2015 US-Russia Expedition to Colorado: Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge

On Thursday, we toured Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge with Steve Barclay, Refuge Manager, Andrew Pettibone, Biologist and Rachael Portwood, Refuge Manager Trainee. While we were visiting, an international class from Colorado State University had also stopped at the refuge. The class consisted of protected area managers from 14 different countries in Central and South America. It was very interesting to hear some of their questions for Steve.

Browns Park is 13,000 acres in size and was founded in 1965 to mitigate the effects of the Flaming Gorge Dam that was installed upriver on the Green River. Since the dam was installed, the wetlands no longer flood naturally, so water is pumped into the wetlands in the spring and sometimes in the fall to provide habitat for migratory birds. The wetlands are also burned periodically, allowed to dry out and then disced with a tractor in order to break up the roots of aggressive wetland species such as bulrush and cattails. This treatment favors a more open wetland of grasses and sedges.

Much work is done with cottonwood restoration at the refuge. Cottonwood nurseries are created by flooding and scarifying an area, then shaking the seed onto the bare ground. After about five years, the trees are transplanted into a hole drilled by an auger 6-8 feet deep in order to plant the tree as close to the water table as possible.

The refuge had some interesting historical sites, including the well-maintained Old Ladore schoolhouse built around 1911.

After our tour, we explored Irish Canyon, an area to the north on BLM land. The limestone contained in the canyon provides a favorable habitat for rare plants. We were particularly excited to see Penstemon yampaensis.