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Geomorphology and Flood-Plain Vegetation of the Sprague and Lower Sycan Rivers, Klamath Basin, Oregon

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Geomorphology and Flood-Plain Vegetation of the Sprague and Lower Sycan Rivers, Klamath Basin, Oregon Prepared in cooperation with the University of Oregon and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Geomorphology and Flood-Plain Vegetation of the Sprague and Lower Sycan Rivers, Klamath Basin, Oregon Scientific Investigations Report 2014–5223 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Cover: Council Butte valley segment looking upstream from near flood-plain kilometer 59.2, Sprague River Basin, Oregon. Photograph taken by J.E. O’Connor, U.S. Geological Survey, September 16, 2006. Geomorphology and Flood-Plain Vegetation of the Sprague and Lower Sycan Rivers, Klamath Basin, Oregon By Jim E. O’Connor, Patricia F. McDowell, Pollyanna Lind, Christine G. Rasmussen, and Mackenzie K. Keith Prepared in cooperation with the University of Oregon and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Scientific Investigations Report 2014–5223 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior SALLY JEWELL, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2015 For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment, visit http://www.usgs.gov or call 1–888–ASK–USGS. For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod To order this and other USGS information products, visit http://store.usgs.gov Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this information product, for the most part, is in the public domain, it also may contain copyrighted materials as noted in the text. Permission to reproduce copyrighted items must be secured from the copyright owner. Suggested citation: O’Connor, J.E., McDowell, P.F., Lind, Pollyanna, Rasmussen, C.G., and Keith, M.K., 2015, Geomorphology and flood- plain vegetation of the Sprague and lower Sycan Rivers, Klamath Basin, Oregon: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2014–5223, 122 p., 1 pl., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sir20145223. ISSN 2328-0328 (online) iii Contents Abstract ...........................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................2 Background............................................................................................................................................2 Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................2 Units of Measurement and Key Locations .......................................................................................4 Sprague River Basin ......................................................................................................................................4 Geography and Geology ......................................................................................................................4 Climate and Hydrology .........................................................................................................................6 Vegetation ..............................................................................................................................................8 Historical Human Influences and Land Use .....................................................................................8 Study Area, Methods, and Data Sources ..................................................................................................9 Study Area..............................................................................................................................................9 Geomorphic Mapping...........................................................................................................................9 Stratigraphic Studies ...........................................................................................................................9 Historical Observations and Photographs ......................................................................................11 Nineteenth-Century Cadastral Surveys ..........................................................................................11 Aerial Photographs .............................................................................................................................11 Lidar Topography ................................................................................................................................14 Survey of Effects of 2006 High Flows ...............................................................................................14 Mapping and GIS Analysis Framework ...........................................................................................14 Geomorphic Mapping and Geologic History ...........................................................................................15 Geomorphic Units ...............................................................................................................................15 Undifferentiated Bedrock .........................................................................................................15 Landslide Deposits.....................................................................................................................15 Colluvial Slopes ..........................................................................................................................15 Abandoned Fans ........................................................................................................................15 Active Tributary Fans .................................................................................................................16 Terraces .......................................................................................................................................16 Sycan Flood Deposits ................................................................................................................16 Active Tributary Flood Plain .....................................................................................................26 Main-Stem Valley Fill .................................................................................................................26 Pond and Wetland Deposits .....................................................................................................26 Active Springs and Spring Deposits .......................................................................................26 Geomorphic Flood Plain ............................................................................................................26 Synopsis of Quaternary Geologic History and Sprague River Geomorphology .......................30 Valley Segments ...........................................................................................................................................32 Chiloquin Canyon ................................................................................................................................32 Braymill .................................................................................................................................................36 Kamkaun Spring ..................................................................................................................................36 S′Ocholis Canyon ................................................................................................................................37 Buttes of the Gods ..............................................................................................................................38 Council Butte .......................................................................................................................................38 iv Contents—Continued Valley Segments—Continued Beatty-Sycan .......................................................................................................................................39 Beatty Gap............................................................................................................................................40 Upper Valley .........................................................................................................................................42 South Fork ............................................................................................................................................42 North Fork.............................................................................................................................................43 Lower Sycan ........................................................................................................................................44 Coyote Bucket .....................................................................................................................................45 Channel and Flood-Plain Conditions and Processes .............................................................................45 Historical Modification.......................................................................................................................46 Early Observations of Flood-Plain and Channel Conditions ...............................................46
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