Rush Creek (Kishwaukee River)

Rush Creek
Basin
Main source McHenry County southeast of Harvard, Illinois
1,015 ft (309 m)
42°23′18″N 88°34′07″W / 42.3883333°N 88.5686111°W / 42.3883333; -88.5686111 (Rush Creek origin)
River mouth Confluence with the Kishwaukee east of Belvidere, Illinois
774 ft (236 m)
42°15′23″N 88°42′10″W / 42.2563889°N 88.7027778°W / 42.2563889; -88.7027778 (Rush Creek mouth)Coordinates: 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
Physical characteristics
Length 15 mi (24 km)
Features
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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