West Branch Chillisquaque Creek

West Branch Chillisquaque Creek is long. It starts slightly east of Anthony Township and flows west. It flows southwest for some distance before turning nearly due south and passing under Pennsylvania Route 44 on its way through the community of Exchange. West Branch Chillisquaque Creek picks up its only named tributary, County Line Branch, right at its confluence with Chillisquaque Creek. The creek empties into Chillisquaque Creek above Washingtonville. == Geology ==

West Branch Chillisquaque Creek is situated in the Ridge-and-Valley province. The creek's headwaters are higher than its mouth. The watershed is highest in its northeastern area. There are a number of different types of soils in the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek. The great majority of these soils are silt loams. These soils consist of the Watson-Berks-Elvira soil, the Berks-Weikert-Bedington soil, and the Hagerstown-Edom-Washington soil. There is also one non-silt loam soil that can be found in the creek's watershed. It is known as the Chenango-Pope-Holly soil. The Watson-Berks-Elvira soil primarily occurs in the central portion of the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek. The Berks-Weikert-Bedington soil primarily occurs in the northern portion of the creek's watershed. The Hagerstown-Edom-Washington soil primarily occurs in the south-central and southwestern parts of the watershed. The Chenango-Pope-Holly soil primarily occurs in a small area of the southeastern part of the creek's watershed. The soil is highly fertile in the upper reaches of the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek. Due to the presence of livestock near West Branch Chillisquaque Creek, parts of the creek's banks experience erosion. == Hydrology ==

of sediment and of phosphorus pass through the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek each day. However, there are no instances of point-source pollution in the watershed. West Branch Chillisquaque Creek is similar to Roaring Creek in many respects, such as the level of precipitation in both watersheds. == Watershed ==

The watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek has an area of . The creek and its tributaries can be accessed via a number of township roads and also via Pennsylvania Route 44 and Pennsylvania Route 54. West Branch Chillisquaque Creek's tributaries include County Line Branch, Beaver Run, and a number of tributaries that are unnamed. The land in West Branch Chillisquaque Creek's watershed consists of 58% agricultural areas, 36% forest, and 6% developed areas. The forested portions of the creek's watershed are primarily in the northern part of the watershed, while the agricultural areas are primarily in the southern and central portions of the creek's watershed. The developed areas are in small sections of the eastern part of the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek. == History ==

The 'Chillisquaque' in West Branch Chillisquaque's name comes from a Native American word that refers to a location commonly visited by snowbirds. West Branch Chillisquaque Creek was part of a 2010 stream restoration project. == Fauna and flora ==

There are of streams that have organic enrichment, sediment from agricultural projects, and a low level of dissolved oxygen. Where the creek flows past agricultural areas, its riparian buffer is severely impaired. There are 12 common species of trees in the watershed of West Branch Chillisquaque Creek. There are 22 species of herbs that are common in the creek's watershed. Ovenbirds, black-throated green warblers, wood thrushes, blue-headed vireo and common yellowheads are the major species of birds in the watershed. ==See also==