Here (below) is a link for historic information on the Oregon area in the
news, and why it is protected. This area again is a hot spot where human greed
again seeks to eliminate the protection of our natural resources.
The Malheur -Mud - and Harney Basin, Oregon
Plume hunters for the hat industry through their greed nearly wiped out all the
birds (white herons and various nesting birds) of the area many years ago. See
this link below for the history.
Here's the link:
http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Malheur/about.html
"In the late 1880s, plume hunters decimated North American bird populations in
pursuit of breeding feathers for the hat industry. Hunters targeted large
flocks of colonial nesting birds and shorebirds, killing birds indiscriminately
and orphaning chicks. Eventually, the large numbers of colonial nesting birds
on Malheur Lake were discovered by plume hunters. In 1908, wildlife
photographers William L. Finley and Herman T. Bohlman discovered that most of
the white herons (egrets) on Malheur Lake had been killed in 1898 by plume
hunters. After 10 years, the white heron population still had not recovered.
With backing from the Oregon Audubon Society, Finley and Bohlman proposed
establishment of a bird reservation to protect birds, using Malheur, Mud and
Harney lakes.
The refuge now encompasses 187,757 acres of wildlife habitat. The 65,000-acre
Blitzen Valley was purchased in 1935 and added to the refuge to secure water
rights for Malheur and Mud lakes. With the creation of the Civilian
Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1933, the refuge was able to use this additional
manpower to begin major improvements on the refuge in 1935. The CCC constructed
most of the infrastructure in the Blitzen Valley, including the Center Patrol
Road which travels through the center of the refuge. The 14,000-acre Double-O
Unit was added to the refuge in 1942 and provides important shorebird habitat,
as well as waterfowl nesting areas. Malheur Refuge is situated within the
Harney Basin in southeastern Oregon. Located in the Northern Great Basin, this
portion of the State is lightly populated, generally arid with cold winters,
and characterized by wide open spaces.
The refuge constitutes a small percentage of the Northern Great Basin’s total
acreage but is a tremendously important source of wildlife habitat relative to
other portions of the Northern Great Basin. The refuge represents a crucial
stop along the Pacific Flyway and offers resting, breeding and nesting habitat
for hundreds of migratory birds and other wildlife. Many of the species
migrating through or breeding here are highlighted as priority species in
national bird conservation plans."
A small voice for the voiceless.
Sherrie - lionpainter in Wake Forest, NC
"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of
the world." --John Muir
Sent from my iPad
