Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge Complex Upper Klamath Unit and Hank s Marsh Unit BCS Number: 48-29

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1 Oregon Coordinated Aquatic Bird Monitoring: Description of Important Aquatic Bird Site Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge Complex Upper Klamath Unit and Hank s Marsh Unit BCS Number: Site description author(s) Stacy Freitas, Biological Science Technician, Klamath Basin NWRC, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service David Mauser, Wildlife Biologist, Klamath Basin NWRC, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Kate Halstead, Field Technician, Klamath Bird Observatory Primary contact for this site Dave Mauser, Lead Wildlife Biologist, Klamath Basin NWRC, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Phone: (530) Dave_Mauser@fws.gov Site location (UTM) Datum: NAD 83, Zone: 10, Easting: , Northing: General description Boundaries and ownership Boundaries: See attached map. Hank s Marsh Unit on south east side of Upper Klamath Lake, and bound by Upper Klamath Lake to the west. Upper Klamath Unit at north western side of Upper Klamath Lake, and bound by Upper Klamath Lake to the east. Ownership: Refuge lands are owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. A narrow strip on Upper Klamath Marsh on the west side is owned by the U.S. Forest Service and several private landowners. See Figure 1 for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lakeview District ownership map. Water levels More information is needed. Description updated 4/29/2010 1

2 Focal species use and timing Focal Guild/Species Wintering Breeding Migration Secretive Marsh Birds* Unknown Present Unknown Ground-based Aquatic Birds Absent Absent Present Migrating Shorebirds Absent Unknown Present American White Pelican Absent Present Present Barrow s Goldeneye Present Absent Present Black-necked Stilt Absent Unknown Present Bufflehead Present Absent Present Dusky Canada Goose Unknown Unknown Unknown Franklin s Gull Absent Unknown Present Greater Sandhill Crane Absent Unknown Present Long-billed Curlew Absent Absent Unknown Snowy Egret Absent Unknown Present Red-Necked Grebe Absent Unknown Unknown Upland Sandpiper Absent Unknown Unknown Western Snowy Plover Absent Unknown Unknown Yellow Rail Unknown Present Present *The focal species for Oregon s aquatic secretive marsh bird monitoring are PBGR, LEBI, AMBI, VIRA, SORA, YERA. In general focal species above are present from late March through November. Description updated 4/29/2010 2

3 Location of Type 1 and 2 habitat within the site* Functional Group Type 1 Habitat Type 2 Habitat Secretive Marsh Birds Colonial Nesting Waterbirds Ground-based Aquatic Birds Migrating Shorebirds *See Figure 2 for habitat types, and Figures 3 and 4 for USFWS National Wetlands Inventory (2008) layer in Google Earth (2008). Yellow Rail Habitat type 1 located at north ¼ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit in seasonally flooded sedge community. Pied-billed Grebe Habitat type 1 located in south ¾ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit and throughout Hank Marsh Unit. Type 1 habitat consists of hardstem bulrush, water lilly (Nuphar sp.), and small open water areas within these vegetation communities. Least Bittern if they exist on Upper Klamath NWRC, type 1 habitat would be hardstem bulrush scattered located throughout Hank s Marsh and at south ¾ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. American Bittern Type 1 habitat consists of seasonally flooded sedge at north ¼ and hardstem bulrush scattered throughout south ¾ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. Type 1 habitats are scattered in Hank s Marsh Unit are located throughout. Virginia Rail Type 1 habitat consists of seasonally flooded sedge meadows at the north ¼ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. Type 2 habitats consist of hardstem bulrush habitats scattered throughout Hanks Marsh Unit and the south ¾ of the Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. Sora Type 1 habitat consists of seasonally flooded sedge meadows at the north ¼ of Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. Type 2 habitats consist of hardstem bulrush habitats scattered throughout Hanks Marsh Unit and the south ¾ of the Upper Klamath Marsh Unit. Description updated 4/29/2010 3

4 Access to Type 1 and Type 2 habitat For access to Upper Klamath NWRC please contact U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Klamath Basin NWRC Complex, 4009 Hill Road, Tulelake, CA or phone at Access points: Upper Klamath Marsh Unit (all are boat access): Rocky Point Boat Ramp at Pelican Bay for access to south end of marsh. Malone Springs Boat Ramp for access to middle and western part of marsh. Odessa Creek Campground for Access to Odessa Marsh and Pelican Bay. Henzel Park on the east side of Agency Lake for access to the east side of Upper Klamath Marsh (will need a large power boat). Williamson River Preserve (owned by The Nature Conservancy) for access to west side of Upper Klamath Marsh will need larger powerboat. Hank s Marsh (boat access): Moore Park at the south end of Upper Klamath Lake. Need larger power boat. Some limited access from the west side of HWY 97 for canoe. Overlook points for Upper Klamath Marsh Unit are located on the Westside Road above Rocky Point and the Paradise Hills development off Wocus Road on the east side of HWY 97 and south edge of Hanks Marsh. See Figure 5 for general road map view of Upper Klamath Lake NWRC (Google Map 2009). Audibility/visibility of focal species Highway and train traffic on the east side of Hank s Marsh. Very few if any extraneous noise sources for Upper Klamath Marsh other than occasional over flights by Air National Guard jets from Klamath Falls. Visibility/Audibility will be limited because it is not possible to completely survey area. The large size of both Upper Klamath Marsh and Hank s Marsh coupled with access limitations due to size, vegetative growth, lack of water, and depth of mud prevent complete coverage. The entire area could be surveyed using helicopter or fixed wing aircraft, but visibility of target species would become a large unknown issue (other than highly visible species such as egrets, pelicans, and cormorants.) Visibility of birds depends completely on the species, time of year, vegetation, and survey method. American White Pelicans would be near 100% via aerial methods and Least Bittern would be largely invisible using any visual method. In general the large proportion of both marshes in hardstem bulrush and wocus in summer limits visibility of many species. Conservation issues Agricultural intensification/expansion, Aquaculture/Fisheries, Disturbance to birds, Drainage, Water Diversions (incl. impact dikes/dams) / Water level changes (National Audubon Society 2008) Description updated 4/29/2010 4

5 Conservation measures taken, in progress, or proposed More information is needed. Past and current surveys Klamath Bird Observatory (KBO) has conducted passerine monitoring adjacent to (east side) Upper Klamath Marsh. KBO conducted Black Tern surveys at Upper Klamath Marsh and Hank s Marsh during the breeding seasons from 1997 to In 2008, KBO surveyed for six focal secretive marsh bird species (Pied-billed Grebe, American Bittern, Least Bittern, Yellow Rail, Sora, and Virginia Rail) during peak breeding season (May and June). Pied-billed Grebes were found in abundance, and several American Bittern, Virginia Rail, and Sora were detected. United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) conducts periodic aerial waterfowl aerial surveys September to April as well as aerial surveys of breeding geese and ducks in March and May, respectively. Periodic aerial waterfowl surveys also tally Bald Eagles, Sandhill Cranes and White Pelicans. Aerial surveys of colonial waterbird colonies within Upper Klamath Marsh are also conducted as part of the May waterfowl survey. Primary species are Great Egret, American White Pelican, Double-crested Cormorant. For a summary of waterfowl survey data see Waterfowl migration on Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges, (Gilmer 2004). To view bi-monthly aerial survey results, go to: Upper Klamath NWRC was surveyed as part of a comprehensive non-game waterbird survey of the Upper Klamath Basin, and the results are reported in Abundance, distribution, and phenology of nongame waterbirds in the Klamath Basin of Oregon and California in 2003 (Shuford 2004). Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife may have data from periodic surveys of the perimeter of Upper Klamath Lake which includes portions of Upper Klamath NWRC (Contact Klamath Falls ODFW Office). Potential survey methods a. Description: Only boat or aircraft surveys would be practical for focal species. b. Selection Bias: c. Measurement error and bias: Manning and Hartley (2006) suggest determining whether secretive marshbird survey, and/or a colony surveys would be beneficial Potential pilot studies Need to visit the site via boat and aircraft to appreciate the size and the nature of vegetation communities. Description updated 4/29/2010 5

6 Literature cited Bureau of Land Management. Lakeview District. Accessed October 10, Bureau of Land Management, Lakeview District ownership map. Accessed March 20, Gilmer, D. S., J. L. Yee, D. M. Mauser, and J. L. Hainline Waterfowl migration on Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges, U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Discipline Biological Science Report (USGS/BRD/BSRB ,66p). Google Earth version Image: Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon. Accessed October 10, Google Map Map of Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon. Accessed March 20, National Audubon Society Important Bird Areas in the U.S. Available at 10/2008 Shuford, D. W., D. L. Thomson, D. M. Mauser, and J. Beckstrand Abundance, distribution, and phenology of nongame waterbirds in the Klamath Basin of Oregon and California in Final Report to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge, from Point Reyes Bird Observatory, Stinson Beach, California, 78 p. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Wetlands Inventory website. U. S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, D.C. Accessed October 10, Description updated 4/29/2010 6

7 Figure 1: BLM Lakeview District ownership map. The red boxes indicate Upper Klamath Lake National Wildlife Refuges. Upper Klamath Unit Hank s Marsh Unit Description updated 4/29/2010 7

8 Figure 2: Boundary and Habitat Types for Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge. Description updated 4/29/2010 8

9 Figure 3: Google Earth (2008) map of upper portion of Upper Klamath Lake NWRC with the USFWS National Wetlands Inventory (2008) layer. Description updated 4/29/2010 9

10 Figure 4: Google Earth (2008) map of lower portion of Upper Klamath Lake NWRC with the USFWS National Wetlands Inventory (2008) layer Description updated 4/29/

11 Figure 5: Google Map (2009) of Upper Klamath Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Description updated 4/29/