MIgratory Birds Return To Klamath Refuges One Month Early

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A mild winter has made for an early arrival of some of the Klamath Basin's most-watched springtime residents. The birds are back.

Gaggles of geese, flocks of fowl and swarms of swans are packing the national wildlife refuges and other wetlands around the Basin. The aviary influx is about a month earlier than normal, said Dave Menke, outdoor recreation planner at Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges. "I wouldn't say this is unprecedented, but I'll say it is unusual," he said.

With a mild winter and hints of an early spring, the refuges and wetlands are relatively ice-free, making for inviting landing pads for water fowl. Menke said this time of year there are usually 200,000 to 300,000 birds at the start of March at the five refuges in the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges - Lower Klamath, Tulelake, Clear Lake, Upper Klamath and Klamath Marsh. The last aerial survey of the birds, done by a trained eye from a plane, tallied 594,000 birds.

Most of the birds recently flew up from the Central Valley in California, Menke said. Some will stick around through spring and summer, while others will eventually fly again, headed up North. Studies have found weather conditions, longer days and other factors affect migration, but scientists haven't been able to pinpoint what exactly starts the movement, he said."

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