Moms and Daughters Hit the Beach – For the Birds

Submitted by: Emily Teachout

Luna Lowsky, Sophie Danner, Brynn Dumbeck, and Maggie Neatherlin extract piles of foam from the dunes.

My daughter, Maggie (age 12), and I participate in a mother/daughter group that wanted to do a community service project. After seeing a series of YouTube videos on marine debris ingestion by albatrosses on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, the girls were really moved and wanted to find a way that they could help locally. To help address the problem at the source, they wanted to get debris off the beach and out of the ocean ecosystem where it poses a direct threat to seabirds and other animals. “I was motivated by the pictures and stories about the dead albatrosses who eat plastic and die,” said Brynn Dumbeck, a girl in our group.

Clean, Drain and Dry! Help Keep Invasive Mussels OUT of Our Waterways.

Note: This is a guest post by Molly Sullivan, intern for the Washington Invasive Species Council

Zebra mussels on a young Higgins eye pearlymussel, an endangered species found in the Mississippi river. (USFWS)

Here in Washington we top the charts in quite a few categories: rain, coffee, and zebra/quagga mussel prevention. Zebra/quagga mussel prevention?! Yes! Washington remains one of the few states that has not been infested with these harmful little mussels. Hitchhikers from Eastern Europe, zebra and quagga mussels have taken over many lakes and streams in the United States and with no natural predators here, they quickly outcompete native species for food, overcrowd habitats, introduce diseases, clog drains and pipes, and reduce biodiversity. Plus, walking on these buggers barefoot will definitely ruin your day at the lake! 

Keeping Washington free from these invaders is no easy task though. Much time and many resources have been used in this battle against the mussels! Various checkpoints for boats and decontamination stations have been set up around Washington by government agencies. But the most important line of defense is…YOU! 

Quagga mussels on a boat motor near Lake Mead (Allen Pleus - WDFW)

Properly cleaning, draining and drying your boat before entering any body of water is the best prevention tool to date. Since zebra and quagga mussels can attach to boats and survive for weeks without a water source, properly and completely drying your boat is a MUST!! As the oncoming promise of spring and summer months continue to taunt us, and we start our prep for boating season, it is always good to remember: CLEAN, DRAIN, DRY your boat and water related equipment, so that we can continue to enjoy all the natural splendors of Washington.

More information on how to protect our waters from invasive aquatic hitchhikers can be found here:

Protect Your Waters - http://www.protectyourwaters.net/

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - http://www.fws.gov/invasives/what-you-can-do.html

WA Invasive Species Council - http://www.invasivespecies.wa.gov/

WA Invasive Species Education - http://www.wise.wa.gov/

The First Annual Foothills Day is Just Around the Bend!

Submitted by: Greg Van Stralen 

Do you know what a group of owls are called or whether snakes have toes?

These are just a few of the interesting and unusual facts that will be available at the first annual Foothills Day on May 11, 2013. Organized by the Chelan-Douglas Land Trust, Foothills Day celebrates the beauty of the Wenatchee Valley while offering a wide variety of fun outdoor activities for young and old. The event is adjacent to the Wentachee Performing Arts Center and runs from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm.

CELEBRATING EARTH DAY WITH THE NAVY

Submitted by Jim Muck

 

 On April 22nd, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Office participated in the U.S. Navy’s Earth Day Celebration in Everett, WA. This year’s theme was “Global Reach – Local Action” which encourages both sailors and civilians to take local action to protect the environment.

Approximately 25 vendors attended the event, each discussing different ways to live a more sustainable lifestyle.  Our office shared a booth with NOAA Fisheries and highlighted invasive species in the Pacific Northwest. The hit on our side of the booth was an exhibit featuring invasive quagga mussels. While we showed off our ‘mussels,’ NOAA was having a ‘whale’ of a time with their 26-foot orca whale display.

The real joy of our day however, was watching our amazing servicemen and women participate in the Earth Day activities. Denise Lesniak, the integrated solid waste manager and a planner for Navy Station Everett’s Earth Day 2013, said it’s important for sailors to participate in Earth Day.

“They can be good stewards in the environment at every level,” said Lesniak. “I think because the Navy as a whole has goals with protecting in the environment, not only when they are out on missions, but also when they are in port.”

 

Both the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association would like to extend our thanks to the U.S. Navy for inviting us to their Earth Day event. You are heroes on Earth Day and every day.  We thank you for making the world a safer (and greener) place to live.

More information on Navy Station’s Everett’s Earth Day celebration is available at http://homeportnorthwest.com/.

More information on invasive species is available at: http://www.fws.gov/wafwo/invasive_species.html

Pygmy Rabbit Relocation Wrap-up

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Eastern Washington Field Office, in cooperation with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and numerous other cooperating agencies, recently captured 32 pygmy rabbits from populations in Oregon and Wyoming to support ongoing reintroduction efforts in the Columbia Basin of central Washington. 

WDFW Biologist Penny Becker with rabbit traps in sagebrush country, Oregon

Careers in Conservation: From Tadpoles to Teaching

In honor of National Women's History Month, we compiled a series of stories from women who work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.This post is by Kim Flotlin who is a biologist in our Western Washington Fish and Wildlife Office.This is a cross-post from our national blog, Open Spaces. 

It began with a tadpole.

(Photo: Jim Rorabaugh/USFWS)

I was three years old, and my mom insisted I take a nap each afternoon. (Although, I think it was actually my mom that needed the nap!) Although I acquiesced, I wasn't without power in this daily negotiation. I told my mom I wouldn't nap unless there was a tadpole in a Dixie cup next to my bed. 

So, one of my older siblings was forced to reluctantly take me to the nearest tadpole-bearing puddle about a block from our house. I’d take my Dixie cup with me, and my brother or sister would help me carefully scoop up one or more tadpoles into my little cup of pond water. We’d walk back home, and before my nap, I’d briefly hold those wiggling tadpoles in my little palm, loving the way they felt when they moved in cool, silky motions on my cupped hand, gazing in awed wonder at how their wet skin reflected the light. To my three-year-old eyes, they were beautiful.

I was hooked. I was a wildlife biologist in the making.

Careers in Conservation: It All Adds Up to Success

In honor of National Women's History Month, we compiled a series of stories from women who work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.This post is by Megan T. Cook who works in the Office of the Science Advisor at our headquarters in Arlington, VA. This is a cross-post from our national blog, Open Spaces. 

Like many of us in the field, my journey to becoming a wildlife biologist and scientist began as a kid and developed with the help of fantastic teachers and mentors throughout my life. I grew up in urbanized Stockton, California, but my family spent every summer camping at the beach and in the mountains. When I was younger, I used to let slugs from our backyard crawl all over my hands. I also remember literally embracing a boa constrictor at a local zoo. Even as a kid I went for the slimy and scaly!

My mom was a science resource teacher, so curiosity about the natural world was always present and seemed completely normal to me. My high school biology teacher also took us on great field trips to the redwoods and tidepools but my career in wildlife conservation actually started with math.

 Megan with a green sea turtle near the San Diego Bay. (Photo: Megan Cook/USFWS)