38.60 Miles
0 - 38.60
Cool-Cold Headwater, Cool-Warm Mainstem, Cool-Warm Headwater
2023
Poor
Impairment Unknown
Total Phosphorus
Rusk
No
No
Yes
Fish and Aquatic Life
Overview
Deer Tail Creek, in the Deer Tail Creek and Holcombe Flowage Watersheds, is a 38.60 mile river that falls in Rusk County. This river is managed for fishing and swimming and is currently considered impaired.
Date 2022
Author Ashley Beranek
Impaired Waters
Deer Trail Creek was listed in 2012 for high phosphorus levels. This creek was evaluated every two years from 2012 to 2022; phosphorus data continues to be high, but chloride, bugs, and fish data show no additional impairment.
Date 2022
Author Ashley Beranek
Condition
Wisconsin has over 84,000 miles of streams, 15,000 lakes and milllions of acres of wetlands. Assessing the condition of this vast amount of water is challenging. The state's water monitoring program uses a media-based, cross-program approach to analyze water condition. An updated monitoring strategy (2015-2020) is now available. Compliance with Clean Water Act fishable, swimmable standards are located in the Executive Summary of Water Condition in 2018. See also the 'monitoring and projects' tab.
Reports
Recommendations
Restore Wetlands
Restore Wetlands
Monitor Watershed (Status,Sources,Impairments)
Watershed Planning Project for FY09
Management Goals
Wisconsin's Water Quality Standards provide qualitative and quantitative goals for waters that are protective of Fishable, Swimmable conditions [Learn more]. Waters that do not meet water quality standards are considered impaired and restoration actions are planned and carried out until the water is once again fishable and swimmable
Management goals can include creation or implementation of a Total Maximum Daily Load analysis, a Nine Key Element Plan, or other restoration work, education and outreach and more. If specific recommendations exist for this water, they will be displayed below online.
Monitoring
Monitoring the condition of a river, stream, or lake includes gathering physical, chemical, biological, and habitat data. Comprehensive studies often gather all these parameters in great detail, while lighter assessment events will involve sampling physical, chemical and biological data such as macroinvertebrates. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish communities integrate watershed or catchment condition, providing great insight into overall ecosystem health. Chemical and habitat parameters tell researchers more about human induced problems including contaminated runoff, point source dischargers, or habitat issues that foster or limit the potential of aquatic communities to thrive in a given area. Wisconsin's Water Monitoring Strategy was recenty updated.
Grants and Management Projects
Monitoring Projects
| WBIC | Official Waterbody Name | Station ID | Station Name | Earliest Fieldwork Date | Latest Fieldwork Date | View Station | View Data |
|---|
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10030510 | Deer Tail Creek 40m upstream of Glen Flora effluent outfall | 8/27/2009 | 8/27/2009 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10030708 | Deer Tail Creek 34 m US of Deer Tail Rd. | 11/5/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553034 | Deer Tail Creek at Deer Tail Trail | 6/25/1975 | 8/29/2019 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553036 | Deer Tail Creek at Cloverland Road | 4/14/1975 | 10/27/1975 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553130 | Deer Tail Creek at Hwy 27 | 8/20/1997 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10051434 | County Hwy I | | | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10030710 | Deer Tail Creek along Ambrose Rd. | 11/5/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10035777 | Deer Tail Creek - Area of Open Water | | | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10050914 | Deer Tail Creek- NRSA Site | 8/1/2018 | 7/12/2023 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10007744 | Deer Tail Creek at Cth B | 3/9/2009 | 11/9/2009 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553035 | Deer Tail Creek at Oak Grove Road | 6/18/1975 | 10/27/1975 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10036060 | Deer Tail Creek - Area of Open Water | | | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553169 | Deer Tail Creek at Cth B | 9/26/2005 | 8/27/2014 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10029057 | Deer Tail Creek at Larson Road | 11/5/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10029503 | DEER TAIL CREEK 30 M UPSTREAM OF BROKEN ARROW RD. | 10/23/2008 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10030709 | Deer Tail Creek 88 m DS of Hwy 8 | 11/5/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553129 | Deer Tail Creek at Cth X | 8/20/1997 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10012139 | Deertail Creek - Station 1 | | | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10012140 | Deertail Creek - Station 2-Schultz Road | 10/31/2002 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10052746 | Deertail Creek 5m US School Road | 7/23/2019 | 8/29/2019 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10029154 | Deer Tail Creek - Old Airport Road | 11/13/2008 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 553131 | Deer Tail Creek at Broken Arrow Rd | 8/20/1997 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10029059 | Deer Tail Creek at Plantz Road | 11/5/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 2221700 | Deer Tail Creek | 10030713 | Deer Tail Creek 32 m ds of McGee Lake dam | 11/9/2009 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
|
Watershed Characteristics
Deer Tail Creek is located in the Holcombe Flowage watershed which is 170.38 mi². Land use in the watershed is primarily forest (53.90%), wetland (23.30%) and a mix of open (9.10%) and other uses (13.70%). This watershed has 216.07 stream miles, 6,687.77 lake acres and 19,889.41 wetland acres.
Nonpoint Source Characteristics
This watershed is ranked Not Ranked for runoff impacts on streams, Medium for runoff impacts on lakes and Low for runoff impacts on groundwater and therefore has an overall rank of Low. This value can be used in ranking the watershed or individual waterbodies for grant funding under state and county programs.However, all waters are affected by diffuse pollutant sources regardless of initial water quality. Applications for specific runoff projects under state or county grant programs may be pursued. For more information, go to surface water program grants.
Deer Tail Creek is considered a Cool-Cold Headwater, Cool-Warm Mainstem, Cool-Warm Headwater under the state's Natural Community Determinations.
Natural communities (stream and lake natural communities) represent model results and DNR staff valiation processes that confirm or update predicted conditions based on flow and temperature modeling from historic and current landscape features and related variables. Predicated flow and temperatures for waters are associated predicated fish assemblages (communities). Biologists evaluate the model results against current survey data to determine if the modeled results are corect and whether biological indicators show water quaity degradation. This analysis is a core component of the state's resource management framework. Wisconsin's Riverine Natural Communities.
Cool (Warm-Transition) Headwaters are small, sometimes intermittent streams with cool to warm summer temperatures. Coldwater fishes are uncommon to absent, transitional fishes are abundant to common, and warm water fishes are common to uncommon. Headwater species are abundant to common, mainstem species are common to absent, and river species are absent.
Cool (Cold-Transition) Headwaters are small, usually perennial streams with cold to cool summer temperatures. Coldwater fishes are common to uncommon (<10 per 100 m), transitional fishes are abundant to common, and warm water fishes are uncommon to absent. Headwater species are abundant to common, mainstem species are common to absent, and river species are absent.