Walden Reservoir

Background | Criteria | Northwest Colorado | Northeast Colorado
Southwest Colorado | Southeast Colorado

Walden Reservoir
Jackson County

Size: 884 acres

Elevation: 8044 feet

Habitats: Primary – open water

Secondary – shore/bank, wetlands

Ownership: Federal (Bureau of Land Management)

Private (private individuals)

Land Use: Primary – agriculture/livestock

Secondary – nature and wildlife conservation, hunting/fishing

IBA Criterion: 4 (shorebirds, gulls, terns)

Site description

Location: Walden Reservoir is located one mile west of the town of Walden in the North Park area of north-central Colorado.

Vegetative/natural features: The site consists of a shallow irrigation reservoir containing several islands. Natural features include shallows covered with emergent vegetation, reeds, and sedges.

Ornithological Importance

The site hosts Colorado’s largest nesting populations of Willets and Eared Grebes, and is the only known site of nesting Franklin’s Gulls in the state. It also regularly supports nesting Forster’s Terns, California Gulls, Double-crested Cormorants, and Western Grebes. Black Terns may nest here in small numbers.

Breeding species:	Average #	Maximum #
Eared Grebe	~800	~1,000
Western Grebe	~25	~40
Willet
California Gull	~400	~400
Franklin’s Gull	~10	~20
Forster’s Tern

Conservation/Management Issues

Minor threats:
1. disturbance to birds from summer snowmobile riding across shallow bays and mudflats;
2. hydrologic changes from management of reservoir for irrigation purposes.

Management details:
The site is primarily Bureau of Land Management land, though a small portion on the south side is privately owned. The lake does not provide significant recreational fishing, and other recreational use is minimal.