The Powell Buttes are mountains with several summits located in Crook County,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

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 ...

. The highest summit is over . The mountains are geologically related to the

Ochoco Mountains The Ochoco Mountains are a mountain range in central Oregon in the United States, located at the western end of the Blue Mountains. They were formed when Permian, Triassic, and Jurassic rocks were slowly uplifted by volcanic eruptions to form t ...

and are named after members of Joseph Powell's family.

Geology

The Powell Buttes are five

rhyolitic Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained groundmass. The mineral ...

butte __NOTOC__ In geomorphology, a butte () is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from a French word mea ...

s in western Crook County in

Central Oregon Central Oregon is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Oregon and is traditionally considered to be made up of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Other definitions include larger areas, often encompassing areas to the north towards the ...

. One of the buttes is considerably larger than the rest. Hat Rock is one of the named summits. In addition to the rhyolite,

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock cont ...

and

diatomite Diatomaceous earth (), diatomite (), or kieselgur/kieselguhr is a naturally occurring, soft, siliceous sedimentary rock that can be crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from more than 3 μm to le ...

also comprise the buttes.

Welded tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock cont ...

has been found, showing it once comprised the

Crooked River caldera The Crooked River caldera is a large and ancient volcano that straddles three central Oregon counties. The diameter of the caldera is about and is notable for the welded tuff present at Gray Butte, Smith Rock, Powell Buttes, Grizzly Mountain ...

. The buttes are morphologically related to the Ochoco Mountains. Low grade

uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...

was found in very small amounts along the western side of one of the smaller buttes.

Environment and ecology

In the summer, the environment around the Powell Buttes is dry and warm during the day and cool at night. In the winter, the weather is cold with snow occurring from October through April.

Western juniper ''Juniperus occidentalis'', known as the western juniper, is a shrub or tree native to the Western United States, growing in mountains at altitudes of and rarely down to . It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because it is a widesp ...

is the dominant tree species on the mountain.

Big sagebrush ''Artemisia tridentata'', commonly called big sagebrush,MacKay, Pam (2013), ''Mojave Desert Wildflowers'', 2nd ed., , p. 264. Great Basin sagebrush or (locally) simply sagebrush, is an aromatic shrub from the family Asteraceae, which grows in ari ...

, gray rabbitbrush, and

antelope bitterbrush ''Purshia tridentata'', with the common name bitterbrush, is a shrub in the genus ''Purshia'' of the family Rosaceae. It is native to mountainous areas of western North America. Common names include antelope bitterbrush, antelope bush, buckbrus ...

are the predominant understory vegetation. Low ground cover includes

arrowleaf balsamroot ''Balsamorhiza sagittata'' is a North American species of flowering plant in the tribe Heliantheae of the family Asteraceae known by the common name Arrowleaf Balsamroot. It is widespread across western Canada and much of the western United Stat ...

, spiny phlox,

common yarrow ''Achillea millefolium'', commonly known as yarrow () or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Other common names include old man's pepper, devil's nettle, sanguinary, milfoil, soldier's woundwort, and thousand seal. The ...

, longleaf hawksbeard,

ragged robin ''Silene flos-cuculi'' (syn. ''Lychnis flos-cuculi''), commonly called ragged-robin, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. This species is native to Europe and Asia, where it is found along roads and in wet meadows and p ...

bitterroot Bitterroot (''Lewisia rediviva'') is a small perennial herb in the family Montiaceae. Its specific epithet ("revived, reborn") refers to its ability to regenerate from dry and seemingly dead roots. The genus ''Lewisia'' was moved in 2009 fro ...

, and nineleaf biscuitroot. Native grass species include

wheatgrass Wheatgrass is the freshly sprouted first leaves of the common wheat plant (''Triticum aestivum''), used as a food, drink, or dietary supplement. Wheatgrass is served freeze dried or fresh, and so it differs from wheat malt, which is convecti ...

Idaho fescue ''Festuca idahoensis'' is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plai ...

, Sandberg bluegrass, and giant-heads clover. Numerous bird species are found on the Powell Buttes.

California quail The California quail (''Callipepla californica''), also known as the California valley quail or Valley quail, is a small ground-dwelling bird in the New World quail family. These birds have a curving crest or '' plume'', made of six feathers, tha ...

and

mountain quail The mountain quail (''Oreortyx pictus'') is a small ground-dwelling bird in the New World quail family. This species is the only one in the genus ''Oreortyx'', which is sometimes included in ''Callipepla''. This is not appropriate, however, as t ...

live on the mountain slopes. Other small bird species include

black-capped chickadee The black-capped chickadee (''Poecile atricapillus'') is a small, non-migratory, North American songbird that lives in deciduous and mixed forests. It is a passerine bird in the tit family, the Paridae. It is the state bird of Massachusetts and ...

mountain chickadee The mountain chickadee (''Poecile gambeli'') is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. Taxonomy The specific name honors naturalist William Gambel. The mountain chickadee was formerly placed in the genus ''Parus'' with ...

pine siskin The pine siskin (''Spinus pinus'') is a North American bird in the finch family. It is a migratory bird with an extremely sporadic winter range. Taxonomy The pine siskin was formally described in 1810 by the American ornithologist Alexander ...

lesser goldfinch The lesser goldfinch (''Spinus psaltria'') is a very small songbird of the Americas. Together with its relatives the American goldfinch and Lawrence's goldfinch, it forms the New World goldfinch clade in the genus '' Spinus''. As is the case fo ...

es,

American goldfinch The American goldfinch (''Spinus tristis'') is a small North American bird in the finch family. It is migratory, ranging from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canada–United States border to ...

es,

canyon wren The canyon wren (''Catherpes mexicanus'') is a small North American songbird of the wren family Troglodytidae. It is resident throughout its range and is generally found in arid, rocky cliffs, outcrops, and canyons. It is a small bird that is h ...

rock wren The rock wren (''Salpinctes obsoletus'') is a small songbird of the wren family native to western North America, Mexico and Central America. It is the only species in the genus ''Salpinctes''. Description Measurements: * Length: 4.9-5.9 i ...

cliff swallow The cliff swallow or American cliff swallow (''Petrochelidon pyrrhonota'') is a member of the passerine bird family Hirundinidae, the swallows and martins. The generic name ''Petrochelidon'' is derived from Ancient Greek ''petros'' meaning "roc ...

barn swallow The barn swallow (''Hirundo rustica'') is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it appears to have the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometres globally. ...

western meadowlark The western meadowlark (''Sturnella neglecta'') is a medium-sized icterid bird, about in length. It nests on the ground in open grasslands across western and central North America. It feeds mostly on bugs, but will also feed on seeds and berri ...

mountain bluebird The mountain bluebird (''Sialia currucoides'') is a small migratory thrush that is found in mountainous districts of western North America. It has a light underbelly and black eyes. Adult males have thin bills and are bright turquoise-blue and s ...

sage thrasher The sage thrasher (''Oreoscoptes montanus'') is a medium-sized passerine bird from the family Mimidae, which also includes mockingbirds, tremblers, and New World catbirds. It is the only member of the genus ''Oreoscoptes''. This seems less close ...

American robin The American robin (''Turdus migratorius'') is a migratory bird of the true thrush genus and Turdidae, the wider thrush family. It is named after the European robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though the two species are not closel ...

mourning dove The mourning dove (''Zenaida macroura'') is a member of the dove family, Columbidae. The bird is also known as the American mourning dove, the rain dove, and colloquially as the turtle dove, and was once known as the Carolina pigeon and Caroli ...

s, and Brewers blackbirds. Larger birds include western scrub-jays,

Steller’s jay Steller's jay (''Cyanocitta stelleri'') is a bird native to western North America and the mountains of Central America, closely related to the blue jay found in eastern North America. It is also known as the long-crested jay, mountain jay, and p ...

pinyon jay The pinyon jay (''Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus'') is a species of jay, and is the only member of the genus ''Gymnorhinus''. Native to Western North America, the species ranges from central Oregon to northern Baja California, and eastward as far as ...

Northern flicker The northern flicker or common flicker (''Colaptes auratus'') is a medium-sized bird of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker spec ...

black-billed magpie The black-billed magpie (''Pica hudsonia''), also known as the American magpie, is a bird in the corvid family found in the western half of North America. It is black and white, with black areas on the wings and tail showing iridescent hints o ...

s, and

American crow The American crow (''Corvus brachyrhynchos'') is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America. American crows are the New World counterpart to the carrion crow of Europe and th ...

s. Birds of prey found on or near Powell Buttes include

American kestrel The American kestrel (''Falco sparverius''), also called the sparrow hawk, is the smallest and most common falcon in North America. It has a roughly two-to-one range in size over subspecies and sex, varying in size from about the weight of ...

Cooper’s hawk Cooper's hawk (''Accipiter cooperii'') is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from southern Canada to Mexico. This species is a member of the genus ''Accipiter'', sometimes referred to as true hawks, which are f ...

northern goshawk The northern goshawk (; ''Accipiter gentilis'') is a species of medium-large bird of prey, raptor in the Family (biology), family Accipitridae, a family which also includes other extant diurnal raptors, such as eagles, buzzards and harrier (bird) ...

northern harrier The northern harrier (''Circus hudsonius''), or ring-tailed hawk, is a bird of prey. It breeds throughout the northern parts of the northern hemisphere in Canada and the northernmost USA. The northern harrier migrates to more southerly areas ...

peregrine falcon The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (Bird of prey, raptor) in the family (biology), family Falco ...

prairie falcon The prairie falcon (''Falco mexicanus'') is a medium-large sized falcon of western North America. It is about the size of a peregrine falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm (16 in), wingspan of approximately 1 meter (40&nb ...

red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members with ...

golden eagle The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...

, and

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

Burrowing owl The burrowing owl (''Athene cunicularia''), also called the shoco, is a small, long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or an ...

barn owl The barn owl (''Tyto alba'') is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds, being found almost everywhere except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalaya ...

great horned owl The great horned owl (''Bubo virginianus''), also known as the tiger owl (originally derived from early naturalists' description as the "winged tiger" or "tiger of the air"), or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extrem ...

, and

turkey vulture The turkey vulture (''Cathartes aura'') is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus ''Cathartes'' of the family Cathartidae, the turkey vulture ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South ...

s are also common in the area around the mountain. Small mammals found on the Powell Buttes include

American badger The American badger (''Taxidea taxus'') is a North American badger similar in appearance to the European badger, although not closely related. It is found in the western, central, and northeastern United States, northern Mexico, and south-centr ...

striped skunk The striped skunk (''Mephitis mephitis'') is a skunk of the genus '' Mephitis'' that occurs across much of North America, including southern Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It is currently listed as least concern by the IUCN on ac ...

western spotted skunk The western spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis'') is a spotted skunk of western North America. Description With a total length of , the western spotted skunk is smaller than the striped skunk (''Mephitis mephitis''). Males, which weigh , are s ...

common raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of . ...

black-tailed jackrabbit The black-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus californicus''), also known as the American desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to . Reaching a length around , and a ...

mountain cottontail The mountain cottontail or Nuttall's cottontail (''Sylvilagus nuttallii'') is a species of mammal in the family Leporidae. It is found in Canada and the United States. Description The mountain cottontail is a small rabbit but its size is rel ...

California ground squirrel The California ground squirrel (''Otospermophilus beecheyi''), also known as the Beechey ground squirrel, is a common and easily observed ground squirrel of the western United States and the Baja California Peninsula; it is common in Oregon and ...

Belding's ground squirrel Belding's ground squirrel (''Urocitellus beldingi''), also called pot gut, sage rat or picket-pin, is a squirrel that lives on mountains in the western United States. In California, it often is found at in meadows between Lake Tahoe and Kings C ...

Ord's kangaroo rat Ord's kangaroo rat (''Dipodomys ordii'') is a kangaroo rat native to western North America, specifically the Great Plains and the Great Basin, with its range extending from extreme southern Canada to central Mexico. Ord's kangaroo rat has a fift ...

, and

deer mice Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

. Larger mammals include

black-tailed deer Two forms of black-tailed deer or blacktail deer that occupy coastal woodlands in the Pacific Northwest of North America are subspecies of the mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus''). They have sometimes been treated as a species, but virtually all r ...

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

s, and

mountain lion The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. I ...

s. Reptiles found on Powell Buttes include

common garter snake The common garter snake (''Thamnophis sirtalis'') is a species of thamnophis snake, in the natricine subfamily, which is indigenous to North America and found widely across the continent. Most common garter snakes have a pattern of yellow strip ...

gopher snake ''Pituophis'' is a genus of nonvenomous colubrid snakes, commonly referred to as gopher snakes, pine snakes, and bullsnakes, which are endemic to North America. Geographic range Species and subspecies within the genus ''Pituophis'' are found ...

s, and western rattlesnakes. Common lizards include

short-horned lizard The greater short-horned lizard (''Phrynosoma hernandesi''), also commonly known as the mountain short-horned lizard, is a species of lizard endemic to western North America. Like other horned lizards, it is often called a "horned toad" or "hor ...

western fence lizard The western fence lizard (''Sceloporus occidentalis'') is a common lizard of Arizona, New Mexico, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington (state), Washington, Northern Mexico, and the surrounding area. As the ventral abdomen of an ad ...

sagebrush lizard The sagebrush lizard or sagebrush swift (''Sceloporus graciosus'') is a common species of phrynosomatid lizard found at mid to high altitudes in the western United States of America. It belongs to the genus ''Sceloporus'' (spiny lizards) in ...

s, and

western skink The western skink ''(Plestiodon skiltonianus)'' is a species of small, smooth- scaled lizard with relatively small limbs. It measures about 100 to 210 mm (about 4 to 8.25 inches) in total length (body + tail). It is one of seven species of l ...

Human history

The Powell Buttes are named for members of the Joseph Powell family who were among the first

American pioneer American pioneers were European American and African American settlers who migrated westward from the Thirteen Colonies and later United States to settle in and develop areas of North America that had previously been inhabited or used by Nati ...

s to cross the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

from the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a long valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, ...

to range their cattle in

. In 1989, the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's la ...

established a

Research Natural Area Research Natural Area is a designation for certain protected areas in the United States. Research Natural Areas (RNAs) are part of a nationwide network of ecological areas set aside for both research and education. The network includes areas man ...

along the south side of the mountain including the southwest and southeast slopes. The area's status was confirmed by a second study in 2005. A large

destination resort A resort hotel is a hotel which often contains full-sized luxury facilities with full-service accommodations and amenities. These hotels may attract both business conferences and vacationing tourists and offer more than a convenient place to stay ...

by Pahlisch Homes, called the Hidden Canyon, was planned for development on the buttes but never saw completion because of land impact issues related to wildlife, among other reasons. From 1986 to 2018, Powell Butte was the site of one of two facilities of

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering co ...

's Central Oregon Agricultural Research Center. The Powell Butte agricultural research farm acted as a center for potato variety development and hay production. The site encompassed , most of which were dedicated to potato seed development. In 2010, an outbreak of the potato cyst nematode ''

Globodera ellingtonae ''Globodera ellingtonae'' is one of the potato cyst nematodes and was recently recognized as a new species in the United States. This triggered a quarantine of the fields where it was isolated to prevent the spread of this nematode to other fiel ...

'' caused the farm to shut down, with major research activity moving to a different site in the city of

Klamath Falls Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city was ...

. In June 2018, the land was sold to an industrial

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants o ...

producer.

References

{{reflist Buttes of Oregon Landforms of Crook County, Oregon Mountains of Oregon Volcanoes of Crook County, Oregon Volcanoes of Oregon Volcanoes of the United States