IBA of the Month: Finley National Wildlife Refuge
William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge IBA of the Month
by Mary Coolidge, Assistant Conservation Director
- Finley National Wildlife Refuge - Joe Staff
As I reported last November, twice a year, the statewide Audubon chapters converge on one chapter’s birding grounds for a Saturday meeting in which we share updates on our statewide workplan and collaborate on program effectiveness. Sunday is reserved for a visit to a local Important Bird Area. Last month’s spring meeting was held in Corvallis with a visit to William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), 11 miles south of town. Will Wright, President of Corvallis Audubon, arranged for a tour of Finley NWR led by refuge biologists Jarod Jebousek and Molly Monroe, who provided tremendous insight into the history, habitats, threats, and current management programs of the refuge.
- Dusky Canada Geese - George Gentry
Back in 1964, the now over 5,300-acre Finley refuge was established to provide winter habitat for Dusky Canada Goose, a subspecies that winters primarily here in the Willamette Valley. The site is the southernmost of three Willamette Valley National Wildlife Refuges in the refuge complex, together with Baskett Slough (West of Salem) and Ankeny (South of Salem). These refuges were set aside in part to preserve habitats that have been decimated in the Willamette Valley: seasonal wetlands, native wet prairie, and riparian forest, habitats that host a diverse array of bird species.
The Willamette Valley NWR complex is now involved in a Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) which invites landowners to voluntarily establish long-term or permanent easements on their land and thereby contribute to wetlands enhancement, protection and restoration. Participating landowners receive technical guidance and are eligible for financial assistance and grants. These easements represent thousands of acres of wildlife habitat where there would otherwise be marginal agricultural land, and in a refuge area that lacks an approved acquisition area, these WRP’s are the future of habitat expansion and are credited with increasing species diversity on the refuges.
A testimony to this diversity, we had in fact compiled a list of 48 bird species by just past noon, a list that included the siting of a single Lewis’ Woodpecker in an Oregon White oak stand along with Acorn Woodpeckers and Western Bluebirds, Western Meadowlark and Western Kingbird in the Willamette Floodplain Research Natural Area wet prairie at the north end of the refuge (the largest undisturbed remnant of this habitat type in the Willamette Valley at 475 acres!), and a number of others, seen and heard over the course of half a sundrenched spring day: Savannah Sparrow, Orange-crowned Warbler, White-fronted Goose, Dunlin, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Purple Finch, White-crowned Sparrow, American Kestrel, Greater Yellowlegs, Brown Creeper, and Pileated Woodpecker to name just a few.
Before we left, we were treated to a walk along the now 1,700-foot Homer Campbell memorial boardwalk trail and observation blind overlooking the 125-acre Cabell Marsh. The trail wends its way through riparian forest of ash and alder, abuzz with both Myrtle and Audubon’s Yellow-rumped Warblers and singing Black-throated Gray Warblers. The trail was a collaborative effort of Audubon Society of Corvallis, Finley NWR, Friends of Willamette Valley Refuges, and Greenbelt Land Trust. While many of the refuge trails are seasonally closed to protect wintering Duskies, this trail is open year round.
Species of Ornithological Significance
Finley NWR was nominated as an Important Bird Area for Dusky Canada Goose, but has been host to over 230 species of birds, including good numbers of focal species. Partners in Flight focal species that use the refuge include: Yellow Warbler, Swainson’s Thrush, Bushtit, Bewick’s Wren, Western Wood Pewee, and Streaked Horned Lark (St. HOLA have been reported along Bruce Road at the southern end of the refuge).
The refuge supports also large concentrations of wintering waterfowl and shorebirds, including: Mallard, American Widgeon, Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail, Ring-necked Duck, Tundra Swan, Dunlin.
If you go
Take I-5 exit 228 West to Corvallis. Travel south 10 miles from Corvallis to mile marker 93 on Highway 99 w. Watch for the refuge entrance sign on the west side of the road. Follow refuge signs for 2 miles to the Refuge Headquarters. Finley NWR also includes the disjunct 376-acre Snag Boat Bend Unit which includes riparian forest, backwater sloughs, and seasonal wetlands. Travel East from Corvallis on Highway 34 to Peoria Road. Head south on Peoria Road for 11 miles. Watch for entrance signs along the road.
