Honey Lake
Encyclopedia
Honey Lake is an endorheic sink
within the Honey Lake Valley located in northeastern California, near the Nevada
border. Summer evaporation reduces the lake to a lower level of 12 km² (3,000 acres) and creates an alkali flat.
During the highest level of Pleistocene
Lake Lahontan
, Honey Lake had a level ~115 meters (380 ft) above the current level of Honey Lake. Honey Lake recreational activities include bird-watching, picnicking, hiking
, camping
, warm-water fishing
, and waterfowl
hunting
. The lake is part of the Honey-Eagle Lake
s watershed of 2770 sq mi (7,174.3 km²) which includes the Honey Lake Basin of 2201 sq mi (5,700.6 km²).
of 7667 acres http://www.dfg.ca.gov/lands/wa/region1/honeylake.html at the mouth of the Susan River on the north shore of Honey Lake which has numerous bird
species
. Mammals such as deer
and antelope
and a modest amount of warm-water fish
are taken at Honey Lake. The state issued a special series of text-only season-long waterfowl hunting permit stamps for the area, starting with the 1956-57 season and ending with the 1985-86 season. Day permits were also sold, but these were in card form. The stamps are listed in a number of catalogs for U.S. fish & game stamps, including the Scott Specialized Catalog of United State Stamps & Covers.
Honey Lake Wildlife Area (HLWA) was originally acquired to provide nesting
and brood-rearing habitat for resident waterfowl, which is still a very important activity. Since its beginning, the Wildlife Area has expanded, and during peak migration
s as many as 30,000 snow and Canada geese and 20,000 duck
s have been observed daily. During the winter, a number of bald eagle
s can be observed at the HLWA, and during the spring, the threatened sandhill crane
s and other sensitive species such as the white-faced ibis
and bank swallow can be found. Ring-necked pheasants and California quail
can be observed year-round.
Sink (geography)
A geographic sink is a depression within an endorheic basin where water collects with no visible outlet. Instead of discharging, the collected water is lost due to evaporation and/or penetration...
within the Honey Lake Valley located in northeastern California, near the Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
border. Summer evaporation reduces the lake to a lower level of 12 km² (3,000 acres) and creates an alkali flat.
During the highest level of Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
Lake Lahontan
Lake Lahontan
Lake Lahontan was a large endorheic Pleistocene lake of modern northwestern Nevada that extended into northeastern California and southern Oregon...
, Honey Lake had a level ~115 meters (380 ft) above the current level of Honey Lake. Honey Lake recreational activities include bird-watching, picnicking, hiking
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
, camping
Camping
Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...
, warm-water fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, and waterfowl
Waterfowl
Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....
hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
. The lake is part of the Honey-Eagle Lake
Eagle Lake
-Cities, towns, townships etc.:Canada* Eagle Lake, Haliburton County, Ontario* Eagle Lake, Parry Sound District, Ontario* Eagle Lake 27, Ontario United States* Eagle Lake, Florida* Eagle Lake, Maine* Eagle Lake, Minnesota* Eagle Lake, Texas...
s watershed of 2770 sq mi (7,174.3 km²) which includes the Honey Lake Basin of 2201 sq mi (5,700.6 km²).
Honey Lake Wildlife Area
The Honey Lake Wildlife Area (HLWA) is a California Department of Fish and Game protected area wetlandWetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
of 7667 acres http://www.dfg.ca.gov/lands/wa/region1/honeylake.html at the mouth of the Susan River on the north shore of Honey Lake which has numerous bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
. Mammals such as deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
and antelope
Antelope
Antelope is a term referring to many even-toed ungulate species indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelopes comprise a miscellaneous group within the family Bovidae, encompassing those old-world species that are neither cattle, sheep, buffalo, bison, nor goats...
and a modest amount of warm-water fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
are taken at Honey Lake. The state issued a special series of text-only season-long waterfowl hunting permit stamps for the area, starting with the 1956-57 season and ending with the 1985-86 season. Day permits were also sold, but these were in card form. The stamps are listed in a number of catalogs for U.S. fish & game stamps, including the Scott Specialized Catalog of United State Stamps & Covers.
Honey Lake Wildlife Area (HLWA) was originally acquired to provide nesting
Nesting
Nesting refers to the process of efficiently manufacturing parts from flat raw material.Companies manufacturing parts from flat raw material such as sheet metal use a variety of technologies to perform this task. The sheet metal nesting for flat sheets and nesting for coils are different algorithms...
and brood-rearing habitat for resident waterfowl, which is still a very important activity. Since its beginning, the Wildlife Area has expanded, and during peak migration
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
s as many as 30,000 snow and Canada geese and 20,000 duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
s have been observed daily. During the winter, a number of bald eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...
s can be observed at the HLWA, and during the spring, the threatened sandhill crane
Sandhill Crane
The Sandhill Crane is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American Midwest...
s and other sensitive species such as the white-faced ibis
White-faced Ibis
The White-faced Ibis 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 USA south through Mexico, as well as from southeastern Brazil and southeastern Bolivia south to...
and bank swallow can be found. Ring-necked pheasants and California quail
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...
can be observed year-round.