![image of a hunter beginning to pluck a bird on the gate of his pickup truck](/sites/default/files/styles/380x228/public/2020-09/How%20to%20pluck%20a%20turkey-NWTF.jpg?itok=v3qmnn6k)
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Leaburg Hatchery was built in 1953 to mitigate for lost fishing opportunity because of the many dams on Willamette Basin rivers. These dams include Cougar, Blue River, Carmen-Smith, Lookout, Dexter, and others. The hatchery rears rainbow trout, summer steelhead and Chinook salmon, and has a staff of four employees. Come visit our show pond and see huge white sturgeon and rainbow trout. There’s a viewing platform built by the McLaren School for Boys in 1993 to allow visitors to get a close up look at spring Chinook salmon spawning in the creek below. Leaburg Hatchery is temporarily closed to comply
In 1925 the first fish hatchery on the South Santiam River began operations about 5 miles upstream from today’s present site, rearing annually approximately 100,000 spring Chinook in dirt ponds for release into the South Santiam River. The present site came about with the construction of Foster Dam. In 1968 the facility was dedicated for the rearing of spring Chinook and summer steelhead. This facility was built and annually funded in part by the US Army Corps of Engineers to compensate for the loss of spawning and rearing areas above the dams on the South Santiam River.
This is a large and power falcon. The majority of Gyrfalcons seen in Oregon are immatures or adults of the "gray" type, but there are several reports of "white" birds. The Gyrfalcon is a regular winter visitant to Oregon. The majority of sightings come from coastal and Willamette Valley lowlands near waterfowl concentrations. Individuals have been seen chasing and feeding on geese, ducks and gulls. Gyrfalcons forage by flying low over the ground and flushing prey, then often giving spectacular tail chases. If a bird refuses to flush the hunt is usually unsuccessful. East of the Cascades it occurs around
![655_gyr_falcon_duck_welle_odfw.jpg Gryfalcon](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/655_gyr_falcon_duck_welle_odfw_cx.jpg?itok=dWQH1Mui)
The Black oystercatcher is easily recognized with its black plumage, long, strait, laterally compressed, orange-red bill with a yellow tip, orange-red eye ring, yellow iris, and pale pink legs. These birds are restricted to rocky coastal shorelines where they feed in the intertidal zone. They are an uncommon to fairly common resident on rocky shores and sand/gravel beaches along the entire coast. Along the sandy central coast, they are present only as an occasional dispersing or wandering individual, typically on jetties. Black oystercatchers are Oregon Conservation Strategy Species in the Nearshore ecoregion. Hear the call of the Black oystercatcher Photo
![A0039648-1_black_oystercatcher_kohl.jpg Thumbnail](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2019-03/A0039648-1_black_oystercatcher_kohl_0.jpg?itok=npMWYcMU)
One of the characteristic birds of woodlands and city streets is this loud, colorful jay. Its bright blue-and-white-plumage and shrill calls are quite distinctive. It is closely related to the Steller's jay and hybrid individuals have been noted where their ranges overlap. It is an opportunistic forager of small animals and invertebrates, but is predominantly a vegetarian. It is a rare to regular visitor to eastern and western Oregon from late September to late April. The Blue jay prefers open mixed forests or deciduous groves and is often found in orchards and parks and along wooded city streets. Hear the
![blue_jay_dawn_flickr.jpg Blue jay](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/blue_jay_dawn_flickr_cx.jpg?itok=S7GbZvSx)
The majestic trumpeter swan is the largest of our native waterfowl and one of the heaviest flying birds in the world with males sometimes exceeding 30 pounds. Historically hunted to the brink of extinction, it was recognized as an endangered species long before there was an Endangered Species Act, and its recovery is a conservation success story. The adult's snow-white plumage with contrasting black bill and feet and 8-foot wingspan define this magnificent bird. Their neck is as long as their body and is used to reach food at the marsh bottom. In spring, the trumpeter swan is a locally
![Trumpeter-swan_0841.jpg Trumpter swan](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-04/0848_trumpeter_swan_budeau.jpg?itok=MDObgUNL)
There's more than one way to pluck a turkey. Whatever method you choose, don’t just grab a handful of feathers and start yanking. This could rip the very thin skin, and once you’ve ripped the skin it’s difficult to finish plucking. In fact, at that point you may need to resort to skinning the bird. Keep the feet attached to while turkey while plucking it. They’ll give something to hold on to as you rotate and move the carcass around for thorough plucking. Dry plucking a bird – simple but time consuming To dry pluck a turkey, hang it up
![image of a hunter beginning to pluck a bird on the gate of his pickup truck](/sites/default/files/styles/380x228/public/2020-09/How%20to%20pluck%20a%20turkey-NWTF.jpg?itok=v3qmnn6k)
Coquille Valley Wildlife Area was initially established in 2013 with two equally important primary objectives; (1) To protect, enhance, and restore fish and wildlife habitats located on the WA, and (2) to provide a wide variety of wildlife-oriented recreational and educational opportunities to the public.
Arguably the most widely recognized of Oregon's birds, the American robin is the largest, most abundant, and most widespread thrush in the state. Ranging from sea level to treeline, the robin's loud, musical voice and conspicuous brick-red chest make it unmistakable to even the most casual of observers. The robin thrives in both human-dominated and natural landscapes and is considered to be a habitat generalist throughout its range. Considering the robin's natural history, we know most about its diet, which comprises primarily of soft invertebrates in the spring and summer and fruit in the fall and winter. It is most
![1553_american_robin_munsel.jpg American robin](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/1553_merican_robin_cx.jpg?itok=v6dQ6Ahp)
Of Oregon's breeding seabirds, Leach's storm-petrel is the smallest, most pelagic, and flies the farthest offshore of any of Oregon's breeding seabirds to feed. It spends the non-breeding season in the subtropical and equatorial Pacific. It is the second most abundant breeding seabird in Oregon, and is rarely seen from land or close to shore. It comes to its breeding islands, where it nests in burrows, only under the cover of darkness. Its plumage is black and Oregon populations have a distinct white rump. Leach's storm-petrels are long lived birds characterized by long-term pair bonds and may breed yearly for
![Leachs-storm-petrel_Seabamiru_flickr.jpg Leache's storm petrel](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/Leach%27s%20storm%20petrel_Seabamirum%20%28flickr%29.jpg?itok=oQw-71Bx)
These small, chunky plovers are uncommon to locally abundant migrants statewide, where they are among the most visible and easily identified small shorebirds. The only single-banded plover that occurs in Oregon, they can be remarkably easy to see when they are moving about on mud flats, and remarkably hard to detect when only their unmoving brown backs are visible against the mud. It is an uncommon to locally abundant migrant, with most birds at estuaries and some concentrations in spring at larger lakes of southeast Oregon. In the fall, it's rare in the Cascades; in winter, it's uncommon at larger
![6475_semipalmated_plover_gilson.jpg Semi palmated plover](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/6475_semipalmated_plover_gilson.jpg?itok=Dh7HIf5H)
Oregon has a variety of raptors, from the diminutive Sharp-shinned hawk to our nation's symbol, the Bald eagle. Some of these birds of prey are migratory, while many live here year-round and can be seen hunting along rivers, roadside posts and fields.
![golden_eagle_baker_co_myatt_odfw.jpg Thumbnail](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/golden_eagle_baker_co_myatt_odfw.jpg?itok=wgcRbCKg)
There are fundamental differences between turkey hunting with a bow and a shotgun, including effective range, shot placement and set up. Effective shooting distance Your effective shooting distance (how far you can be from a turkey and likely kill it with a single shot) will vary with the level of your shooting skills and the type of equipment you’re using. A good rule of thumb for shotgun shooters is 40 yards. Anything further than that and there’s a good chance you might not hit the head and neck with enough pellets to kill the bird. Any closer than 20 yards
![Turkey hunting with a bow](/sites/default/files/styles/380x228/public/2020-06/Turkey_Hunting_with_a_Bow.jpg?itok=hUigzEkm)
Cascade Hatchery was authorized under the Mitchell Act and began operating in 1959 as part of the Columbia River Fisheries Development Program – a program to enhance declining fish runs in the Columbia River Basin. The facility is used for egg incubation and rearing of coho.
Establishment of the Bridge Creek Wildlife Area initially started in 1961 when a parcel of land was purchased from the Frank Hilbert estate. After the initial purchase, several private holdings were acquired to consolidate the land under department ownership. The last parcel was purchased from the Colvin Cattle Company in 1975. The primary purpose of the wildlife area is to maintain and protect a key historic winter range for Rocky Mountain elk ( Cervus elaphus nelsoni).
![image of an angler holding a 32-inch rainbow trout](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2020-06/2192-rainbow-trout-rock-creek.jpg?itok=AP7GA_GM)
This moderately small wren maintains the frenetic energy that is so obviously typical of this family of birds. It is a summer inhabitant in many parts of Oregon, generally in open woodlands, thickets, and occasionally in residential gardens. The House wren occurs over the widest latitudinal range of any New World passerine. The House wren nests in a wide variety of native and human-influenced habitats. Nest sites are primarily located within preformed cavities in snags. It is a very uncommon to common transient and summer resident in semi-open woodland habitats throughout the state. In southwest Oregon, it is most common
![2272_house_wren_munsel.jpg House wren](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/2272_house_wren_munsel_cx.jpg?itok=8ITMkMEs)
Dashing and darting about, flashing its bright white underparts, the Violet-green Swallow is one of the characteristic birds of summer. Unlike the Tree Swallow it commonly nests in niches and cavities on urban buildings and readily uses nesting boxes in residential areas. Its soft twittery call notes are a familiar pre-dawn sound as they fly about overhead. The Violet-green swallow is a very early spring migrant concentrating about streams and wetlands where emerging insects can be found until warmer weather allows them to move into more upland areas. It is a common to abundant summer resident and breeding species throughout
![1690_violet-green_swallow_leer_odfw_0.jpg Violet green swallow](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2023-05/1690_violet-green_swallow_leer_odfw.jpg?itok=pMExMjIy)
![8472_fishing_henry_hagg_lake_sall.jpg Thumbnail](/sites/default/files/styles/232x139/public/2018-03/8472_fishing_henry_hagg_lake_sall.jpg?itok=6olLeNMo)