Elevation data to support estimations of stored sediment depths and volume in a beaver pond along Fanno Creek, western Oregon, 2016

Elevation-at-refusal (EAR) data were collected in May and September 2016 in conjunction with a comprehensive bed-elevation survey (White, 2025; methods described in White and others, 2025) to estimate the depth and total volume of sediment stored in a beaver pond along Fanno Creek, western Oregon. The EAR.csv file consists of points with xy coordinate and z elevation data. A stadia rod with a pointed foot was pushed into the unconsolidated sediment until the resistance changed noticeably, indicating that the rod had contacted the underlying and relatively more consolidated floodplain material, using methods from other beaver-related sediment studies (Butler and Malanson, 1995; Puttock and others, 2018). RTN-GPS survey equipment was used to record the coordinates and elevation of each EAR point. See Doyle and others (2025) for documentation of how these data were used to estimate the depth and volume of sediment stored in a beaver pond.

References:
James S. White, Krista L. Jones, Stewart A. Rounds, 2025, Beavers (Castor canadensis) in the Tualatin River Basin, Northwestern Oregon—Hydrologic and Hydraulic Responses of Beaver Dams to Storm Flows in Urban Streams, 2016-17, U.S. Geological Survey.

Micelis C. Doyle, Cassandra D. Smith, Krista L. Jones, Alexandria E. Costello, 2025, Beavers in the Tualatin River Basin, Oregon: 3. Effects on Sediment Transport and Deposition in Urban Streams, U.S. Geological Survey.

Butler, D.R., Malanson, G.P., 1995, Sedimentation rates and patterns in beaver ponds in a mountain environment, Geomorphology, v.13, page 255-269.

Puttock, A., Graham, H.A., Carless, D., Brazier, R.E., 2018, Sediment and nutrient storage in a beaver engineered wetland, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, v.43, no.11, page 2358-2370.

James S. White, 2025, Hydraulic models of two beaver affected reaches in the Tualatin Basin, Oregon, U.S. Geological Survey data release.