One late winter morning in 1997, I awoke to a crisp, frosty expanse in Eastern Oregon. The spirited song of the Loggerhead Shrike echoed up from the sagebrush, punctuated by the distant whistling of Tundra Swans. In that brief moment, I knew I had discovered something special. 
 

(Photo:  author instructs Portland birder, David Smith, in the finer points of Bald Eagle plumage variation.)

Malheur National Wildlife Refuge beckons to birds and birders alike. Many thousands of acres of marshlands and open water, grasslands and rimrock, make Malheur one of the true gems of America’s refuge system. The region’s remoteness alone makes wildlife feel welcome and humans feel isolated. But it is Malheur’s habitat diversity that makes it renowned among all who feed their bodies and souls on nature.

Malheur Refuge lies at the heart of the Harney Basin in north-central Harney County. The Harney Basin marks the northwest corner of the Great Basin desert, which occupies most of Nevada and portions of the surrounding states. The absence of an outlet for their water defines all geologic basins, and Harney Lake is the “sink” for the Malheur region. Despite its arid climate, receiving only about 6 inches of rain per year, the Harney Basin teems with life fed by the waters captured inside. 

(Photo:Black-necked Stilts reach the northern limits of their nesting range at Malheur. Annual numbers fluctuate, but so far this spring hundreds of birds have already returned to breed in the basin.)

From the north, Silver Creek and the Silvies River drain the southern Blue Mountains into the Harney Basin. The Silvies flows directly south into Malheur Lake, while Silver Creek is the only surface stream to reach alkali Harney Lake to the west. From the south, a monolith called Steens Mountain sheds its snow each spring into the Blitzen River. As the Blitzen meets Page Springs it empties northward through a 50-mile-long valley that feeds Malheur Lake. Malheur Lake drains into Mud Lake, which is now separated from Harney Lake by a ridge of constantly changing sand dunes.

Malheur Lake is one of the largest freshwater marshes in the United States. On average, the floor of the lake is only eight feet below the surface at its deepest point. If the surface rises a single foot, the surface acreage can increase by as much as 40,000 acres, sometimes doubling the land area covered by water. From the marshlands of Malheur Lake to the Blitzen River riparian zone, from the Silvies River flood plain to the surrounding grasslands and sagebrush, Malheur Refuge abounds with wildlife. 

(Photo: The Greater Yellowlegs is a common spring and fall migrant in the Malheur  region. Most individuals have already left the area for more northerly nesting 
grounds, traditionally in northern boreal forests..)

The ninth largest county in the United States, Harney County is home to less than 10,000 people. In contrast, Malheur Refuge has hosted over 340 species of birds and more than 50 different mammals. On a spring day at the peak of migration, the observant birder can easily tally over 100 bird species. Pronghorn, porcupine, mink and marmot can all be seen on a single day. 

Each spring, tens of thousands of Snow and Ross’s Geese and thousands more Sandhill Cranes stop in the basin on their way to northern nesting grounds. Just as the geese and cranes are departing, thousands of White-faced Ibis and Franklin’s Gulls  reach the region, where they remain to raise their young. Up to 200 pairs of Sandhill Cranes and dozens of Burrowing Owls also breed in the basin, along with thousands of Marsh Wrens, Virginia Rails and Eared Grebes. Nearly 15 species of ducks nest on the refuge, accompanied by eight different sparrows, seven flycatchers and six swallow species. 

(Photo:Red-tailed Hawks are one of the most common raptors at Malheur in all four seasons. A number of red-tails found in the region exhibit the "rufous-morph" coloration of this bird.)

During spring and fall migration, birders flock to the area with hopes of viewing some of the 34 different warblers recorded on the refuge. Rarities like the Blackburnian and Worm-eating Warblers are all but expected around the Memorial and Labor Day weekends. The chance to view a Painted Bunting or a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher brings even the most seasoned birder back for their annual Malheur pilgrimage.

Unlike the summer with its cacophonous chorus of marsh birds, winter at Malheur can be a bleak and chilling experience. Viewed through the binoculars, however, the frozen landscape is transformed into an inviting habitat for arctic species like Rough-legged Hawk, Snow Bunting, Northern Shrike and American Tree Sparrow. Six of the region’s eight recorded owl species maintain year-round residence along with about a dozen pairs of Trumpeter Swans and hundreds of Northern Harriers. 

(Photo: White-throated Sparrows occur rarely but regularly at Malheur. They often associate with flocks of other sparrow species, such as White-crowned and Song Sparrows. The author just observed one in the region the weekend of April 27.)

In any season, this place they call Malheur epitomizes abundance. A giant oasis in the Great Basin desert, Malheur is a magnet. For the millions of birds that feed or breed in the region, Malheur serves as a home and a vital resting point. And for those humans that live in Oregon because they thrive on open space and wild nature, Malheur can only be defined as magic.

 (C) 2001 Stephen Shunk     http://www.paradisebirding.com