Disappointment Slough
Map SatelliteDisappointment Slough is one of the largest and most consistent of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta sloughs. There are low islands, virtually marshes, covered with Juncus sp. and Typha sp., with tortuous channels winding between the islands. Along the levees and on some of the larger islands there are willow thickets, Salix sp., with cottonwood, Populus fremontii. Blackberry, Rubus sp., forms a dense cover in the interiors of some of the islands.
This slough supports a fauna typical of the Delta. It is used by a variety, though never in great numbers, of migrating waterfowl, both ducks and geese, during the winter months. Muskrats, Ondatra zibethica, and raccoons, Procyon lotor, are among the more common larger mammals, though mink, Mustela vison, and the gray fox, Urocyon cinereoargenteus, may occasionally be sighted in the area. Among the fish found here, particularly near the mouth, are striped bass, Roccus saxatilis, white catfish, Ictalurus catus, and shad, Alosa sapidissima, among others.
Integrity: The slough is contained by levees and is frequented by pleasure boats.
Use: Educational, research, observational, light recreation.
April 1976
Inventory of California Natural Areas
Revision © 2009 Steven Louis Hartman