebrush desert landscapes.

West Cascades

The West Cascades ecoregion extends from east of the Cascade Mountains summit to the foothills of the Willamette, Umpqua, and Rogue Valleys, and spans the entire length of the state of Oregon. It is largely dominated by conifer forests, moving into alpine parklands and dwarf shrubs at higher elevations.

Strategy Habitats

Grasslands

Grasslands include a variety of upland grass-dominated habitats, such as upland prairies, coastal bluffs, and montane grasslands.

Late Successional Mixed Conifer Forests

Late successional mixed conifer forests provide a multi-layered tree canopy, including large-diameter trees, shade-tolerant tree species in the understory, and a high volume of dead wood, such as snags and logs.

Natural Lakes

Natural lakes are relatively large bodies of freshwater surrounded by land. For the purposes of the Conservation Strategy, natural lakes are defined as standing water bodies larger than 20 acres, including some seasonal lakes.

Oak Woodlands

Oak woodlands are characterized by an open canopy dominated by Oregon white oak.

Ponderosa Pine Woodlands

Ponderosa pine woodlands are dominated by ponderosa pine, but may also have lodgepole pine, western juniper, aspen, western larch, grand fir, Douglas-fir, mountain mahogany, incense cedar, sugar pine, or white fir, depending on ecoregion and site conditions. Their understories are variable combinations of shrubs, herbaceous plants, and grasses.

Flowing Water and Riparian Habitats

Flowing Water and Riparian Habitats include all naturally occurring flowing freshwater streams and rivers throughout Oregon as well as the adjacent riparian habitat.

Ducks on a wetland in Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area, Oregon

Wetlands

Wetlands are covered with water during all or part of the year. Permanently wet habitats include backwater sloughs, oxbow lakes, and marshes, while seasonally wet habitats include seasonal ponds, vernal pools, and wet prairies.