Written by Rachel White, FOMR Vice President
Under the shade of the willows at Benson Pond, a lone Trumpeter Swan glided through the marsh as Friends of Malheur board members listened to Refuge Manager Jess Wenick describe the delicate balancing act of managing water and wildlife habitat in the high desert.
The refuge tour on May 4 followed the FOMR annual business meeting and gave board members a chance to get outside and see firsthand how wetlands, water infrastructure, and habitat restoration projects across the refuge are shaped by drought, changing water levels, and staff capacity. One message surfaced repeatedly throughout the day: despite shrinking federal capacity and increasingly difficult environmental conditions, meaningful conservation work continues at Malheur through persistence, creativity, and collaboration.
Like many public lands agencies nationwide, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is operating with dramatically reduced staffing and resources. At Malheur alone, staffing has declined from 38 employees three decades ago to just nine today. Yet refuge staff continues overseeing management of water infrastructure, wetlands, fish passage, invasive species, migratory bird habitat, and public access across a vast landscape.
The tour highlighted several ways in which FOMR is helping bridge some of this capacity gap. Through our members, donor support, and partnerships, FOMR is funding two stewardship technician positions that contribute directly to habitat management, invasive species work, infrastructure maintenance, and wildlife monitoring on the ground.
Other stops on the tour illustrated the collaborative nature of refuge management. At the Canoe Takeout and Sod House Dam stops, conversations centered on fish screening, water rights, and the work that is being done to restore irrigation capacity in the northern Blitzen Valley while balancing native fish passage and wetland needs. Wenick emphasized that projects like the new rock weirs at Dunn Dam required coordination among numerous partners, including Ducks Unlimited, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and others.
At Buena Vista Overlook, the group discussed invasive reed canarygrass, which dominates thousands of acres of wet meadow habitat at Malheur. Refuge staff and partners are exploring experimental approaches including targeted cattle grazing guided by GPS virtual fencing to reduce dense monocultures and improve habitat diversity for migratory birds and other wildlife.
At Benson Pond, the conversation turned to trumpeter swans and the realities of managing the shallow wetlands they depend on. Like much of Malheur, Benson Pond is not a static landscape but a carefully managed system shaped by canals, diversions, and seasonal water decisions. In dry years, refuge managers might need to draw down water levels to maintain wetland health and control invasive vegetation.
Those decisions involve difficult tradeoffs. GPS-collared swans have shown strong fidelity to Benson Pond and other Malheur wetlands, repeatedly returning after migrating to Alberta and other northern breeding grounds. But their presence is not guaranteed. If habitat quality declines, the birds can shift elsewhere within the broader migratory network. As Wenick explained, healthy wetlands are dynamic systems that sometimes require drying periods, fluctuating water levels, and active intervention to remain resilient over the long term.
Over the course of the day, the tour reminded FOMR board members that sustaining Malheur’s wildlife and diversity of ecosystems is both complex and deeply collaborative.
FOMR will take these lessons forward and continue to find ways to help refuge staff, other partners, and supporters like you invest in the long-term health of one of the West’s most important wetland landscapes, ensuring that places like Benson Pond remain vital wildlife habitat.
