Not to spoil the whole piece in the first sentence of my update but I have had an absolute blast living in Harney County and working on the refuge so far! I have no doubt this should be an amazing summer, doing amazing work, in a stunning and unique place.
The first thing that comes to mind when reflecting on my experience so far is my impression of the landscape. A landscape that is beautiful not because of its boldness but because of its humility, seeming humble in comparison to western Washington where I moved from and grew up. Western Washington almost shoves its beauty in your face with soaring trees, jagged granite peaks, and greens that have a surreal level of saturation. In comparison, Harney County’s beauty doesn’t scream at you. Subtle rolling hills stretch endlessly forming a sage brush sea. The colors are muted and dry yet somehow the ecosystem contains more colors than I have ever found anywhere else. The landscape as a whole has this beauty that doesn’t scream out at you but is still confident in itself, waiting for you to notice it. I have no doubt many people drive through the region and are left with no remarkable impression but if you open your senses you are met with more colors, smells, sounds, and wildlife then you can imagine. The only thing that seems to have any ego at all are the birds with their playful songs and bright radiant colors. Driving into the refuge for the first time, the shift in biodiversity was the first thing I noticed. Immediately the landscape opens up into a sprawling wetland, and you encounter more biodiversity then seems possible given what you drive through for the 6 hours from down Walla Walla. It truly feels like an oasis coming out of the desert.
As for my actual work. I am a biological technician which is a broad term that means I help out with a lot of dirty but fun work for research on the refuge concerning birds, fish, and water quality. More realistically, I am the fisheries technician, handling most of the day-to-day fisheries field work. This includes recording data on native fishes, notably Redband trout, but most importantly removing invasive common carp which wreak havoc on the wetlands the refuge was set aside to protect. So far, I have been running two carp traps daily with the one being closer to Malheur Lake being most productive. These traps are set in place to stop carp from migrating from the lake into the surrounding rivers threatening native trout but also grant an opportunity to remove them from the ecosystem as a whole. On average we remove close to 200 carp a day with the most carp removed in a day being 1250. This is a number of carp that doesn’t seem possible to remove everyday but that nonetheless keeps coming. Although this isn’t the most glamorous or best smelling work, as a fisherman, birdwatcher, and ecologist it is gratifying to do.
In the last week it has felt great to get past the first week jitters and start to really settle into my routine. Starting any new job is scary and comes with a lot of handholding so it has felt good to gain confidence in my work and also being given a certain amount of independence that definitely comes with an amount of responsibility. I am excited to see how the number of carp and other fish passing through these traps change given the water levels and temperature shifts throughout the seasons. So far, it has been nothing short of impressive.
Although my daily duties primarily concern fisheries work, I have been given lots of opportunities to engage in research outside of this with much more on the horizon. I have been helping out with a USGS project to monitor water quality on lake Malheur. Which luckily includes me getting to ride into the middle of wetland like lake on an airboat for a few hours. Definitely granting one of those fun moments where I start thinking “Man I’m getting paid for this, how lucky am I?”. Plant surveys will start soon which I am excited for as I know little about plant ID. Along with that, I am getting super excited for duck and waterfowl banding towards the end of my season.
Overall, my experience so far has been amazing. It has been so amazing to get to live in a different biome then I am used to and to get to experience such a unique ecosystem as intimately as I have. I have loved everyone I have worked and lived with both coworkers and volunteers, and I can tell this place pulls in people who can appreciate such an environment. In a way I’m not surprised by the universal friendliness as living somewhere this remote, everyone has to rely on each other in some way. I am extremely optimistic that I will continue to have a great time and hope to prove that point in my next blog post.
Massive thank you to everyone who has helped make this experience so amazing so far, helped me settle in, and give me a sense of community.
Feathers and friends,
-Luke Duvall
