 cesium , and lithium .   = = Climate = =   The Trout Creek Mountains are semi @-@ arid because they are in the eastern rain shadow of mountain ranges to the west . When moist air from the Pacific Ocean moves eastward over the Oregon and California coastal ranges and the Cascade Range , most precipitation falls in those mountains before reaching the Trout Creek Mountains . As a result , the average annual precipitation in the Trout Creek Mountains is only 8 to 26 inches ( 200 to 660 mm ) per year , with most areas receiving between 8 and 12 inches ( 200 and 300 mm ) annually . Much of the annual precipitation occurs between the beginning of March and the end of June . Most of the rest falls as snow during the fall and winter months . Snowpack at elevations below 6 @,@ 000 feet ( 1 @,@ 800 m ) usually melts by April ; however , at the higher elevations , snow can remain until mid @-@ June . Local flooding often occurs in the spring as the snowpack melts .   The prevailing winds are from the west @-@ southwest , and they are normally strongest in March and April . Brief , intense thunderstorms are common between April and October . Thunderstorms in the summer months tend to be more isolated and often produce dry lightning strikes .   = = Ecology = =   = = = Flora = = =   Vegetation in the Trout Creek Mountains is dominated by big sagebrush and desert grasses . Other common shrubs include bitterbrush , snowberry , and Ceanothus . There are also patches of mountain mahogany in some areas . Common grass species include Idaho fescue , bluebunch wheatgrass , cheatgrass , western needlegrass , Sandberg 's bluegrass , Thurber 's needlegrass , and bottlebrush squirreltail , as well as basin wildrye in some well @-@ drained areas .   Less than one percent of the range consists of meadow wetlands and riparian greenways ( vegetation along stream banks ) . However , these areas are vital to the local ecosystem . The meadows surround springs , which are mostly on gently sloping uplands or in stream bottoms , and range in size from about 1 to 5 acres ( 0 @.@ 40 to 2 @.@ 02 ha ) . Narrow riparian greenways follow the year @-@ round streams . Many greenway areas have quaking aspen and willow groves . Cottonwood and alder groves can be found at lower elevations where terrain is flatter and stream channels are wider . Sedges and rushes are also native to these stream bottoms . Years of heavy livestock grazing in parts of the range resulted in the loss of some grass species , riparian vegetation , and young aspen and willow trees . Restoration of riparian areas began in the early 1970s , and plans to reduce grazing were implemented in the 1980s and early 1990s . However , large wildfires in southeastern Oregon during the summer of 2012 burned much of the range 's vegetation , damaging riparian ecosystems and killing hundreds of grazing cattle .   = = = Fauna = = =   Animals in the Trout Creek Mountains are adapted to the environment of the High Desert . Pronghorn are common in the open , sagebrush @-@ covered basins , while mule deer live in the cottonwood and willow groves . There are also bighorn sheep , cougars , and bobcats in the high country . Jackrabbits and coyotes are prevalent throughout the range . Mustangs sometimes pass through the mountains as they roam the Great Basin . Some other mammals include the northern pocket gopher , mountain cottontail , and Belding 's ground squirrel . North American beavers live in and along streams , as do Pacific tree frogs , western spadefoot toads , and garter snakes . Native bird species include the sage grouse , mountain chickadee , gray @-@ headed junco , black @-@ throated gray warbler , Virginia 's warbler , MacGillivray 's warbler , pine siskin , red crossbill , bushtit , hermit thrush , northern goshawk , and species of raven and eagle .   Several streams in the Trout Creek Mountains are home to trout , including the rare Lahontan cutthroat trout subspecies . These include Willow Creek , Whitehorse Creek , Little Whitehorse Creek , Doolittle Creek , Fifteen Mile Creek , Indian Creek , Sage Canyon Creek , Line Canyon Creek , and some tributaries of McDermitt Creek . Lahontan cutthroat trout live in small , isolated populations that are often confined to individual streams , many of them in the Trout Creek Mountains . These populations have significant genetic differences due to their history of isolation . For most of the 20th century , the trout 's numbers declined considerably . It was listed under federal law as an endangered species in 1970 and was reclassified as threatened in
Ġc es ium Ġ, Ġand Ġlithium Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠClimate Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠThe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġare Ġsemi Ġ@ - @ Ġar id Ġbecause Ġthey Ġare Ġin Ġthe Ġeastern Ġrain Ġshadow Ġof Ġmountain Ġranges Ġto Ġthe Ġwest Ġ. ĠWhen Ġmoist Ġair Ġfrom Ġthe ĠPacific ĠOcean Ġmoves Ġeast ward Ġover Ġthe ĠOregon Ġand ĠCalifornia Ġcoastal Ġranges Ġand Ġthe ĠCascade ĠRange Ġ, Ġmost Ġprecipitation Ġfalls Ġin Ġthose Ġmountains Ġbefore Ġreaching Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġ. ĠAs Ġa Ġresult Ġ, Ġthe Ġaverage Ġannual Ġprecipitation Ġin Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġis Ġonly Ġ8 Ġto Ġ26 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ200 Ġto Ġ660 Ġmm Ġ) Ġper Ġyear Ġ, Ġwith Ġmost Ġareas Ġreceiving Ġbetween Ġ8 Ġand Ġ12 Ġinches Ġ( Ġ200 Ġand Ġ300 Ġmm Ġ) Ġannually Ġ. ĠMuch Ġof Ġthe Ġannual Ġprecipitation Ġoccurs Ġbetween Ġthe Ġbeginning Ġof ĠMarch Ġand Ġthe Ġend Ġof ĠJune Ġ. ĠMost Ġof Ġthe Ġrest Ġfalls Ġas Ġsnow Ġduring Ġthe Ġfall Ġand Ġwinter Ġmonths Ġ. ĠSnow pack Ġat Ġelev ations Ġbelow Ġ6 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġfeet Ġ( Ġ1 Ġ@ , @ Ġ800 Ġm Ġ) Ġusually Ġmelts Ġby ĠApril Ġ; Ġhowever Ġ, Ġat Ġthe Ġhigher Ġelev ations Ġ, Ġsnow Ġcan Ġremain Ġuntil Ġmid Ġ@ - @ ĠJune Ġ. ĠLocal Ġflooding Ġoften Ġoccurs Ġin Ġthe Ġspring Ġas Ġthe Ġsnow pack Ġmelts Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġprevailing Ġwinds Ġare Ġfrom Ġthe Ġwest Ġ@ - @ Ġsouthwest Ġ, Ġand Ġthey Ġare Ġnormally Ġstrongest Ġin ĠMarch Ġand ĠApril Ġ. ĠBrief Ġ, Ġintense Ġthunder storms Ġare Ġcommon Ġbetween ĠApril Ġand ĠOctober Ġ. ĠThunder storms Ġin Ġthe Ġsummer Ġmonths Ġtend Ġto Ġbe Ġmore Ġisolated Ġand Ġoften Ġproduce Ġdry Ġlightning Ġstrikes Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠEcology Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠFlor a Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠVeget ation Ġin Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġis Ġdominated Ġby Ġbig Ġsage brush Ġand Ġdesert Ġgrass es Ġ. ĠOther Ġcommon Ġshr ubs Ġinclude Ġbitter brush Ġ, Ġsnow berry Ġ, Ġand ĠC ean oth us Ġ. ĠThere Ġare Ġalso Ġpatches Ġof Ġmountain Ġmah og any Ġin Ġsome Ġareas Ġ. ĠCommon Ġgrass Ġspecies Ġinclude ĠIdaho Ġf esc ue Ġ, Ġblue b unch Ġwheat grass Ġ, Ġcheat grass Ġ, Ġwestern Ġneed leg r ass Ġ, ĠSand berg Ġ' s Ġblue grass Ġ, ĠThur ber Ġ' s Ġneed leg r ass Ġ, Ġand Ġbottle brush Ġsquirrel tail Ġ, Ġas Ġwell Ġas Ġbasin Ġwild ry e Ġin Ġsome Ġwell Ġ@ - @ Ġdrained Ġareas Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠLess Ġthan Ġone Ġpercent Ġof Ġthe Ġrange Ġconsists Ġof Ġme adow Ġwetlands Ġand Ġrip arian Ġgreen ways Ġ( Ġvegetation Ġalong Ġstream Ġbanks Ġ) Ġ. ĠHowever Ġ, Ġthese Ġareas Ġare Ġvital Ġto Ġthe Ġlocal Ġecosystem Ġ. ĠThe Ġme adows Ġsurround Ġsprings Ġ, Ġwhich Ġare Ġmostly Ġon Ġgently Ġsl oping Ġupl ands Ġor Ġin Ġstream Ġbott oms Ġ, Ġand Ġrange Ġin Ġsize Ġfrom Ġabout Ġ1 Ġto Ġ5 Ġacres Ġ( Ġ0 Ġ@ . @ Ġ40 Ġto Ġ2 Ġ@ . @ Ġ02 Ġha Ġ) Ġ. ĠN arrow Ġrip arian Ġgreen ways Ġfollow Ġthe Ġyear Ġ@ - @ Ġround Ġstreams Ġ. ĠMany Ġgreen way Ġareas Ġhave Ġqu aking Ġas pen Ġand Ġwill ow Ġgro ves Ġ. ĠCotton wood Ġand Ġa lder Ġgro ves Ġcan Ġbe Ġfound Ġat Ġlower Ġelev ations Ġwhere Ġterrain Ġis Ġfl atter Ġand Ġstream Ġchannels Ġare Ġwider Ġ. ĠSed ges Ġand Ġrushes Ġare Ġalso Ġnative Ġto Ġthese Ġstream Ġbott oms Ġ. ĠYears Ġof Ġheavy Ġlivestock Ġgrazing Ġin Ġparts Ġof Ġthe Ġrange Ġresulted Ġin Ġthe Ġloss Ġof Ġsome Ġgrass Ġspecies Ġ, Ġrip arian Ġvegetation Ġ, Ġand Ġyoung Ġas pen Ġand Ġwill ow Ġtrees Ġ. ĠRestoration Ġof Ġrip arian Ġareas Ġbegan Ġin Ġthe Ġearly Ġ1970 s Ġ, Ġand Ġplans Ġto Ġreduce Ġgrazing Ġwere Ġimplemented Ġin Ġthe Ġ1980 s Ġand Ġearly Ġ1990 s Ġ. ĠHowever Ġ, Ġlarge Ġwildfires Ġin Ġsoutheastern ĠOregon Ġduring Ġthe Ġsummer Ġof Ġ2012 Ġburned Ġmuch Ġof Ġthe Ġrange Ġ' s Ġvegetation Ġ, Ġdamaging Ġrip arian Ġecosystems Ġand Ġkilling Ġhundreds Ġof Ġgrazing Ġcattle Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠF auna Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠAnimals Ġin Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġare Ġadapted Ġto Ġthe Ġenvironment Ġof Ġthe ĠHigh ĠDesert Ġ. ĠP rongh orn Ġare Ġcommon Ġin Ġthe Ġopen Ġ, Ġsage brush Ġ@ - @ Ġcovered Ġbas ins Ġ, Ġwhile Ġm ule Ġdeer Ġlive Ġin Ġthe Ġcotton wood Ġand Ġwill ow Ġgro ves Ġ. ĠThere Ġare Ġalso Ġb igh orn Ġsheep Ġ, Ġcou gars Ġ, Ġand Ġbob cats Ġin Ġthe Ġhigh Ġcountry Ġ. ĠJack r abb its Ġand Ġcoy otes Ġare Ġprevalent Ġthroughout Ġthe Ġrange Ġ. ĠMust angs Ġsometimes Ġpass Ġthrough Ġthe Ġmountains Ġas Ġthey Ġroam Ġthe ĠGreat ĠBasin Ġ. ĠSome Ġother Ġmammals Ġinclude Ġthe Ġnorthern Ġpocket Ġg opher Ġ, Ġmountain Ġc ott ont ail Ġ, Ġand ĠBe ld ing Ġ' s Ġground Ġsquirrel Ġ. ĠNorth ĠAmerican Ġbe avers Ġlive Ġin Ġand Ġalong Ġstreams Ġ, Ġas Ġdo ĠPacific Ġtree Ġfrogs Ġ, Ġwestern Ġsp ade foot Ġto ads Ġ, Ġand Ġg arter Ġsnakes Ġ. ĠNative Ġbird Ġspecies Ġinclude Ġthe Ġsage Ġgrou se Ġ, Ġmountain Ġchick ade e Ġ, Ġgray Ġ@ - @ Ġheaded Ġjun co Ġ, Ġblack Ġ@ - @ Ġthro ated Ġgray Ġwar bler Ġ, ĠVirginia Ġ' s Ġwar bler Ġ, ĠMac G ill iv ray Ġ' s Ġwar bler Ġ, Ġpine Ġs isk in Ġ, Ġred Ġcross bill Ġ, Ġbus ht it Ġ, Ġher mit Ġthr ush Ġ, Ġnorthern Ġg osh awk Ġ, Ġand Ġspecies Ġof Ġraven Ġand Ġeagle Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠSeveral Ġstreams Ġin Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġare Ġhome Ġto Ġtrout Ġ, Ġincluding Ġthe Ġrare ĠLah ont an Ġcut thro at Ġtrout Ġsub species Ġ. ĠThese Ġinclude ĠWillow ĠCreek Ġ, ĠWhite horse ĠCreek Ġ, ĠLittle ĠWhite horse ĠCreek Ġ, ĠD ool ittle ĠCreek Ġ, ĠFif teen ĠMile ĠCreek Ġ, ĠIndian ĠCreek Ġ, ĠSage ĠCanyon ĠCreek Ġ, ĠLine ĠCanyon ĠCreek Ġ, Ġand Ġsome Ġt ribut aries Ġof ĠMcD erm itt ĠCreek Ġ. ĠLah ont an Ġcut thro at Ġtrout Ġlive Ġin Ġsmall Ġ, Ġisolated Ġpopulations Ġthat Ġare Ġoften Ġconfined Ġto Ġindividual Ġstreams Ġ, Ġmany Ġof Ġthem Ġin Ġthe ĠTrout ĠCreek ĠMountains Ġ. ĠThese Ġpopulations Ġhave Ġsignificant Ġgenetic Ġdifferences Ġdue Ġto Ġtheir Ġhistory Ġof Ġisolation Ġ. ĠFor Ġmost Ġof Ġthe Ġ20 th Ġcentury Ġ, Ġthe Ġtrout Ġ' s Ġnumbers Ġdeclined Ġconsiderably Ġ. ĠIt Ġwas Ġlisted Ġunder Ġfederal Ġlaw Ġas Ġan Ġendangered Ġspecies Ġin Ġ1970 Ġand Ġwas Ġre classified Ġas Ġthreatened Ġin