Great Salt Plains Lake is a

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

located within the

Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge The Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge is part of the United States system of national wildlife refuges. It is located in Alfalfa County in northern Oklahoma, north of Jet (pop. 230), along Great Salt Plains Lake, which is formed by a dam on t ...

in Alfalfa County,

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

named because of the salt flats in the area and for the

Salt Fork Arkansas River The Salt Fork of the Arkansas River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 31, 2011 tributary of the Arkansas River in southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma in the Unite ...

, which is dammed to form the lake. It is notable for the variety of birds that are attracted to Ralstin Island (not open to the public) and also for the

selenite Selenite may refer to: Substances containing selenium *A selenium-containing anion or ionic compound with the SeO32− anion: **Selenite (ion), anion is a selenium oxoanion with the chemical formula SeO32− ***Selenous acid, the conjugate acid, w ...

crystals that can be collected along the shoreline. Recent droughts, most notably that of 2011, have had an adverse effect on the future of the lake.

Physical description

A study made in 1931 for the

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

proposed building a flood control dam in the Great Salt Plains area. Congress authorized its construction in 1936. Design studies began in 1937 and the Corps broke ground for construction in September 1938. The dam was completed in July 1941, with a water capacity of . The lake covers and has of shoreline. The average depth is . The saline content is reportedly one-fourth that of the ocean. Ralstin Island, created at the same time as the lake, is home to blue heron,

great egret The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, or (in the Old World) great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and ...

and

ibis The ibises () (collective plural ibis; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word f ...

. The island is considered one of the most important colonial bird nesting habitats, and is the largest breeding site in the state for the

white-faced ibis The white-faced ibis (''Plegadis chihi'') is a wading bird in the ibis family, Threskiornithidae. This species breeds colonially in marshes, usually nesting in bushes or low trees. Its breeding range extends from the western United States south ...

. The fish vary from catfish,

saugeye The sauger (''Sander canadensis'') is a freshwater perciform fish of the family Percidae that resembles its close relative, the walleye. The species is a member of the largest vertebrate order, the Perciformes.Jaeger, Matthew. 2004. Montana's Fi ...

(related to the

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the yellow pike or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relat ...

) sandbass and

hybrid striped bass A hybrid striped bass, also known as a wiper or whiterock bass, is a hybrid between the striped bass (''Morone saxatilis'') and the white bass (''M. chrysops''). It can be distinguished from the striped bass by broken rather than solid horizont ...

. The State of Oklahoma leased on August 1, 1958 for a state park.

Selenite crystals

On the west edge of the lake, visitors can dig for

crystals. These crystals feature an hourglass inclusion which is unique to the Great Salt Plains.Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceDeHaan, Vici, "Great Salt Plains State Park", ''State parks of the South: America's historic paradise'', pg 256 Scientists believe that salt was deposited during repeated water-level rises of a shallow sea millions of years ago. The supply of salt is kept intact by saline groundwater that flows just a few feet below the surface. When the water evaporates, a layer of salt remains on the surface. This process also plays a role in the formation of selenite crystals that visitors covet.

Future of the lake

The lake is subject to periodic mass fish kills, most recently in 2011. During the extreme drought of that year, the average depth decreased to . According to John Stahl, northwest fisheries supervisor for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the lake has grown more shallow since its creation because of silting and agricultural runoff. That and extremely hot dry summers cause the brine to become more concentrated. Oxygen in the water is mostly consumed by bacteria that break down organic matter in the water, leaving insufficient oxygen to support the fish.Shelton, Ryan. NewsOK. "Can the Great Salt Plains Lake be saved?" July 21, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 201

/ref> According to officials of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the future of the lake appears grim if no remedial action is taken. Proposed solutions are: * Open the dam and allow the lake to flow into the river. * Dig the silt out of the reservoir, which could cost $5 – 10 million. * Plug the dam to raise the water level. There is a law requiring that a non federal partner help pay for restoration. The Corps regards this as an unlikely event. If no action is taken, the Corps has said that the seafood source will be depleted and the birds will abandon the lake.

Recreation

Also located along the shores of Great Salt Plains Lake is

Great Salt Plains State Park Great Salt Plains State Park is a Oklahoma state park located in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. It is located north of Jet, Oklahoma on SH-38 and east of Cherokee.

. Recreational opportunities at Great Salt Plains State Park include boating, camping, picnicking, swimming, hiking, mountain biking and exploring. The park has RV and tent sites, comfort stations with showers, cabins, picnic sites, group shelters, swimming beach, playgrounds, boat ramps, fishing dock and equestrian trails.

References

External links