Thunder Creek is a river in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

of Saskatchewan. The

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

of Thunder Creek is within the semi-arid Palliser's Triangle in south-central Saskatchewan. It begins at small, man-made reservoir near Lake Diefenbaker and flows in a south-easterly direction towards the city of Moose Jaw and the

Moose Jaw River Moose Jaw River is a river in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is located in the southern part of the province in a region called the Prairie Pothole Region of North America, which extends throughout three Canadian provinces and fiv ...

. The Moose Jaw River is a major tributary of the

Qu'Appelle River The Qu'Appelle River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba that flows east from Lake Diefenbaker in south-western Saskatchewan to join the Assiniboine River in Manitoba, just south of Lake of the Prairies, near t ...

For most of its course, Thunder Creek follows a valley called the Thunder Creek meltwater channel that was formed over 10,000 years ago near the end of the last ice age. During the drought of the 1980s, the river, and the marshes and lakes along its course, almost ran dry. To stabilise water levels, a reservoir was built at the head of the river. The reservoir is supplied by pumping in water from nearby Lake Diefenbaker.

Description

Thunder Creek begins at the man-made reservoir and flows into the Thunder Creek meltwater channel. Once in the valley, the river meanders its way along the valley floor. Along the way, it is joined by several creeks flowing in from the coulees. The western tributaries of upper Thunder Creek watershed drain a hilly plateau called the Vermilion Hills. There are four small lakes in a chain along the course that are part of two

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

s, including Paysen (Horfield) Lake, Williams Lake, Kettlehut Lake, and Pelican Lake. As the water level of Pelican Lake–the last lake in the chain of lakes–isn't always high enough to provide an outflow, Sandy Creek, which is about one kilometre downstream from Pelican Lake, becomes the primary water source for the last leg of Thunder Creek. Communities found along the river's course include Moose Jaw, Boharm, and Caron. Highways 1, 19,

627 __NOTOC__ Year 627 ( DCXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 627 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Eur ...

, and

643 __NOTOC__ Year 643 (Roman numerals, DCXLIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 643 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno D ...

cross Thunder Creek.

Tributaries

Thunder Creek tributaries include: *Allin Creek *Aquadell Creek *Sandy Creek *Wilson Creek

Important Bird Areas

There are two

s (IBA) of Canada along the course of Thunder Creek. In 1990, the Riverhurst Management Plan, which was developed by Ducks Unlimited through the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, was initiated to stabilise water levels in the lakes and marshes by pumping in water from Lake Diefenbaker. Stable water levels provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Paysen /Kettlehut Lake

Paysen/Kettlehut Lake IBA SK 057 encompasses Paysen, Williams, and Kettlehut Lakes and the surrounding river valley. The IBA site totals with an elevation range of to . It is

Crown land Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland), also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it. ...

that is composed of grasslands, ponds, marshes, and creeks. Birds found in the lakes and protected area include the western grebe, black-necked grebe,

Franklin's gull Franklin's gull (''Leucophaeus pipixcan'') is a small (length 12.6–14.2 in, 32–36 cm) gull. The genus name ''Leucophaeus'' is from Ancient Greek ''leukos'', "white", and ''phaios'', "dusky". The specific ''pipixcan'' is a Nahuatl name fo ...

, Forster's tern, marsh wren,

sedge wren The sedge wren (''Cistothorus stellaris'') is a small and secretive passerine bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is widely distributed in North America. It is often found in wet grasslands and meadows where it nests in the tall grasses and sed ...

common yellowthroat The common yellowthroat (''Geothlypis trichas'') is a New World warbler. In the U.S. Midwest, it is also known as the yellow bandit. It is an abundant breeder in North America, ranging from southern Canada to central Mexico. The genus name ''Geot ...

LeConte's sparrow LeConte's sparrow (''Ammospiza leconteii'') is one of the smallest New World sparrow species in North America.Terres, J.K. (1980). The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds. New York: Alfred A. Knopf It is a very secretive bird th ...

, and

Nelson's sparrow Nelson's sparrow (''Ammospiza nelsoni'') is a small New World sparrow. This bird was named after Edward William Nelson, an American naturalist. Formerly, this bird and the saltmarsh sparrow were considered to be a single species, the sharp-tail ...

Pelican Lake

Pelican Lake IBA SK 059 is about downstream and south-east of SK 057 Paysen/Kettlehut Lake IBA and encompasses all of Pelican Lake and much of the surrounding landscape. Pelican Lake is the largest of the four lakes along the course of Thunder Creek and is recognised as a regional

Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network The Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN) is a conservation strategy targeting shorebirds in the Americas launched in 1985. Its aim is to protect the nesting, breeding and staging habitats of migratory shorebirds. The first site to ...

(WHSRN) site. The IBA covers an area of with an elevation range of to . Ducks Unlimited built three cross- dykes on Pelican Lake in 1964, 1973, and 1989 to help maintain water levels. Some of the birds commonly found at the IBA include the American avocet,

marbled godwit The marbled godwit (''Limosa fedoa'') is a large migratory shorebird in the family Scolopacidae. On average, it is the largest of the four species of godwit. Taxonomy In 1750 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a ...

, Wilson's phalarope, grey plover, tundra swan, mallard duck, gadwall duck, western grebe, blue-winged teal, northern pintail, and the

American white pelican The American white pelican (''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos'') is a large aquatic soaring bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America and South America, in winte ...

Besant Recreation Site

Besant Recreation Site () is a 300-acre provincial recreation site along the course of Sandy Creek in the

RM of Caron No. 162 The Rural Municipality of Caron No. 162 ( 2016 population: ) is a rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within Census Division No. 7 and Division No. 2. It is located in the southwest portion of the province. Hi ...

. Access to the park is off the Trans-Canada Highway, east of Mortlach. Besant Recreation Site is well treed and has about 100 campsites, sandhills, a spring-fed pond, a swimming area, and access to Sandy Creek. The pond is stocked with fish. The park was home to the Sandy Creek Gospel Jamboree.

Fish species

The most commonly found fish in the Thunder Creek river system is the northern pike. Other species include the

common carp The Eurasian carp or European carp (''Cyprinus carpio''), widely known as the common carp, is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia.Fishbase''Cyprinus carpio'' Linnaeus, 1758/ref>Arkive The ...

, burbot, largemouth bass, yellow perch, and walleye.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Saskatchewan Tributaries of Hudson Bay Important Bird Areas of Saskatchewan Enfield No. 194, Saskatchewan Caron No. 162, Saskatchewan Tributaries of the Assiniboine River