Now that the anti-government occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is over, a group calling itself Restore Malheur is asking for help with reopening the popular bird sanctuary near Burns.

"Clearly, even after the takeover ends there will be a period of time when the refuge will remain closed for investigations and other efforts," the Oregon Natural Desert Association said on its website Thursday morning.

"Once those efforts are complete, we hope the reopening of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge will be as soon as possible so that the critical business of protecting America's public lands and wildlife can resume," the group said.

The Oregon Natural Desert Association and Portland Audubon Society have created an online sign-up sheet for people who want to volunteer to help fix any damage done during the militants' 41-day standoff with the federal government.

Here's the message posted on the group's Facebook page:

The last occupier has surrendered to the FBI. The illlegal occupation of Malheur is over. Portland Audubon expresses its... Posted by Restore Malheur on Thursday, February 11, 2016

Mary Kwart of Ashland, a retired U.S. Fish & Wildlife ranger who worked at the Tetlin Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, said she has already signed up.

Volunteers will not only clean up messes and repair damage left by the Malheur occupation, but will help ensure files for wildlife grants worth hundreds of thousands of dollars are in order.

"I could not imagine armed people coming into my office and messing up things like that," Kwart said. Judging from videos posted on social media during the showdown at Malheur, "the place is just trashed," she said.

Every year, the the Oregon Natural Desert Association volunteers work with Fish and Wildlife managers to restore and maintain areas of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The organization said it is coordinating the restoration campaign with refuge managers.

Last month, The Oregonian's Laura Gunderson wrote about Malheur's birders and their love for the wildlife refuge.

You can go here to sign up to help Restore Malheur in its efforts.

Here was the official statement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

In a statement: "We are relieved that the illegal occupation of Malheur NWR is over. While we are now able to look forward to a new beginning, there is still much that needs to be done so that the community and the larger public can be welcomed back to their refuge. We will be available, at the request of the FBI, to help in the long and painstaking job of processing the crime scene, and will be working to assess and repair damages caused by the occupation. Above all, we will begin to revitalize our deep connections in the local community and resume the dialog that has made Malheur a model of collaborative conservation."

-- Joseph Rose

503-221-8029

jrose@oregonian.com

@josephjrose