Construction of the lake and power plant in the late 1960's resulted in attracting an interior least tern nesting colony as early as 1986. The 7,000-acre Gibson Generating Station property was designated a Globally Important Bird Area due to its value as a migratory bird stop over and the presence of what turned out to be the largest nesting colony of the endangered interior least tern east of the Mississippi River.

Cane Ridge was approved for acquisition by the Migratory Bird Commission as a North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) grant project proposed by the Southwest Indiana Four Rivers Project Committee. Cane Ridge was purchased with a combination of partnership funds including a 30-year wetland reserve program (WRP) easement payment from NRCS, a NAWMP grant, Cinergy Inc. paid for the appraisal and $8,500.00 earnest money to hold the property until the details could be finalized, Zeigler Coal donated $43,000 by agreeing to sell below appraised value and then reduced the selling price by another $50,000 at the request of Gibson County Coal who had purchased the underground minable coal rights. Gibson County Coal then donated a Quit Claim Deed of all surface access rights to avoid conflict with the WRP easement and refuge regulations not permitting surface disturbance from coal mining.

Restoration funds were provided as follows: $99,000 from the NAWMP grant, $80,000 from the NRCS plus the archaeology field survey, 173-acres of bottomland hardwood tree seedlings and planting cost provided by Ducks Unlimited and Cinergy Inc., and all engineering, contracting for bid and construction inspection provided by DU to construct 193 acres of four Moist Soil Management Units (MSMU) completed in 2003. Cinergy Inc. also donated $63,000 of labor and materials to install an underground pipeline, valves and valve box to provide water via siphon for the interior least tern pool and the MSMU's from their adjacent 3,000-acre lake.

Funding of $1 million to build the 59-acre ILT Nesting Pool with two 3-acre islands was to come from a Section 1135 Water Resources Act grant approved by the Army Corps of Engineers. In early 2004, the Army Corps redirected their funding to another project. It appeared the tern nesting pool would have to wait another year for new funding.

At that point, Tim Hayes, Cinergy's Senior Environmental Scientist stepped in and negotiated a private contract to construct the 6,700 lineal feet of 6-foot high earthen levee and one 3-acre island. Tim secured the bulk of the $280,000 for this work from Cinergy Inc. with Wabash Valley Power Association and Indiana Municipal Power Agency also contributing funds.

Construction went non-stop in September, 2004 allowing completion of the dike and island. Rip rap and most of the sand and gravel to cover the island was hauled in place. Wet weather halted final work until Spring 2005 when the final loads of sand and gravel were spread over the island.

Patoka River NWR staff had decided to place a dug-in 3-foot high chain link fence with solar powered battery operated electric wire to discourage mammalian predators, loafing Canada geese and predaceous wading birds like the great blue heron. The Regional Office provided end of year funding to purchase fence materials. Bloomington Ecological Services Division provided funds from the Natural Resource Damage Assessment account for fence construction. By the first week of May, the fence was completed and the pool began filling with water. The island surface was dragged to provide a fresh clean surface to resemble a newly washed river sandbar. The next to last step was application of the chemical Habitat to provide residual vegetation control for three months. BASF donated the chemical. The final step was placement of 30 wooden painted least tern decoys handmade by Refuge Operations Specialist Bob Dodd. Scattered in groups around the island, the decoys beckoned the return of the migrant terns.

May 10 has been the traditional day over the past several years for the first arrival of interior least terns at the Gibson Generating Station. That week came and went and then the next week with no sign of the interior least terns. Then, on May 23, 2005, 30 adult terns suddenly appeared on the island mixing in with the scattered decoys. The least terns appeared to be in a party mood exhibiting courtship behavior, flying in circles, catching shad from the pool and the adjacent lake and presenting their catch to the sitting mate.

As of June 1, 2005, there were 35 adult least terns and 14 nests on Tern Island. No terns have been observed nesting on the Cinergy's Gibson Generating Station property. The terns seem to have total control of the island with no ring-billed or herring gulls, great blue herons or crows present. The only other birds seen on the island have been a few killdeer, a black tern and two migrant Caspian terns.

The terns are expected to continue building in numbers up to 80 adults based on use from 2004. This year, however, instead of 13 fledged terns, we are hoping for 80 fledged terns. Time will tell but this may be the terning point for the increase of the interior least tern colony of Cane Ridge WMA.