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Willow Creek

The DNR conducts baseline monitoring in the Sheboygan Basin to evaluate the general condition of our area streams. One of the streams evaluated in 2002 was a small stream in the Sheboygan urban area called Willow Creek. The watershed for Willow Creek is small in size (stream length is about 5 miles). The watershed has a mixture of land uses but large percentage of the land in the watershed remains undeveloped. The watershed is almost completely surrounded by urban development and a few development plans in the Willow Creek watershed are underway. Annual baseline monitoring was conducted in Willow Creek by DNR in 2002 - 2004 (one site per year).

The 2002 sampling baseline effort was located in the middle portion of the watershed. Along with some intolerant forage fish species, DNR biologists also found a few juvenile brook trout and coho salmon (Willow Creek connects to the Sheboygan River and fish from Lake Michigan have access to the stream). The 2003 sample station on Willow Creek was located near the confluence with the Sheboygan River and 2004 sampling was conducted upstream of Interstate 43 near the Village of Kohler. Neither of these two stream reaches supported brook trout or coho salmon at the time of their respective surveys. Habitat in the middle section is generally good and generally poor upstream and downstream.

Project Details

• DNR Biologists conducted annual baseline monitoring at Willow Creek in 2002, 2003, and 2004- sampling one site per year. Data collected include sampling fish communities, macroinvertebrate communities and stream habitat characteristics.
• Willow Creek was chosen because of its unique location and course through areas of varying land-use.
• The creek originates in Rural Sheboygan Falls, flows east through the Town of Sheboygan Falls into the Village of Kohler just south of state highway 23. Willow Creek then runs under I-43 and into the Town of Sheboygan where it parallels county highway PP before bending south completing its 5-mile course to the Sheboygan River.
• In 1988, a fish collection was conducted upstream from the I-43 crossing. The sampling effort produced a collection forage fish species including blacknose dace and longnose dace. No trout were collected during this survey, but according to John Nelson, DNR, that historically this stream contained trout.
• The 2002 sampling effort was located adjacent to Greendale Cemetery in the City of Sheboygan. Brook Trout and juvenile coho salmon, two pollution intolerant species were collected within this stream reach with other pollutant intolerant species.
• The 2003 sample station on Willow Creek was located near the mouth upstream of the Sheboygan River and the 2004 location was just upstream of Interstate 43, near the Village of Kohler. Neither of these two stream reaches supported brook trout or coho salmon at the time of their respective surveys.
• Additional surveys will be conducted on Willow Creek in the near future. DNR and the Sheboygan River Basin hope to analyze other sections of the stream to see if they also support a trout population, determine whether the trout in this stream are naturally occurring and reproducing within the stream, and identify areas of critical habitat within the stream that provide a quality fishery.
• A report including an analysis of all of the habitat and biological data along with management recommendations will be provided by the DNR upon completion of the Willow Creek study.
• The Sheboygan metro-area continues to grow, and along with beneficial growth comes more construction, more roads and more parking lots, all of which can impact the biological integrity of the stream by increasing storm water runoff.
• There are portions of the headwaters of Willow Creek that have been impacted from past development. This includes filling of wetlands, straightening of the stream channel for flood control, storm sewer discharges, thermal impacts, and nutrient and sediment loading from nonpoint source runoff; the DNR will continue to research Willow Creek.
• When the DNR classifies the entire stream, it may be possible to work with developers to maintain these areas of critical habitat along the stream.