On a brisk and beautifully serene morning in late March, a Real Time Research biologist loaded survey gear in an airboat and was whisked away to Tern Island in the middle of Malheur Lake.
A year ago, Portland Audubon announced their decision to drop the name Audubon and find a new name that better reflects their mission and values, one that would make the organization a more welcoming place for all people.
We set out along the Blitzen River, and soon we were in the vast expanse of the lake with birds EVERYWHERE! The idea of “counting” seemed comical. How do you count what must have been thousands of birds rising from the lake, circling, shifting?
These surveys correlate with spring and fall migration and are conducted in a short window of time to reduce the likely hood of double-counting shorebirds as they migrate.
Throughout eastern Oregon and the Intermountain West migrating and nesting shorebirds depend on saline and freshwater lakes, playas, and nearby wetlands for refueling during migration and for breeding. For example, Wilson’s Phalarope use saline lakes throughout the region as stopover habitat.
Friends of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge was formed in 1999 and is an independent non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.
Tax ID #: 93-1261322
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