Rush Creek (Kishwaukee River)

Rush Creek
Origin McHenry County southeast of Harvard, Illinois
42°23′18″N 88°34′07″W / 42.3883333°N 88.5686111°W / 42.3883333; -88.5686111 (Rush Creek origin)
Mouth Confluence with the Kishwaukee east of Belvidere, Illinois
42°15′23″N 88°42′10″W / 42.2563889°N 88.7027778°W / 42.2563889; -88.7027778 (Rush Creek mouth)
Progression Rush Creek → Kishwaukee → Rock → Mississippi → Gulf of Mexico
Length 15 mi (24 km)
Source elevation 1,015 ft (309 m)
Mouth elevation 774 ft (236 m)
GNIS ID 417053

Rush Creek is a 14.9-mile-long (24.0 km)[1] tributary of the Kishwaukee River in northern Illinois.[2][3]

There is another Rush Creek that is a tributary of the Mississippi River in Carroll County. [4]

Course

Rush Creek's origin is in a complex of wetlands near Harvard, Illinois, two miles southeast.[5] The stream then flows southwest until it empties into the main stem of the Kishwaukee River one mile east of Garden Prairie.[5]

Description

Approximately 65% of the main stem of Rush Creek has been channelized (ditched and straighten), however 50% of those areas are showing signs of recovery.[5] Despite the channelization and encroachment from agriculture many of the stream's features such as riffles can still be seen.[5]

Wildlife

Twenty-nine species of fish have been identified within Rush Creek and its tributaries, two of those species have not been seen in the watershed since 1965 - the northern pike and the largescale stoneroller.[5] Three animal species are on state or federal endangered or threatened lists - river otter, and two mussels, Elliptio dilatata (Spike) and Alasmidonta viridis (Slippershell).[5]

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed May 19, 2011
  2. ↑ James, L. Allan. Management and Restoration of Fluvial Systems with Broad Historical Changes and Human Impacts, (Google Books link), Geological Society of America, 2009, pp. 110-111, (ISBN 0813724511), (ISBN 9780813724515).
  3. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Rush Creek
  4. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Rush Creek
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rush Creek - Subwatershed Plan, Kishwaukee River Ecosystem Partnership, May 2005, accessed January 24, 2011.
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