Yaquina Bay – Oregon Conservation Strategy

The Yaquina estuary COA is a large watershed with numerous fish, wildlife, habitat, and human resources.

COA ID: 026

Recommended Conservation Actions

Limit the placement of docks and boathouses in the estuary
Protect and restore estuarine shorelines from hardening and dynamic revetment modifications (rip rap, rock, etc)
Remove remaining dikes and tide gated areas to recover lost salt marsh habitats

Local Conservation Actions and Plans

Important Bird Areas of Oregon
Yaquina Estuarine Wetland Site Prioritization Project 1999

Potential Partners

Ducks Unlimited
Lincoln Soil and Water Conservation District
Mid Coast Watersheds Council
Oregon Department of Forestry
Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
The Wetlands Conservancy
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Special Features

General

Eelgrass beds
Intertidal and subtidal shellfish beds
Native oyster beds
Nesting Eagles and Ospreys along estuary

Previously Associated With

2006 COA ID CR-18 (Yaquina Bay)

Protected Areas

Clarence W. McQueen And Family Preserve
Johnson Slough Headwaters
Lincoln County Conservation Easement
Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Oregon Islands Wilderness
South Beach State Park
Upper Yaquina River Preserve
Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site
Yaquina Estuary - McCaffery/Poole Sloughs

Ecoregions

Coast Range

Oregon’s Coast Range, known for its dramatic scenery, is extremely diverse, with habitats ranging from open sandy dunes to lush forests and from tidepools to headwater streams. It follows the coastline and extends east through coastal forest to the border of the Willamette Valley and Klamath Mountains ecoregions

Strategy Habitats

Coastal Dunes

Occurring along the Oregon coastline, coastal dunes provide habitat for species that prefer open, sandy habitats with a high degree of disturbance from winds and tides.

Estuaries

Estuaries occur where freshwater rivers meet the oceanic salty waters, are influenced by tidal flooding, and experience frequent periodic changes in salinity, water levels, sunlight, and oxygen.

Grasslands

Grasslands include a variety of upland grass-dominated habitats, such as upland prairies, coastal bluffs, and montane grasslands.

Late Successional Mixed Conifer Forests

Late successional mixed conifer forests provide a multi-layered tree canopy, including large-diameter trees, shade-tolerant tree species in the understory, and a high volume of dead wood, such as snags and logs.

Natural Lakes

Natural lakes are relatively large bodies of freshwater surrounded by land. For the purposes of the Conservation Strategy, natural lakes are defined as standing water bodies larger than 20 acres, including some seasonal lakes.

Flowing Water and Riparian Habitats

Flowing Water and Riparian Habitats include all naturally occurring flowing freshwater streams and rivers throughout Oregon as well as the adjacent riparian habitat.

Ducks on a wetland in Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area, Oregon

Wetlands

Wetlands are covered with water during all or part of the year. Permanently wet habitats include backwater sloughs, oxbow lakes, and marshes, while seasonally wet habitats include seasonal ponds, vernal pools, and wet prairies.