The Binocular Site
Ouray National Wildlife Refuge, Utah
The Ouray National Wildlife Refuge is located in northeastern Utah, and includes almost 12000 acres including 12 miles of the Green River.
Here loons are prevalent, as are grebes, pelicans, cormorants, herons, egrets, bitterns, ibises, swans, ducks, geese, vultures, hawks, eagles, and falcons. Look for a wide range of mergansers including common, hooded, and red-breasted varieties, along with wigeons, teals, shovelers, pheasants, grouse, cranes, rails, and sandpipers, along with so many more.
Almost 200 species of birds are known to use the Ouray Refuge, including 14 species of ducks that nest there. Endangered species here include whooping cranes, peregrine falcons, ospreys, bald eagles, and several types of fish and plants.
Water birds are most abundant here, and catfish, suckers, beavers, and muskrats are also found here among forests and marsh lands. The Ouray National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1960 thanks to revenue from the sale of Federal Duck Stamps.
It was originally designated to protect the 14 species of ducks that still nest in the refuge, and water and land are managed carefully to mimic natural flood plains. Nurseries have also been built for endangered fish species, and some areas are cultivated by farmers in cooperation with refuge management. See the Ouray National Wildlife Refuge website for more information.
The state bird of Utah is the California Gull and you can find a birding checklist for Utah here.
Photo credit to BitHead, used with permission under the creative commons license.
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