ODFW
ODFW
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
Salem Audubon Society
$10,000
Willamette Valley has been identified by Motus Initiative partners as an critical location for inclusion into the Motus Network. We propose to install a Motus receiving station at Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge to track tagged birds, bats, and insects that come within 10 miles of the Motus Tower. Tagged individuals that use the refuge or fly by the tower send a signal to the receiver station, that data is automatically uploaded to the Motus database, and is shared with site and network partners. Joan Hager of U.S. Geological Survey, Corvallis, wrote this, “Great that you are applying for this grant to install a station at Ankeny! In the interest of taking a strategic approach to developing the western Motus network as a whole, the Pacific Northwest Motus Coordination group is in the process of identifying 5 top priority sites for Motus stations by ecoregion in Oregon and Washington. I am taking the lead on identifying 5 sites for the Willamette Valley. My list so far consists of Ankeny NWR, Finley NWR, and Fern Ridge (Army Corp HQ).” Vanessa Loverti, with the USFWS Migratory Bird and Habitat Programs who oversees one Motus station in Oregon, also supports a station at Ankeny NWR. “A Motus station at Ankeny would link coastal Motus sites and fill an important gap in Oregon along the Pacific Flyway, in addition to answering local questions on how species like geese and shorebirds use this site. So far the only Motus receiving stations in Oregon are at Bandon (1,USFWS) and Jackson County (2, Klamath Bird Observatory). The Willamette Valley is a major migration route for birds from hummingbird to Sandhill Cranes. Some dozens of species pass through., Many dozens breed here and leave in spring. Most compelling, perhaps, are the many thousands of Cackling Geese who arrive here from Alaska for the cold months plus many other waterfowl, shorebirds, and montane species that come down to the lowlands to escape deep snow and cold.