Morgan Lake

Status:	Identified	Area:	1280 acres (520 hectares)
County:	San Juan	Elevation:	5325 feet (1625 meters)
Town:	Fruitland	Location:	36°42.0’N, 108°28.12’W

Ownership	Four Corners Power Plant
Habitats	Wetlands (lake)
Land-use	Water management, Fishing
Threats	Invasive/non-native plants, Plant closure
Site Criteria	State waterfowl (D4ii)
Site Description	Morgan Lake is a warm water reservoir situated immediately north of Four Corners Power Plant. The lake has been stocked with fish. The lake and shoreline are surrounded by desert grass/shrub lands. There are tamarisk and Russian olive thickets along much of the shore with willows in some areas and cottonwood saplings in places. A few willows are tree size. Some of the shoreline is sandy. The delta mudflats vary in size depending on the water level, but there are always some mudflats available for shorebirds, waders, etc. Because of the warmer temperatures of the water returned to the reservoir by the power plant, the reservoir does not freeze when other area lakes do. Morgan Lake is currently open to the public and easily accessible and viewed from various points along the shore. Agreements were obtained with both the Four Corners Power Plant and the Navajo tribe (which controls the recreational use of the lake and grazes cattle around it) for the nomination of this area as an IBA. The Four Corners Power Plant Environmental Scientist, Mr. Howard Bradley, has been instrumental in erecting Wood Duck boxes and Osprey nesting platforms and in environmental education of local school children.
Birds	Morgan Lake is an important migratory stop and wintering site for a large variety of birds. The lake and shoreline habitat is uncommon in San Juan county and Morgan Lake provides the largest site with such habitat in the county. Through the years Morgan Lake also has attracted vagrant and uncommon visitors seen rarely in the county and state. These include Brown Pelican, Black Skimmer, Black-legged Kittiwake, Sabine's Gull, and Red Knot. Significant numbers of Western Grebe are seen in fall, winter, and spring along with a few Clark's Grebe. Various species of waterfowl are seen in migration and winter, sometimes in large numbers. This area and nearby B-Square Ranch are the most important wintering areas for geese and dabbling ducks in San Juan county. Almost 20000 of these (primarily Canada Goose and Mallard) winter on these lakes. The observations from the Farmington Christmas Bird Count capture the numbers of ducks and geese that move between the various lakes in the area.
Conservation Issues	Tamarisk and Russian olive are the predominate tree species. They provide shelter and food for many species. The biggest threat is the closing of the power plant should coal reserves be exhausted.
Conservation Plan
Monitor(s)	None assigned
Nominator	Jan Rees, 1400 Saiz Road, Bloomfield NM 87413, 505-632-8335
Sources	Personal observations (PO) Supplemental data from Tim Reeves (PO) Christmas Bird Counts [NMFA] 1995-2004 (CBC)
Links	eBird New Mexico Hot Spot
Directions	Drive 4.6 miles south on CR 6675 (Power plant road) from the junction of CR 6675 and US 550 in Fruitland.

Species	Year	Status	Population	Sources	Criteria
American Coot	98	Winter	50 individuals minimum, 242 individuals maximum	PO
American White Pelican	98	Passage	45 individuals minimum, 50 individuals maximum	PO
Canada Goose	95-04	Winter	12802 individuals average, 28340 individuals maximum	CBC	D4ii
Great Blue Heron	98	Winter	2 individuals minimum, 9 individuals maximum	PO
Mallard	95-04	Winter	6619 individuals average, 16227 individuals maximum	CBC	D4ii
Marbled Godwit	96-99	Passage	198 individuals average, 275 individuals maximum	PO	D4v
Western Grebe	98	Winter	91 individuals minimum, 178 individuals maximum	PO	D1
Western Sandpiper	97	Passage	103 individuals	PO	D4v
White-faced Ibis	98 95-98	Passage Passage	42 individuals minimum, 193 individuals maximum 190 individuals average, 250 individuals maximum	PO PO	D4iii

 
Last Updated 11/13/07