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Wetlands Step 2

Wetland Types (acres)

Flood-irrigated Wet Meadows (121,000)
Seasonal emergent marshes (17-18,000)
Perennially wet habitat (2,500)
Upland mesic (31,000)
Alkali Playas (29,000)
Playa associated wetlands (1,500)
Woody riparian habitat (26,000)

We divided wetlands in the Harney Basin into these 7 categories because wetlands other than flood-irrigated wet meadows are disproportionately represented by wetlands at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and this is how they divided wetlands for the Comprehensive Conservation Plan. Other wetland categories (for example vernal pools) come from ecological classifications by ecologists and biologists that have done work in the basin.

Flood-irrigated wet meadows: grass and sedge dominated, includes wet, mesic, and dry meadow types
Seasonal emergent marshes: dominated by submerged aquatic vegetation, bulrush, and cattail
Perennially wet habitat: dominated by bulrush, cattail, sedges, and rushes
Vernal Pools: seasonally ponded upland areas, typically dominated by forbes and moisture-loving grasses and surrounded by sagebrush
Alkali Playas: seasonally ponded saline areas too salty to grow vegetation, though some salt-tolerant vegetation grows on perimeter
Playa associated wetlands: found along springs and stream mouths on alkali playas, dominated by salt grass and alkali bulrush
Woody riparian habitat: dominated by willows, roses, currants, with grasses and sedges in the understory

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Wetlands Step 2, cont.

Focal bird species (trend)

Wet Meadow: Bobolink (stable)
Seasonal Emergent: Yellow-headed Blackbird (stable)
Perennially wet habitat: White-faced Ibis (stable)
Upland mesic: Sage Thrasher (poss. Declining)
Alkali playa: Snowy Plover (poss. Declining)
Woody riparian: Willow flycatcher (declining)

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Wetlands Step 3

Quantifying water needs

Little quantifiable data available
Described wetlands by depth and acres

Seasonality

Water needs vary from season to season
Wetland needs vary by species
Water availability also varies from season to season

April

October

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Wetlands Step 3, cont.

Changing hydroperiod

Water timing shifting
Declining wetland resiliency

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Potential Stressors

Expansion of invasive grasses
Old, dilapidated infrastructure
Loss of institutional knowledge about flood-irrigating
Declining groundwater levels
Conversion to sprinkler irrigation

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Data gaps