Flood control canals as bird habitat

Ibis on Buffalo Bayou at Highway 6 - East of flood gate at
Barker Dam

Nigh Heron

Snowy egret with trade-mark yellow feet

 Three common birds seen at Houston-area 

waterways: Great white egret, snowy egret, night heron

Egrets on concrete slopes at confluence 

of channelized streams

Large culverts at Noble Road outside Barker Dam
in which birds have built mud nest on ceiling

High water at SH-6 bridge over Buffalo Bayou with
birds looking for fish

Buffalo Bayou spillway downstream from the flood
control gate - Heavy water release after rains in June

Black-crowned night heron on the water

Ibis strutting along the Buffalo Bayou bank, foraging

Addicks Project Office US Army Corps of Engineers

Project Office with flags seen from the dam

Point where Buffalo Bayou exists Barker Reservoir
through remote-controlled gates the regulate water flow
Repair work currently underway 

Channel outside Barker Dam near U S Army Corps of Engineers
Project Office on Highway 6

Spillway Repair Project - Buffalo Bayou at Barker Dam

 

Barker Dam Construction Zone near Briar Forest at Highway 6 (updated)

How it looks after completion:

June 21, 2013 photo of Barker Dam and widened channel at Briar Forest / Noble Road
Looking South

Channel on the North side of the culvert

ORIGINAL BLOG POST:

Construction work underway on Barker Dam near Briar Forest
May 8, 2013 photo 

Barker Reservoir Dam is undergoing some improvements. Heavy equipment has been deployed on the city-facing side to reinforce and apparently widen the bed of the conveyance channel running in northerly direction at the base of the earthen dam built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for flood control purposes. The dam reportedly  has some stability problems that would not allow the reservoir to perform anywhere close to full capacity in a major flood event, and would thus diminish the amount of water it can temporarily retain to avoid or reduce flooding downstream in the City of Houston.  

Managed environment appreciation: Flood control channel at dusk

Flood control canals, flood channels, drainage ditches, run-off conveyance trenches, etc. All are defined by their function, but that does not mean they are not a proper object of aesthetic appreciation, especially when they are part of an appealing landscape and populated with wildlife. 

Great white egret shaking its plumage at drainage canal in George Bush Park

Egrets and other large birds can regularly been seen at Harris County Flood Channel T-103, which flows into Buffalo Bayou in the Southern part of George Bush Park, and yet very accessible, because of the paved hike & bike trail that runs alongside it. Easiest way to get to it is from the Rugby / Soccer fields on Westheimer, which offer plenty of parking space. 

Pedestrian truss bridge over T-103, a tributary of Buffalo Bayou, with reflection 

A picturesque pedestrian truss bridge connects to the trail that runs East to the Equestrian area parking lot and includes a long wooden-plank boardwalk section where it crosses Buffalo Bayou, not just the typical rusty truss bridge. 

The area around the bridge and alongside the channel is open, which allows the sky and the treeline to be reflected in the water surface, creating a pleasant scenery, especially at sunsets with cloudy sky. Bush Park offers magnificent sunsets. (Click link(s) for more suburban sunsets vistas). 

Flood Canal T-103 in Barker Reservoir - Looking West from North Bank (Feb 2013 photo)

The water and shores of the canal are popular with large birds (egrets, herons, even ibises, which are much rarer than the ubiquitous great white egrets) and groups of deer can often been seen on the South side emerging from the edge of the woods at dusk. 

Photo-riddle for Bayou City Dwellers: Guess what this is

If you can figure it out, you advance to the next level..... Next question: Where was this picture taken? 

Page down for answer. I'll put some other pics in between. Perhaps as hints. Perhaps to fool you. 

Pull yourself up

No need to crack this one - It's already a half shell (and empty)

And here is the answer: 

Buffalo Bayou waters exiting from the flood control gate at Barker Reservoir after heavy rain. 

Barker Reservoir flow control gate releasing more water than normal amount

Controlled flooding in George Bush Park

The heavy rains of the past few days have flooded parts of Bush Park again. That's what is supposed to happen, though. After all, the area is a designated reservoir. 

  
Barker Dam was not just built to afford the locals an opportunity for nice walks with panoramic view, but to hold back the waters running off from the Katy prairie so they won't add to the effects of sustained precipitation farther downstream. When the rain is over, the gates are opened and more water than usual is released and heads down to the Ship Channel. The water level of Buffalo Bayou downstream may thus rise with delay and a stronger flow may be seen after the bad whether is gone. 

This area on the West side of the dam is dry most of the year -
bur not now (1/10/13)

Rainwater flow-off backed up behind the dam
Monitoring equipment on concrete pylon

 

Gates with greater than usual throughput