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Birders Night- Lake Abert: A Waterbird Oasis in an Arid Landscape
September 3, 2019
$65 – $75Lake Abert: A Waterbird Oasis in an Arid Landscape
Salty-alkaline lakes are not the kind of place you would want to call home, after all salt is used to preserve food, and with a pH around 10, the water is like diluted bleach. Yet, Lake Abert in southcentral Oregon is waterbird Mecca, with over 80 species being reported and abundances of several hundred thousand birds noted on daily counts. Just what brings these birds to the lake is an amazing set of conditions that are subject to the whims of climate and the actions of man. The presentation will provide an introduction to this amazing lake, yet vulnerable, waterbird oasis.
Ron Larson is a retired aquatic biologist from Klamath Falls, with a special interest in lake ecosystems and species that live in them from microbes to birds. Ron has traveled widely to study freshwater and marine organisms, including the Arctic and Antarctic, and down 1000 m in the Bahamas using a submersible to get jellyfish, but Lake Abert and its birds keep him returning.
Social gathering time is from 6:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Programs begin at 7:00 p.m. and usually last until 8:30 p.m.