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Show Seeing Ouray Wildlife Refuge from the river By Steve Christensen Express Assistant Editor Harmony with land is like harmony with a friend; you cannot cherish his right hand and chop off his left. That is to say, you cannot love game and hate predators; you cannot conserve the waters and waste the ranges; you cannot build the forest and mine the farm. The land is one organism. Aldo Leopold I awoke early, took some jerky and dried fruit, skipped breakfast and headed for the river with my black Labrador. The night before I had inflated the raft. Now I checked it and added a little lit-tle air. I held the dog with a leash so he didn't splash around in the water and break the mood. The raft was easy to slide down the sand bar. The dog readily jumped in and we were quickly in the water and floating downstream. The sun has not yet peeked over the mountain, but the chirping of many different species of birds leaves no doubt that morning is here. I maneuver the raft to the middle of the river and sit back to watch the morning begin. A beaver appears from nowhere and I reach to restrain the dog. He strains against me, then relaxes and settles to watch the beaver swim effortlessly parallel to the raft, only 10 feet away. Suddenly comes the violent slap of the beaver's iail on the water and he is gone. The dog's ears perk up and he moves from side to side on the raft, but the beaver does not return. Moments later he again appears, ap-pears, this time about 50 feet away, heading for shore. We are on the Green River, at the Ouray Wildlife Refuge. We began our float at the upper end of the refuge, where trees line both sides of the river. Further downstream the trees disappear disap-pear from the lefthand side and the basic desert of northeastern Utah appears. ap-pears. The trees remain on the right side. The desert here is a harsh place for wildlife. Most years less than 7 inches of water falls. This year has been substantially different. Although rainfall rain-fall has been above normal, the Ouray Wildlife Refuge has been a victim of water which originated in far away mountains. Along with so many other places, the Ouray Refuge was flooded in June. Many of the dikes and roads in the refuge has been flooded out. The water and mess remains and the trip of which I am talking would be difficult this year due to access. Serious "birders" come to Ouray, but few other people find their way to this spot 30 miles southwest of Vernal. The refuge was created in 1961 and encompasses en-compasses 11,483 acres of land. It's main purpose if to provide nesting for ducks and geese. Over 2,000 pairs of breeding ducks nest each year at the refuge, although nesting has been a real problem this year. According to refuge manager Herb Troester, the flooding has cut out much of the nesting area usually used by ducks. Many of the nests washed out when the floods came. He said most of the geese had already hatched prior to the flood, and they weren't hurt much. Ducks will sometimes re-nest after that kind of a disaster, but there is no guarantee of that. Troester said there is really no way of knowing how many ducks just didn't reproduce this year. Besides providing nesting for ducks and geese, the refuge also provides a resting spot and a place to feed for many migating birds. Over the years a total of 193 species have been positively identified on the refuge. These include four imperiled species, the whooping crane, peregrine falcons, ospreys and bald eagles. Four endangered en-dangered species of fish also reside in the Green River at the refuge. These include the Colorado squawf ish, humpback hump-back chubs, bonytailed chubs and razorback suckers. Five threatened or endangered plants occur at Ouray. I sit back and let the raft take me where it will as I try to identify the various birds just from the sounds they are making. I don't have much luck. Shortly after the sun is up I am fortunate for-tunate enough to see a sight for the first time in my life. To the right side of the river there are five turkey vultures sitting on fallen trees. One is standing on the tree with its wings spread. It just stands there and doesn't move. I am so amazed I almost forget my camera. The vulture looks like the top of an Indian totem pole. It moves slightly and I know it is real. The dog sits at attention with his front legs over the tube of the raft, his ears as alert as a floppy eared dog can get them. I attempt to capture what I am seeing and feeling on film, but later when I show these slides I realize, you had to be there. The sun is warm, but not hot. There are no mosquitoes in the middle of the river. Mr. Troester said the past two years have not been bad for mosquitoes. mos-quitoes. Especially this year he and the other two employees have not been bothered. Troester attributes that to all the water, and the lack of sand bars which provide ideal breeding conditions condi-tions for the mosquito species which usually pester visitors at the refuge. A Lewis woodpecker flies across the river in front of the raft. The cotton-wood cotton-wood trees make ideal habitat for the Lewis and many serious birders come to Ouray for the sole purpose of observing obser-ving Lewis woodpeckers. The Ouray National Wildlife Refuge is one of over 400 refuges administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. All of the national refuges are dedicated to the preservation and conservation con-servation of wildlife, although they also take special precautions with endangered en-dangered species of plants. The management of the refuges is a very meticulous process, attempting to - . ' ', ."..'CX - ' - ' , , t : : '7-; ..." "r THE OURAY National Wildlife Refuge was started in 1961 with the intention to provide a nesting sanctuary for ducks and geese. This picture was taken when the refuge was in- - maintain a balance of nature, but still attempting to make the best possible habitat for the wildlife. Herb Troester will be leaving this week for a new assignment as Regional Fire Management Coordinator Coor-dinator for 78 national refuges in six western states. Over a period of years certain species of plants tend to overtake over-take marsh and grasslands. These plants are not always beneficial to the cause of the refuge. There are only three ways to control these plants, by drying the land, drowning the plants or by fire. Troester said the use of fire is an essential element in their management manage-ment of wildlife habitat. Troester will be advising the management of those 78 refuges on the use of fire, plus the proper and improper use of heavy equipment. The flood of this year may end up being be-ing beneficial to the Ouray refuge in the long run. Many of the areas had become overcrowded wilh bullru.sh and cattails, and the flood should go a long way toward cleaning up those plants and make the area more suitable for the birds that come here. It will also help the muskrat population, popula-tion, which is essential to the refuge because they eat some of the unwanted vegetation. Troester said there was considerable damage to the refuge during the flood, and most of that will not be repaired until this w inter, but in the long run the flood will prove to be a good thing. The national wildlife refuges are funded by the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act of 19:S4. Hunters of ducks and geese are required by law to have a "Duck Stamp" and sales have been used to purchase refuge lands that provide pro-vide habitat necessary to sustain a variety of wildlife for both hunters, non-hunters and avid birders. Troester and assistant refuge manager Dick Sjostrom, encourage people to come to the refuge. Because of the flooding problems this year people peo-ple should let the managment know they are coming, so they can be briefed brief-ed as to how to best see the refuge due to limited vehicle travel. For further information call or write: Refuge Manager, Ouray National Wildlife Refuge. 447 East Main Street. Suite 4, Vernal. Utah 84078, phone (801) 789-0351. My float through the refuge continues con-tinues downstream at about 2 miles an hour. Long before I w ish it could come, I see the Green River Bridge at Ouray. Since the trip w ill soon be over, I give in to the desires of the Labrador and he plunges into the river. He goes to the first piece of driftwood and returns to the raft. I take the stick and help him back into the raft. He shakes and I am drenched. I throw the stick again and he again plunges into the water. The game continues for a few minutes, then it is time to row to the bank and begin our hike back up the river. We are lucky this time. A pickup comes along and gives us a ride back up the river. As we sit in the bed of the pickup, I think of a quote from Walt Whitman on a National Wildlife Refuge pamphlet, "You must not know too much, or be too precise or scientific about birds and trees and flowers...; a certain free iiiiirgin. and even vagueness. ..helps your enjoyment of these things." Photo courtesy Herb Trwso tentionally flooded. This year mother nature did it herself and washed out roads and dikes, limiting vehicle travel. Still, people are welcome to come to the refuge. V V' .f -v- . . I 'f'';' J' : 4 ' ' i .- i ... - - i . .. ;: . --:''L' , ... TIkMo courtesy Herb Trres.'tr AN AVID BIRD photographer gets very close to a brooding Nighthawk. Some birds are so protective they would allow a person to pick them up before they would move from their nests. -i |
