For the May 17, 2024, Anchorage Bike to Work Day, the USGS Alaska Science Center will again host a station along the Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail where people can learn about the USGS streamgage on the creek and about the common birds of Chanshtnu. Chester Creek or Chanshtnu, which means ‘grass creek’ in the Dena’ina language, runs for about 20 miles from the Chugach mountains in the eastern part of Anchorage to the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet.
Return to USGS Alaska Q&A Series
Welcome to the 2024 USGS Bike to Work Day Station!
This year, the USGS Alaska Science Center is teaming up with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Migratory Bird Management Program at our station to talk to cyclists about water and birds. You can scroll down to our material from 2023 and learn the basics about USGS streamgages, like the one on Chester Creek, but here we’ll talk about the kind of collaborative work that is done across Alaska by the USGS and USFWS on migratory birds and why.
The USGS is a science bureau within the Department of Interior, and we provide information for management bureaus and others so that they can make informed decisions about our natural resources. The USFWS is also a federal bureau within the Department of the Interior, whose primary responsibility is to manage wildlife resources for people today and into the future. Thus, USGS and USFWS frequently work together to address science and management needs relating to migratory birds.
Because of the management focus of the USFWS, there is a constant need for information on the status and trend of bird populations in Alaska. These data come from a wide variety of surveys and banding programs conducted by both the USGS and the USFWS. For the Alaska Region, you can learn more about some of the collaborative survey work we’ve done recently at the links below.
Q&A on the Alaska Landbird Monitoring Survey
Q&A on Improving Surveys of Geese using Aerial Imagery
The USGS North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database
The USFWS Migratory Bird Management Program in Alaska
Thanks for reading and use the contact information on this page if you have questions!
Information from the 2023 USGS Bike to Work Day Station
Chester Creek
Chester Creek or Chanshtnu, which means ‘grass creek’ in the Dena’ina language, runs for about 20 miles from the Chugach mountains in the eastern part of Anchorage to the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet. University Lake and Westchester Lagoon are places where water from the creek has been intentionally slowed to create these water bodies. Water from the Chester Creek watershed creates small ponds and wetlands along portions of the trail, leading to heavily wooded sections with cottonwood, birch, and alder trees. The water and vegetation provide habitat for many migratory and resident bird species.
Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail
The Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail parallels the creek for about 6 miles in the central portion of Anchorage and the paved trail is popular with cyclists, dog walkers, and skiers. Approximately 78,000 people live within the watershed, making it one of the most densely populated watersheds in Alaska. To accommodate this urbanization, the creek has been channelized in various locations. These stream flow modifications, and the surrounding human infrastructure can cause significant flooding events due to runoff.
The USGS Alaska Science Center is located on the campus of Alaska Pacific University, near the east end of Chester Creek Trail. The science center frequently conducts research on stream flow and bird population trends along Chester Creek.
The Chester Creek Streamgage
The USGS Alaska Science Center maintains a streamgage on the northeast bank of Chester Creek where Arctic Boulevard crosses the creek at the west end of Valley of the Moon Park. This is one of five USGS streamgage stations in the Municipality of Anchorage and one of 119 streamgages in Alaska. The Chester Creek streamgage station is maintained in cooperation with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. The streamgage collects real-time water temperature and water level data to compute streamflow discharge. This is a long-term streamgage that has been in place for over 40 years. All current and historic information collected by the streamgage can be viewed here: https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/15275100.
Birding along Chester Creek
As many as 175 different bird species have been recorded at Westchester Lagoon, at the end of Chester Creek, and as many as 90 species have been recorded along the trail itself between Westchester Lagoon and Goose Lake to the east (eBird Anchorage hotspots, January 30, 2023). Some of the most common species include the Black-capped Chickadee, American Dipper, Black-billed Magpie, American Robin, and Mallard.
For the May 17, 2024, Anchorage Bike to Work Day, the USGS Alaska Science Center will again host a station along the Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail where people can learn about the USGS streamgage on the creek and about the common birds of Chanshtnu. Chester Creek or Chanshtnu, which means ‘grass creek’ in the Dena’ina language, runs for about 20 miles from the Chugach mountains in the eastern part of Anchorage to the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet.
Return to USGS Alaska Q&A Series
Welcome to the 2024 USGS Bike to Work Day Station!
This year, the USGS Alaska Science Center is teaming up with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Migratory Bird Management Program at our station to talk to cyclists about water and birds. You can scroll down to our material from 2023 and learn the basics about USGS streamgages, like the one on Chester Creek, but here we’ll talk about the kind of collaborative work that is done across Alaska by the USGS and USFWS on migratory birds and why.
The USGS is a science bureau within the Department of Interior, and we provide information for management bureaus and others so that they can make informed decisions about our natural resources. The USFWS is also a federal bureau within the Department of the Interior, whose primary responsibility is to manage wildlife resources for people today and into the future. Thus, USGS and USFWS frequently work together to address science and management needs relating to migratory birds.
Because of the management focus of the USFWS, there is a constant need for information on the status and trend of bird populations in Alaska. These data come from a wide variety of surveys and banding programs conducted by both the USGS and the USFWS. For the Alaska Region, you can learn more about some of the collaborative survey work we’ve done recently at the links below.
Q&A on the Alaska Landbird Monitoring Survey
Q&A on Improving Surveys of Geese using Aerial Imagery
The USGS North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database
The USFWS Migratory Bird Management Program in Alaska
Thanks for reading and use the contact information on this page if you have questions!
Information from the 2023 USGS Bike to Work Day Station
Chester Creek
Chester Creek or Chanshtnu, which means ‘grass creek’ in the Dena’ina language, runs for about 20 miles from the Chugach mountains in the eastern part of Anchorage to the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet. University Lake and Westchester Lagoon are places where water from the creek has been intentionally slowed to create these water bodies. Water from the Chester Creek watershed creates small ponds and wetlands along portions of the trail, leading to heavily wooded sections with cottonwood, birch, and alder trees. The water and vegetation provide habitat for many migratory and resident bird species.
Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail
The Lanie Fleischer Chester Creek Trail parallels the creek for about 6 miles in the central portion of Anchorage and the paved trail is popular with cyclists, dog walkers, and skiers. Approximately 78,000 people live within the watershed, making it one of the most densely populated watersheds in Alaska. To accommodate this urbanization, the creek has been channelized in various locations. These stream flow modifications, and the surrounding human infrastructure can cause significant flooding events due to runoff.
The USGS Alaska Science Center is located on the campus of Alaska Pacific University, near the east end of Chester Creek Trail. The science center frequently conducts research on stream flow and bird population trends along Chester Creek.
The Chester Creek Streamgage
The USGS Alaska Science Center maintains a streamgage on the northeast bank of Chester Creek where Arctic Boulevard crosses the creek at the west end of Valley of the Moon Park. This is one of five USGS streamgage stations in the Municipality of Anchorage and one of 119 streamgages in Alaska. The Chester Creek streamgage station is maintained in cooperation with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. The streamgage collects real-time water temperature and water level data to compute streamflow discharge. This is a long-term streamgage that has been in place for over 40 years. All current and historic information collected by the streamgage can be viewed here: https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/15275100.
Birding along Chester Creek
As many as 175 different bird species have been recorded at Westchester Lagoon, at the end of Chester Creek, and as many as 90 species have been recorded along the trail itself between Westchester Lagoon and Goose Lake to the east (eBird Anchorage hotspots, January 30, 2023). Some of the most common species include the Black-capped Chickadee, American Dipper, Black-billed Magpie, American Robin, and Mallard.