August 14 - 16,2020 The unique mingling of desert and alpine plant communities makes Steens Mountain a hotspot for insect diversity.

Alpine Pollinator Ecology - CANCELLED -

CANCELLED DUE TO COVID-19

August 14 – 16, 2020  Instructor and photo by August Jackson. The unique mingling of desert and alpine plant communities makes Steens Mountain a hot spot for insect diversity. In some years, large migrations of butterflies and dragonflies can be observed along the summit ridge. We’ll explore Steens Mountain’s varied habitats, identifying pollinators and their associated plant species with a particular focus on regional bee fauna. More than 300 species of bees are likely to be found on Steens, including more than a dozen bumble bee species. We’ll spend most of our time observing insects in the field, with some time for lecture and specimen observation at the Malheur Field Station.

Location: Meet and lodge at Malheur Field Station, Harney County, Oregon.

Tuition incl. 2 nights shared dorm room: $270 Extra nights or single bedroom: add $30 per night Commuter tuition: $210

Book direct with Siskiyou Institute below:

Click Here:       

 

August 17-21, 2020 Join us under the darkest sky in the US! Learn about Astronomy and Astro-Photography in this 4 day course.

Astronomy / Astro Photography 2021

Dates TBA 
Instructor:  Robert Browning
is an Engineering Group Leader at Intel in Hillsboro. He has been at Intel for 24 years. He has a PhD in Applied Physics from Portland State University and is an avid amateur astrophotographer.

Day 1: Introduction and Overview / Software for Imaging
Day 2: Minimalist Imaging with a DSLR / Survey of Telescopes for Imaging
Day 3: Telescope Mounts and Guiding / Cameras and Imaging Calibration
Day 4: Operating in the Filed / Basic Image Processing

Instructor:  Doug McCarty was the Planetarium Director at Mt Hood Community College for twenty seven years and has taught astronomy at Lewis and Clark College and Portland State University. He lives in Portland.

Astronomy Schedule TBA

Day 1:
Day 2:
Day 3:
Day 4:

Sept 2-5, 2020 "Learn more about the insects of the sagebrush country and their importance to the ecosystem"

Entomology in the High Desert 2021

September 2021 Dates TBA      $300 per person $100 deposit/balance due by Aug 1 – Meals and Lodging included

“Learn more about the insects of the sagebrush country and their importance to the ecosystem. This course will consist of a field trip to observe insects in the field, insect collecting demonstrations, and learning about the insect anatomy and ecology in the classroom”

Matt Medeiros (http://www.mattjmedeiros.com)  the instructor, has been coming to MFS as a student, employee, and biologist since 1995, and has taught Entomology at the high school level.  He is also an active researcher at UNLV who studies the biodiversity, evolution, and conservation of insects in the Hawaiian Islands.

Sept 2 : Arrive, check in by 4pm, settle into lodging. Dinner in dining hall at 6pm. Socialize getting to know each other.

Sept 3 : Classroom sessions & observing insects within walking distance of the classroom. Breakfast in the dining hall at 7:30am, packed lunch in the field, dinner in dining hall at 6pm.

Sept 4: All day field strip. Breakfast in dining hall, with pack lunch in the field.   Dinner upon return in Dining Hall at 6pm

Sept 5: Breakfast and departure.

Sept. 11 - Sept. 16 - Join Harry Fuller for a full day in the Steens where we will go to the peak at just under 10,000 feet elevation.

Birding - Fall September 11 - 16, 2021 CANCELLED due to covid variant

DATES TBA – Join Harry Fuller for a full day in the Steens where we will go to the peak at just under 10,000 feet elevation. In the late summer we may get access to areas closed during breeding season. There may be migrating raptors passing through the valley and mountains. While many insectivorous birds will be gone there will also be songbirds on migration including huge numbers of White-crowned Sparrows and their cousins from several species.

FIVE NIGHTS. Arrive for dinner on the 11th, depart after breakfast on the 116th. All meals and dorm accommodations provided by Field Station.

Full cost: $900 for 5 nights
$100 reservation deposit with full payment due by Aug 15, 2021

 

Harry Fuller has lived in Oregon since 2007. He has been leading birding trips and teaching bird classes since the 1980’s He annually leads birding trips for Klamath Bird Observatory, Road Scholar and Golden Gate Autubon.

author of: San Francisco’s Natural History: Sand Dunes to Streetcars:
https://ecowise.wordpress.com/2017/04/20/sfnh/
author of Great Gray Owls of CA-OR-WA:
https://ecowise.wordpress.com/2015/05/08/the-great-gray-owl-book/
author of Freeway Birding: freewaybirding.com
birding website: http://www.towhee.net
my birding blog: atowhee.wordpress.com

Sept 18-20, 2020 Please join us at MFS for a weekend of fun and appreciation dinner!

Annual September Gathering 2020 Cancelled Due to Covid

Annual Appreciation Weekend Gathering

September 18-20 – 2020

Please join us at MFS for a weekend of fun and appreciation dinner!

Wander the station and see all the upgrades and changes.  We appreciate your support !

Friday Sept 18:

Evening Social in Greasewood beginning at 6pm

Saturday Sept 19: TBA

Field Strips / Morning TBA / Afternoon “Birding with the Board”

Saturday evening at 6pm, dinner will be provided by MFS. Please call in your RSVP to make sure there is plenty for all. 541-493-2629 or email us at malheurfieldstation@gmail.com

Reservations can be made by calling the office or emailing.

September 23-29, 2020 Ever wonder how the landscape of Harney County came to be?

Geology of the Northern Great Basin 2021

FALL DATES TBA
Ever wonder how the landscape of Harney County came to be? Check out the schedule for Geology of the Northern Great Basin hosted by Michael Cummings.

Michael is a retired Professor of Geology from Portland State University and has a long history with Malheur Field Station. He has been leading university and general-interest geology trips in Northern Great Basin for decades.

The order of the daily program may change due to weather. All days begin with breakfast in the Dining Hall, after which you pack a lunch for the day trip. Lunch and bathroom stops are incorporated each day along the way.

DATE TBA
The six-night class begins after settling into your E-Dorm lodging and having dinner in the Dining Hall with Michael Cummings, PhD. After dinner, there’s an introductory session on geology of the northern Great Basin.

DATE TBA
Interpreting across scale: Hike to top of South Coyote Butte for Interpreting across time: How does the landscape change through time?

Evening session: How do we integrate time, scale, and process when we interpret the evolution of a landscape.

DATE TBA
Visit the Northern fringe of the Harney basin. Welded tuffs: welding zones, structure, sources, interpreting accreted terrains – the old rocks. Dinner in Dining Hall

Evening session: Hydrogeology of the Harney basin – an ongoing study.

DATE TBA
South of the Field Station: Interpreting volcanic contributions to sedimentary environments and Hydrogeology of the Blitzen River.

Evening session: Integrating time, scale, and process in modern landscapes

DATE TBA
Long day! Explore the areas surrounding Steens Mountain; Fault block mountains, Crustal extension and geothermal systems including the Alvord Desert and Catlow Valley.

No evening session

DATE TBA
Exploring Steen Mountain – Steens Basalt and the Columbia River Basalt Group.

Evening session: Miocene evolution of the Columbia River Basalt Group and associated rhyolites.

DATE TBA
Breakfast and departure.

Full cost: $1000 or $950 if you have RV.
$100 reservation deposit with full payment due by August 24. 2020.

September 25-30, 2019-Ever wonder how the landscape of Harney County came to be?

Geology of the Northern Great Basin

September 25-30, 2019-Ever wonder how the landscape of Harney County came to be? Check out the schedule for Geology of the Northern Great Basin hosted by Michael Cummings.

Michael is a retired Professor of Geology from Portland State University and has a long history with Malheur Field Station. He has been leading university and general-interest geology trips in Northern Great Basin for decades.

September 25
The six-night class begins after settling into your lodging and having dinner with Michael Cummings, PhD. After dinner, there’s an introductory session on geology of the northern Great Basin.

September 26
Interpreting across scale: Hike to top of South Coyote Butte for Interpreting across time: How does the landscape change through time?
Evening session: How do we integrate time, scale, and process when we interpret the evolution of a landscape?

September 27
Visit the Northern fringe of the Harney basin. Welded tuffs: welding zones, structure, sources, interpreting accreted terrains – the old rocks.
Evening session: Hydrogeology of the Harney basin – an ongoing study.

September 28
South of the Field Station: Interpreting volcanic contributions to sedimentary environments and Hydrogeology of the Blitzen River.
Evening session: Integrating time, scale, and process in modern landscapes

September 29
Long day! Explore the areas surrounding Steens Mountain; Fault block mountains, Crustal extension and geothermal systems including the Alvord Desert and Catlow Valley.
No evening session

September 30
Exploring Steen Mountain – Steens Basalt and the Columbia River Basalt Group.
Evening session: Miocene evolution of the Columbia River Basalt Group and associated rhyolites.

October 1
Breakfast and departure.

2

September 16-22, 2019. Join Harry Fuller for a week of birding the refuge and Steens Mountain. Fall migration is always interesting in Harney County.

Birding Malheur & Steens Mountain

September 16-22, 2019. Join Harry Fuller for a week of birding the refuge and Steens Mountain. Fall migration is always interesting in Harney County. Harry has lived in Oregon since 2011. He has been leading birding trips and teaching bird classes since the 1980’s He annually leads birding trips for Klamath Bird Observatory, Road Scholar and Golden Gate Autubon.

Itinerary

Arrive at MFS, gather for a meet and greet, introduction and dinner. After dinner enjoy a sunset walk around the MFS looking for owls, nighthawks, et al.

After breakfast we will visit the MNWR headquarters to look for migrants and any vagrants. From there we will bird along Sodhouse Lane, the Narrows and along Hwy 205 north of the refuge. Return to MFS for a sack lunch and presentation in the classroom.

After lunch we will go east on Sodhouse Lane to Princeton, north to Crane and stop at Crystal Crane Hot Springs to observe birds on the pond. We will return to MFS for a home cooked dinner. After dinner we will look for Short-eared Owls along Center Patrol Road.

After breakfast we will head south on Hwy 205, visiting Buena Vista, Krumbo Lake and Benson Pond.

We will enjoy a sack lunch at Krumbo Lake picnic grounds. After lunch we will bird along the road to Diamond, visit Diamond Craters for Rock Wrens and Canyon Wrens, the French Barn and Dry Lake.

We will return to the MFS for dinner, perhaps an evening visit to the refuge headquarters.

We will leave MFS right after breakfast and head south on Hwy 205. We will bird the basalt cliffs along the road, stop at P Ranch and then Page Springs for lunch. After lunch we will continue our search for Bobolink (not in the fall program) or head up into the lower reaches of the Steen Loop. If we can gain access we will also bird Boca Lake. This will depend on Teresa Wick’s availability.

We will return to MFS for dinner.

We will leave after breakfast and bird our way north on Hwy 205 to Hwy 78. Then to Hwy 20 south to Chickahominy Reservoir, stopping at Sage Hen Rest Area for lunch. Back to MFS for dinner.

We will depart after breakfast to bird the Steen Mountain Loop, starting at the south entrance. Sack lunch while out in the field, dinner back at MFS dining hall.

Breakfast, pack and depart. End of 6 night program!

HARRY FULLER LINKS: http://atowhee.wordpress.com, http://www.towhee.net

2019 Annual Members Meeting

September 13-14, 2019. Join us at the MFS for a weekend of fun and appreciation dinner! Last year was a huge success, we are planning for the same this year. Please join us on station for our MFS members meeting this September! Call for lodging reservations now! RSVP for dinner!

Friday Sept 13:
Evening Social

Saturday Sept 14:
Field Trips / Morning TBA / Afternoon “Birding with the Board”


Evening speaker: Steve Arndt (Author of “Oregon Ghosts Towns A-Z” and “Roads Less Traveled in Oregon”

Saturday a nice dinner will be provided by MFS. To make sure there is plenty for all, please call 541-493-2629 or email malheurfieldstation@gmail.com to RSVP.

Post meeting Update:  View the slide show of the meet and greet at Greaswood Hall. Everyone had a good time.

Good food is always a big hit
The refurbished pool tables were popular
Previous slide
Next slide

When we started in on this clean-up and improvement project the laundry room had been delegated as a storage area.

Laundry Room Cleanup

click to enlarge

When we started in on this clean-up and improvement project the laundry room had been delegated as a storage area. As you can see by this before photo and the one below, a lot of “stuff” found its way into the laundry work space.

Some of the things belonged there like housekeeping supplies but much of the clutter belonged elsewhere or in the dump. The open space was so limited it was hard for two people to use it at the same time.

click to enlarge
click to enlarge

Here it is all cleaned up and organized with all the cleaning and housekeeping supplies necessary to maintain our whole facility. It is now much more useful but still needs commercial size washers and dryers to speed up the process.

Doug was pleased with the new ample work space he celebrated it with new paint job.

Malheur Field Station