S moke S ignals
october 1, 2014
Rattlesnake existence rare in western Oregon
SNAKE continued
from front page
a sighting of the northern Pacific
subspecies, as this one is believed
to be, that many thought it had
gone extinct in western Oregon,
said Breece.
There are only a few pockets in
western Oregon where this rattle-
snake has historically existed, said
Biologist Lindsay Belonga.
So, what’s become of this first
rattlesnake to make it back home?
“Hopefully,” said Dirksen, “it is
back to making a living at Rattle-
snake Butte.”
In 2012, the Bonneville Power
Administration and The Nature
Conservancy signed a memoran-
dum of understanding with the
Grand Ronde Tribe, giving the
Tribe responsibility to maintain
and manage 97-acres in this wild-
life refuge.
Since then, members of the Tribal
Fish and Wildlife and Ceded Lands
programs have been cataloguing
plant and animal populations on a
monthly basis.
The MOU requires the Tribe to
forever protect the area for indige-
nous wildlife conservation. Mainte-
nance costs come out of a $157,954
trust fund provided by Bonneville
Power and the Tribe continues to
look for other grant opportunities
to help with habitat improvement,
said Dirksen.
Tribal employees look through
the different habitats for the kind of
indigenous vegetation and reptiles
that traditionally lived there, said
Belonga.
The 97 acres of refuge land was
purchased by The Nature Conser-
vancy – 50 acres in the mid-1980s
and 47 more in August 2012. Bonn-
eville Power Administration pur-
chased the land from The Nature
Conservancy to fulfill a small part
of its obligation to manage or get
another entity to manage 17,000
acres as a conservation refuge.
BPA’s obligation is to return
habitat lost to the people of Oregon.
Flooding wiped out habitat when
the power agency built dams to
generate affordable electricity for
rural areas in the Northwest.
The Tribe bid for the opportunity
to manage the property virtually
forever. The Tribe sought to take on
this job because indigenous peoples
already had successfully managed
the land for thousands of years and
the Tribe has the expertise to bring
the area back. The property also falls
within the Tribe’s ceded lands.
In cooperation with the Tribe’s
Land and Culture Department, the
Natural Resources Department’s
Fish and Wildlife program is now
collecting biodiversity information
about the area.
Dirksen, Breece, Aquatic Biolo-
gist Bryan Fendall and Belonga, all
of the Fish and Wildlife program,
are participating along with Hy-
drosystems Compliance Specialist
Lawrence Schwabe from the Ceded
Lands program.
What is left of the indigenous
species in the refuge has survived a
battering through the years at the
hands of agriculture, rock quarry op-
erations and urban development.
Other indigenous reptiles in
the wildlife refuge include gopher
snake, northwestern garter snake,
northern alligator lizard, western
fence lizard and western skink.
Within the 97-acre refuge are
south-facing rocks at the south-
western edge of the Willamette Val-
ley. These rocks harbor hibernating
reptiles native to the valley.
Flora documented in the area
include rare Lemmon’s needle-
grass from the silver moss plant
community. Two other rare plant
communities documented on the
property are the savanna-type
Roemer’s fescue and Oregon white
oak savanna. Once widespread in
the valley, they now are limited to
a few small areas.
Typical flora in the valley includes
prairie and savanna wildflowers.
Documented but uncommon plant
species include Hall’s violet, prairie
lupine and turkey mullein.
The Tribe secured a steward-
ship account from the Bonneville
Power Administration in 2013 to
maintain the conservation value of
the property.
The Tribe’s final management
plan for the area, a requirement of
the BPA, is expected to be complet-
ed later this fall, said Belonga.
In a backgrounder about the
new sighting, Dirksen reported
that the Tribe’s interest in the few
remaining populations of western
rattlesnake have been sparked
by references in “oral histories
and myth texts” of the Kalapuya
people.
“Now, the Grand Ronde Tribe has
a role in maintaining the habitat of
this very rare snake endlessly into
the future,” he said.
Management of the environment
for these snakes “is not easy,” Dirk-
sen reported, “and the fact that
no one else in the valley is doing
it reflects the Tribe’s capacity to
take on unique and challenging
opportunities.” n
Flu clinics scheduled
The Tribe’s Health and Wellness Department has scheduled
Influenza (Flu) Vaccine Clinics in the coming weeks.
A Flu Shot Clinic will be held at the Portland Area Office, 4445
S.W. Barbur Blvd., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14.
A Tribal Employee Flu Vaccine Clinic will be held during the All-
Staff Meeting set for Thursday, Oct. 2, and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 23, at the clinic in Grand Ronde.
People also can visit the clinic any time during normal business
hours, which are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and
Friday, and 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday. The clinic is closed for
lunch from noon to 1 p.m. daily.
The vaccine is covered by insurance and there is not a co-pay.
All children will receive free immunizations through Oregon’s
Vaccines for Children program. n
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