Тұзды дала ұлттық қорығы: Табиғат және тарих мұражайы

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 the Salt Fork of the Arkansas River. The refuge was established March 26, 1930, by executive order of President Herbert Hoover, and contains of protected land as habitat to about 312 species of birds and 30 species of mammals. It was designated a national natural landmark in June 1983.

The Salt Plains were a favorite hunting ground for American Indians. Bison and other game came to the area to eat the salt and the heavily wooded and well watered area along the Salt Fork River was like an oasis in the surrounding grassland of the Great Plains. Salt Plains refuge is divided into almost equal areas of nonvegetated salt flat, open water, and vegetated land. Marshes, woods, grasslands, and croplands dot the refuge. Management tools used to enhance the habitat for wildlife include farming, grazing, prescribed burns, construction of ponds, and wetland draining and flooding. The refuge was created to be a resting and breeding ground for migratory waterfowl especially during fall and spring. The entire refuge is designated as critical habitat for the endangered whooping crane, which is mostly seen during fall migration. In addition, the refuge is home to endangered least terns, threatened snowy plovers, threatened bald eagles, and peregrine falcons. Large populations of American white pelicans migrate through between August and September, staying on the Great Salt Plains Reservoir. Great Salt Plains is one of the most important habitats for shorebirds in the Western Hemisphere.

Ralstin Island (closed to the public) is an important rookery in the Great Salt Plains Lake. The island was originally , but has eroded to about It hosts more than 30,000 birds during breeding season. Over 30 species nest in the colony, including the white faced ibis, great blue herons, and most notably, the tricolored heron.

According to Historian Louis F. Burns, the Osage Indians used the salt found in the Great Salt Plains to bleach deer skins and the Great Salt Plains gave the Osages a surplus of salt to trade with other tribes. According to Burns, the Osage were firmly in control of the Great Salt Plains by 1760 and because of a favorable combination of geographical factors, the Osages became the dominant force in mid—America. "In a one hundred twenty five year period, 1678 1803, the Osages performed a feat no other American Indians duplicated," writes Burns. "They stopped the west ward expansion of the Euro American peoples and simultaneously tripled the size of their own domain."

George Champlin Sibley was appointed head trader at the Indian Factory at Fort Osage, Missouri, when it opened in 1808. While at Fort Osage, Sibley quickly engaged in creating relationships with the neighboring Osage tribes. In May 1811 Sibley's expedition left Fort Osage to examine the hunting grounds of the Osage. In 1811 his expedition was said to be the first white men to visit the plains. Sibley's expedition, leaving from Fort Osage, Missouri was guided by an Osage Indian named Sans Orielle. Sibley named the area the Grand Saline. Sibley cut short his expedition when informed by reports that bands of Comanche were nearby. Sibley returned to Fort Osage on July 11, 1811 and reported that the salt deposits would eventually prove commercially profitable.

The Great Salt Plains have been the scene of many Indian Councils, both of war and peace. Because animals flocked to the area for the salt, the Great Salt Plains made for excellent hunting and it became obvious that any tribe that controlled the Salt Plains would have to contend with intrusions by other tribes. Therefore the Treaty of New Echota signed in 1835, provided the Cherokee Nation with ownership of the Cherokee Outlet but declared that the saline areas were to be accessible to use by other tribes. In drafting the treaty the United States Government withheld the Salt Plains area with the provision that, "The right is reserved to the United States to allow other tribes of red men to get salt on the Great Salt Plains in common with the Cherokee Tribe." The vials were part of World War II era military chemical agent identification sets. The salt plains were also used as a bombing and strafing range during World War II. Remnants of this use are still left on the plains.