Flora and Fauna
As with the other refuges within the Willamette Valley National Wildlife Complex, the primary management goal of Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge is to provide high quality wintering habitat for geese, especially the Dusky Canada Goose (Branta canadensis subsp. occidentalis), so as to ensure healthy, viable goose populations while minimizing goose browse damage to crops on private agricultural lands. Unlike most other Canada geese, Dusky Canada Geese have limited summer and winter ranges. They nest on Alaska's Copper River Delta and winter almost exclusively in the Willamette Valley. Habitat loss, predation, and hunting caused a decrease in their population. Dusky Canada Geese usually appear at the Refuge in the fall and use it as their last stop before starting the spring journey back to their Alaska nesting grounds. During the winter of 2001, a survey found a total of 35,988 geese, swans and ducks in the refuge.
By resting in undisturbed areas on the refuges, wintering geese regain energy reserves required for migration and nesting. Because of their need for a quiet resting area, the majority of the refuge interior is closed to public entry while the geese are in residence, from October 1 through April 30.
The croplands, rolling oak-covered hills, grass fields, and shallow wetlands of the Refuge are home to many wildlife species. Cinnamon Teal, Mallards, Bufflehead and Hooded Mergansers are just a few of the duck species that are common during the winter months. Great Blue Herons and other shorebirds feed along the waters edge. Red-tailed Hawks can be seen flying over the refuge and a small number of Bald Eagles winter on the refuge. In addition to the abundant bird life, 30 species of mammals, 8 species of amphibians, and 10 species of reptiles occur here. The largest remaining population of the endangered Fender's blue butterfly is found on the refuge. Wildlife and wildlands observation, photography, hiking, and environmental education and interpretation are the major public use activities allowed on the Refuge.
Read more about this topic: Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge
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