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625 Fisgard Street
Victoria, British Columbia
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Durell Creek Watershed

The Durrell Creek watershed is a sub-watershed of the Colquitz. This small stream begins in the hills of Francis King park, and flows south and east, mainly through farmland and residential areas, before joining Colquitz Creek near Wilkinson Road. Although the stream channel and the surrounding landscape has been extensively modified over the years, the watershed still provides wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities and agricultural land that are important to the local community.    

Quick Facts

Geology & Landforms

The general landforms in the watershed consist of rocky uplands, with a maximum elevation of 125 m, and a flat valley bottom, surrounded by rolling hills. Bedrock in this region is formed of gneiss, a type of ancient rock that was altered from its original form through intense heat and pressure in the earth’s crust. Over top of this bedrock in many areas, glacial till has been deposited from ice sheets that covered the area from approximately 29,000 to 13,000 years ago. Marine clay was also deposited in low-lying areas, when the sea level rose after the glaciers began to melt.

See the geological history of Vancouver Island for more information.

Ecosystems

As with most areas near Victoria, prior to European arrival the ecosystems in this watershed consisted of a mix of Coastal Douglas Fir forest, Garry oak meadows, riparian zones and wetlands. Analysis of the soils in the Durrell Creek watershed indicates that much of the low-lying land once consisted of persistent wetlands. Some of the forests would have consisted of enormous trees such as Douglas fir, western redcedar and Garry oak that were many centuries old. The structure of these ecosystems created habitat for a wide range of wildlife including: mammals such as bears, cougars, wolves, deer, elk, beavers, raccoons, squirrels, martens, river otters and bats; resident and migratory birds such as seabirds, shorebirds and waterfowl, songbirds, wading birds and birds of prey; fish such as salmon, cutthroat trout and many freshwater species; and other creatures such as reptiles, amphibians, reptiles, insects and other invertebrates. 

Today, only about 25% of the watershed is forested, with some remnants of old-growth in Francis/King Park. The remainder has been cleared for agriculture and urban infrastructure. 

Although many of the original wetlands in the watershed have been drained for agriculture, eight remain. Even those that contain little native vegetation still provide some overwintering habitat for waterfowl; Courtland and Hastings Flats are two examples. Wetlands also help to regulate flows in the watershed by soaking up and storing excess rainwater and slowly releasing it during dry times. Those that contain natural plant communities are better able to perform this service, as well as to provide fish and wildlife habitat. Examples of relatively natural wetlands in the Durrell watershed include: Hector wetland; Trevlac wetlands (along Hector Road, near Trevlac Place.); and a wetland downslope from the nature house in Francis/King Park.   

Much of the original stream channel has been straightened to act as a ditch, and streambank vegetation has been removed in many areas. These alterations, common in rural and urban streams, have a number of interrelated effects. When riparian vegetation is removed from the stream banks, less shade is provided, leading to higher water temperatures that are lethal for many fish. The root masses of native plants are effective for holding the banks together; when they are removed, the banks are more prone to erosion and sedimentation of the water. Straight channels allow the water to move more quickly, also leading to increased erosion, and provide few sheltered areas for fish. To improve drainage, large wood such as fallen trees are often removed from the stream channel. Unfortunately, this also decreases fish habitat and can lead to increased erosion. Cumulatively, these impacts have caused degradation to the fish habitat and general stream function in Durrell Creek.     

Wildlife

The changes to the landscape, outlined in the ecosystems section, have significantly altered the native plant and wildlife communities of the Durrell Creek watershed over the past 150 years. Nevertheless, some of the animals that are known or suspected to still inhabit the watershed include the following.

• Mammals such as black-tailed deer, shrews, voles, mink, river otters and muskrats, and (occasionally sighted in Francis/King Park) cougars and bears.
• Amphibians (documented in Francis King Park) such as the rough-skinned newt, western red-backed salamander, clouded salamander, Pacific treefrog, red-legged frog, and possibly long-toed salamander, Oregon salamander and western toad. The American bullfrog, an invasive species, is common throughout watershed.
• Reptiles such as painted turtle, northern alligator lizard, sharptail snake, western garter snake, northwestern garter snake and common garter snake.
• Fish such as stickleback, sunfish and sculpins. (Although salmonids such as Pacific salmon and cutthroat trout once spawned in the creek, degraded habitat is thought to be currently limiting their use of the stream today; see the ecosystems section.)
• Birds, including:

• Waterfowl, especially dabbling ducks and geese such as trumpeter swan; Canada goose; green-winged teal; mallard; northern pintail; American wigeon; ring-necked duck; northern shoveler; gadwall; Eurasian wigeon, canvasback; redhead and bufflehead.
• Upland game birds such as ring-necked pheasants, California quail, band-tailed pigeon and mourning dove.
• Waders and shorebirds, including great blue herons, killdeer, common snipe, greater yellowlegs, sandpipers, and short-billed dowicher.
• Others such as turkey vulture, common nighthawk, northwestern crow, common raven; rufous and Anna’s hummingbirds, belted kingfisher and woodpeckers.
• Birds of prey (raptors) including bald eagle, sharp-shinned hawk, Cooper’s hawk, red-tailed hawk, merlin, peregrine falcon, rough-legged hawk, osprey, northern harrier, barred owl and northern pygmy owl.
• The following table documents some of the birds sighted during Christmas and Spring bird counts in Hastings and Courtland Flats:

Hastings and Courtland Flats: Summary of Christmas and Spring Bird Count Data

History & Uses

• The Durrell Creek watershed, like the Colquitz, was the traditional territory of the Saanich, Songhees and Esquimalt people for several thousand years. In particular, the Kosapsom family used the area for hunting, fishing, and plant collecting.
• Beginning in the mid-1800s, shortly after Fort Victoria was established, the land was logged and cleared for agriculture. Farming of lowland areas began in the late 1800s.
• In 1908, the BC Electric Railway was built between Victoria and Sidney. One of the three bridges (First Trestle) was located along what is now Interurban Rd. This was removed in 1925 and replaced with a road bed. 
• The lowland areas in the watershed historically flooded every year during the winter.  In 1948, flood waters on Hastings St. reached three feet. In order to make residential development, road building and agriculture more feasible, drainage of the area was accomplished with systems of ditches and culverts. 

Concerns

Several concerns were identified in a watershed management plan for the Durrell Creek watershed.

• Flooding is an ongoing concern for some people, for example farmers would like better drainage to allow them to plant crops sooner in the spring. 
• Water quality and flows are threatened, due to surrounding land uses and degradation of the stream channel. A lack of natural or constructed features such as wetlands contributes to increased runoff in the winter and low flows during the summer. 
• Pollution from sources such as roads, leaking septic tanks and sewer cross-connections, is contributing to degraded water quality. A study in 2000 found that the BC Water Quality Standards were exceeded for Total Suspended Solids, Phosphates and Fecal Coliforms.1
• Summer water temperatures are too high to support temperature-sensitive fish such as salmon.
• Impervious surfaces have doubled in 43 years, from 4.7% of the land in 1956, to 11.3% in 1999.  These surfaces, which include roofs and paved areas such as roads, driveways and parking lots, cause high volumes of water to flow directly into the creek, carrying pollutants such as oil, and contributing to erosion.
• Habitat loss and degradation has been a consequence of much of the development in the watershed; this has also led to a loss of biodiversity. 
• Invasive species are prevalent in many areas, and also contribute to lowered biodiversity.
• Recreation opportunities along the creek are limited, and residents have expressed a desire to increase the aesthetic and environmental qualities of the watershed. 

Restoration Plans

• The Municipality of Saanich commissioned an Integrated Watershed Management Plan, which was completed in 2000. The authors of this plan made a number of recommendations, including: upgrading of culverts and other infrastructure; implementation of guidelines and codes of practice for land development and agriculture; education and environmental stewarship programs for residents; water quality testing and stream restoration initiatives.
• Habitat Acquisition Trust (http://www.hat.bc.ca), funded in part by the Municipality of  Saanich, has begun a program for community education and stewardship of the Durrell Creek and Colquitz Creek watersheds. 
• The Municipality of Saanich has implemented other recommendations of the watershed management plan, including replanting native riparian vegetation along the stream. 

How can I help?

• Learn more about this watershed, or your local watershed: find out what watershed you live in with the Regional Community Atlas; go for walks along the streams and in the parks in your area, and get to know the attributes and potential concerns of these areas. 
• Get involved in a community stewardship group in your area, that contributes to cleaning up and restoring streams and terrestrial ecosystems. 
• Help to reduce runoff into local streams, by capturing and reusing rainwater (e.g. with rain barrels) and by reducing impervious surfaces in your community and on your property. 
• Provide wildlife food and habitat in your yard with native plants, and reduce the use of pesticides and fertilizers that can be washed into local streams (see natural gardening tips).
• If you own streamside or shoreline property, learn about ways to limit the impacts of development that also preserve the value of your property. 
• If you have a farm or livestock, see these tips for reducing the impacts of agriculture on natural ecosystems.

• Learn about tips to improve the water quality and flows of your watershed. 

Additional Information & Links

• Durrell Creek Watershed Management Committee, Pottinger Gaherty Environmental Consultants Ltd. and Northwest Hydraulic Consultants Ltd. 2000. Durrell Creek Integrated Watershed Management Plan. (obtained from Saanich Environmental Dept
• Yorath, C.J. and H.W. Nasmith. 1995. The Geology of Southern Vancouver Island.  Orca Book Publishers