U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service[Feedback] [Regional Refuge Index] [Southwest Regional Home Page]
[National Wildlife Refuge
System] [FWS National Home Page]
[Salt Plains NWR Home Page]
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Welcome to the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge and the Harold F. Miller Auto Tour Route. The tour route has been named in honor of a local resident who devoted 38 years to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Mr. Miller's dedicated service to Salt Plains NWR will long be remembered.
As you travel the two and a half mile tour route, please follow these simple guidelines for your safety and wildlife viewing pleasure:
A habitat is a "home" that provides the necessities--food, water, and shelter--for the animals living there. This densely wooded vegetation is home to raccoon, opossum, and red squirrel.
On a national wildlife refuge, the environment is managed to meet the specific needs of wildlife. Management practices may include manipulation of water, burning, grazing, farming, or the simple task of putting up bird houses such as this purple martin house.
This pond attracts many birds during spring and early summer. Great blue herons and snowy egrets hunt for fish along the large round leaves of the American lotus.
At the upper end of Little Marsh, wood ducks nest in the boxes perched above the water. Wood ducks usually nest in hollowed-out nesting trees, but natural hollows are in short supply. The boxes serve as substitutes. As soon as the ducklings hatch the family leaves the box.
To enhance this habitat for wildlife, the pond is drained in May so birds can feed on wild millet and grass seeds that grow during summer. In November or December the area is reflooded to make the seeds available for migrating ducks.
Puterbaugh Field is one of 15 farm fields maintained in the northeastern and southern ends of the refuge. This field is planted to wheat or cowpeas to attract deer, turkey, and quail. Other fields are planted to provide food for geese, sandhill cranes, and whooping cranes.
Trees provide roosting and nesting sites for many of the songbirds in the area. Look for cardinals, warblers, and scissortail flycatchers, the state bird of Oklahoma. At the southeastern end of this pond is an artificial nesting structure for the giant Canada goose, a subspecies that has been introduced into this area.
This short trail leads to School Marsh Overlook. In late spring, this area is gradually drained, then planted to Japanese millet. During the draining phase, herons, white-faced ibis, and egrets feed on crayfish, small minnows, and insects. In fall, when the millet has matured, the marsh is flooded, providing millet seed and invertebrates for mallards and green-winged teal.
The small islands in Mink Run Pond provide nesting habitat for Canada geese. The water surrounding the islands offers protection from predators such as coyotes and bobcats.
Wilson Pond is a brood pond for mallards and wood ducks. Look for ducklings in the spring and summer. They seek protection from egret, herons, and other predators by hiding beneath the large leaves of the American lotus.
An easy quarter-mile stroll leads to the Casey Marsh Tower where, from October through April, it is possible to catch a glimpse of undisturbed waterfowl. Ducks, geese, sandhill cranes, and whooping cranes use this area at various times of the year.
Cattails and young cottonwood trees flourish in this 70-acre, shallow pond. These plants pose a management problem, as they grow so densely in the marshes that ducks cannot use the shallow water. Refuge personnel keep the plants under control by disking, mowing, and burning.
As you have seen, refuge personnel periodically flood and drain ponds and moist soil units to provide a continual supply of food for birds and other wildlife. This delivery canal supplies water from Sand Creek to these wildlife management sites.
Managing lands for wildlife is not easy. Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge must be carefully protected and managed to provide optimum habitat for a broad array of wildlife.
[Feedback] [Regional Refuge Index] [Southwest Regional Home Page]
[National Wildlife Refuge
System] [FWS National Home Page]
[Salt Plains NWR Home Page]
http://sturgeon.irm.r2.fws.gov/u2/refuges/oklahoma/eagle.html - revised November 5, 1997
KEYWORDS=wildlife, animals, hiking, birds, Oklahoma, refuge