A look at 100 years of Upper Klamath Basin history through the lens of its birds

The Upper Klamath Basin has been in what some call “an almost continual period of drought” for more than 20 years. Wetlands have dried up, and populations of migratory water birds have plummeted, and not just in the last two decades. In the 1960s there were 6 million waterfowl. Now there are more like 120,000. Jami Dennis is a natural resources graduate student at Oregon State University. Her research led her to investigate the continued plight of migratory waterbirds and how it’s tied to water, wetlands and human intervention. Her story uses photos and data visualization to draw readers into a history that sheds light not only on this region but on the broader ecological landscape as well. Dennis presented her research at the recent Winter Wings Festival in Klamath Falls, and she joins us to share her story of “Wetlands, Waterbirds, and Water.”