fitzner/eberhardt arid lands ecology reserve

LocationThis unit is southwest of the ColumbiaRiver and State Highway 240, betweenState Highways 24 and 225. Prominentnatural features include the ridge topand mostly north-facing slope ofRattlesnake Mountain (the highest“treeless” mountain in the UnitedStates), portions of Rattlesnake Hills,and the east end of Yakima Ridge.

HabitatsThis area contains one of the fewremaining large tracts of native shrub-steppe vegetation in Washington. Amajor human-caused wildfire burnedmost of this unit in 2000. It devastatednative plants, especially sagebrushwhich does not re-sprout after fire.Removal of the shrub cover reducedthe diversity and complexity of thevegetation structure on the landscape.However, native grasslands arerecovering and efforts to restore sage-brush to the area are underway. Thefire also damaged the microbiotic crust,a critical component of shrub-steppe.This diminutive collection of mosses,lichens, liverworts, algae and bacteriastabilizes the soils and fills the spacebetween bunchgrass clumps.

Rare PlantsA newly described plant species,Rattlesnake Mountain milk-vetchoccurs on the top of Rattlesnake Moun-tain. Relatively large populations ofPiper’s daisy, a state sensitive plant,also occur in this unit.

WildlifeIn addition to being a home for RockyMountain elk, mule deer, coyote andother habitat generalists, this unitprovides habitat for wildlife speciesthat are dependent on sagebrush, andare considered shrub-steppe obligatesin the Columbia Basin Ecoregion.

Fitzner/Eberhardt AridLands Ecology ReserveFact Sheet • August 2002

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service • Hanford Reach National Monument

FWS photo: Scott McCorquodale

Unit Size77,000 acres

History and AdministrationSince 1943, the U.S. Departmentof Energy (DOE) has held title tothe lands that make up this andall other units that became part ofthe Hanford Reach NationalMonument in 2000. The Fitzner/Eberhardt Arid Lands Ecology(ALE) Reserve was establishedhere in 1967 to preserve“portions of vegetation types thatonce covered a great expanse ofthe West.” The ALE was desig-nated a Research Natural Area in1971 and a National Environ-mental Research Park in 1975.Since 1997, the U.S. Fish andWildlife Service has been theprimary land manager of this unitunder a use permit with the DOE.The DOE retains adminis-trativecontrol of Rattlesnake Ridge andassociated access road.

To Contact the MonumentHanford Reach NM3250 Port of Benton BoulevardRichland, Washington 99352Telephone: (509) 371-1801Fax: (509) 375-0196Web: hanfordreach.fws.gov

FWS photo: David Goeke

These include burrowing owl, logger-head shrike, sage sparrow, long-billedcurlew, sagebrush vole, Merriam’sshrew, black tailed jackrabbit, sage-brush lizard and striped whipsnake.Many butterflies (46 species) andmoths (107 taxa) also occur here.

Public UsesPublic use is currently limited toapproved ecological research andenvironmental education activities.

Cultural ResourcesRattlesnake Mountain has spiritualsignificance for the local NativeAmerican people. It has been atraditional area for hunting and rootgathering for thousands of years. Fromthe 1880s to 1943, portions of this unitwere used for livestock grazing,homesteads and small amounts ofdryland and irrigated agriculture.Operating in the 1920s, the Benson andSnively Ranches were associated withthe springs in this unit. More recentlyRattlesnake Mountain became a stra-tegic position for the operation of theHanford Site. Several buildings fromWorld War II and the Cold War eraremain including an intact Nike missilesilo.