Wallowa Mountains – Oregon Conservation Strategy

Wallowa Mountains area — Wallowa Mountains. Photo Credit: WikiMedia Commons

Located in northeastern Oregon adjacent to the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest.

COA ID: 163

Recommended Conservation Actions

Initiate or continue wet meadow conservation and restoration efforts
Manage recreational uses to minimize impacts on sensitive habitats

Local Conservation Actions and Plans

Important Bird Areas of Oregon
Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project (updated 2014)

Potential Partners

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
The Nature Conservancy
US Fish and Wildlife Service
US Forest Service

Special Features

General

Diverse plant communities ranging from low elevation grasslands to alpine meadows
Summer range habitat for big game

Previously Associated With

2006 COA ID BM-22 (Wallowa River)
2006 COA ID BM-23 (Eagle Cap - Wallowa Mountains)
2006 COA ID BM-26 (Hells Canyon)

Protected Areas

Big Sheep River
Cornucopia Mine Mill Upper Tailings Impoundment
Eagle Cap Wilderness
Eagle Creek
Eagle Creek, East Fork
East Pine Reservoir Area
Enterprise Ball Fields
Enterprise City Park
Hells Canyon
Hurricane Creek Recreation Area
Imnaha River
Imnaha River Roadside And Riverfront Zone
Irrigon Fish Hatchery
Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site
Joseph City Park
Wallowa Lake County Park
Wallowa Lake State Park

Ecoregions

Blue Mountains

Located in NE Oregon, the Blue Mountains ecoregion is the largest ecoregion in the state. It provides a diverse complex of mountain ranges, valleys, and plateaus that extend beyond Oregon into the states of Idaho and Washington.

Strategy Habitats

Aspen Woodlands

Aspen woodlands are woodland or forest communities, dominated by aspen trees with a forb, grass, or shrub understory. Aspen woodlands can also occur within conifer forests.

Grasslands

Grasslands include a variety of upland grass-dominated habitats, such as upland prairies, coastal bluffs, and montane grasslands.

Late Successional Mixed Conifer Forests

Late successional mixed conifer forests provide a multi-layered tree canopy, including large-diameter trees, shade-tolerant tree species in the understory, and a high volume of dead wood, such as snags and logs.

Natural Lakes

Natural lakes are relatively large bodies of freshwater surrounded by land. For the purposes of the Conservation Strategy, natural lakes are defined as standing water bodies larger than 20 acres, including some seasonal lakes.

Ponderosa Pine Woodlands

Ponderosa pine woodlands are dominated by ponderosa pine, but may also have lodgepole pine, western juniper, aspen, western larch, grand fir, Douglas-fir, mountain mahogany, incense cedar, sugar pine, or white fir, depending on ecoregion and site conditions. Their understories are variable combinations of shrubs, herbaceous plants, and grasses.