Drawdown-- 30 April 2009

It's that time of year at Kokopelli Wildlife Area. The time when we drawdown our seasonal wetland cells to grow the moist soil plants to feed next year's migratory waterfowl. By drawing down during this time of year, we tend to germinate our most desired waterfowl food plants-- primarily smartweeds and watergrass. You can see extensive mudflats in these photos. The mudflats are areas that we disked last summer in order to keep the vegetative communities at an early successional stage.
By drawing the water down gradually, we concentrate the invertebrates that have been multiplying all year long, creating ideal feeding conditions breeding waterfowl and for migrating shorebirds like these:

long billed dowitcher

western sandpiper

killde--wait! that's not a killdeer

semi-palmated plover

(notice only a single breastband and a white forehead--also much smaller)

blacknecked stilt

We also concentrate larger prey items such as fish and crayfish to help feed other species like these:

American white pelican

notice the plate on the bill which only grows during breeding season

This next bird is a fairly uncommon visitor to Kokopelli WA and it reminds me of fishing from a boat on Lake Sabrina with my father and brother. I used to have a lot of fun watching them dive and then trying to predict where they would pop back up.

western grebe

We also have a large heron, egret and cormorant rookery. Right now they are trying to feed their young and the steady supply of easy pickings during drawdown helps them out quite a bit.

I only was out of the truck for about an hour, but when I got back, I felt one of these near my boots. I found another one later in my office and I still feel about a hundred phantom(?) ticks crawling all over me.