Join Greenbelt Land Trust and birding experts from Salem Audubon for a bird walk and habitat restoration tour of the north tract of Luckiamute Landing State Natural Area . Floodplain restoration work has been ongoing at the site for years and there are various stages of it to see. Bring your binoculars if you have them (or we have some to loan out as well.) We will keep an eye and ear out for birds as we walk along a mostly flat dirt trail that leads out toward the confluence of three rivers – the Luckiamute, Santiam, and Willamette. Mike Unger, from Salem Audubon will be leading our group as our birding expert for the day.
We will stop by the field research site of Josee Rousseau of Cornell Labs of Ornithology and Joan Hagar of US Geological Survey who have been monitoring the songbirds at the site to gather a better picture of ecosystem health and how it is changing over time as planted native trees and shrubs have taken root and the riparian woodland habitat has expanded. If we are lucky, we might even get to see some of the songbirds that they are banding up close.
We will start and end the tour directly adjacent to one of Greenbelt’s newly acquired and protected sites – the Luckiamute Confluence – 110 acres of crucial floodplain habitat on the Willamette and Luckiamute Rivers that connects two separated units of Oregon State Parks and Recreation land. The protection and restoration of this property is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for habitat and recreation. Although we cannot walk out into the property at this time, we will talk about its conservation values and our plans for the site.
The walk will be about 2.5 miles in length, over mostly flat, but uneven ground. There are porta potties at the parking lot, but none along the trails. Plan to bring binoculars if you have them, water, and any snacks you might like with you and dress in layers with sturdy footwear. It should be an excellent summer morning of birding, science, and exploration!
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