#nisqually nwr

[oddman-the-oldman]

Nisqually NWR

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[herpsandbirds]

The wildlife refuge had a greeter to say hello.

(The Pacific Chorus Frogs are just finishing up their metamorphosis, and were literally everywhere, but I appreciated this lad hanging out on the brochure holders)

That's awesome! And Nisqually NWR is a really beautiful place.

Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris regilla), family Hylidae, Washington State, USA.

[parkhere4view]

Mt Rainier, WA from Nisqually NWR

[zipzilla]

[usfwspacific]

Karen Yochem: 24-Year Volunteer Has Amazing Commitment to Nisqually NWR

By Brent Lawrence

Our dedicated U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteers in the Pacific Region gave an incredible 230,919 hours of their time to conservation in 2016. That is the equivalent of 28,864 eight-hour work days! These incredible folks deserve a huge thank you and during National Volunteer Week (April 23-29) we are aiming to do just that. This is one of a series of blogs about U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteers. Share your story of service or honor an outstanding volunteer by telling us about it with #iServeBecause on Facebook or Twitter.

From her house on the hillside above Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, Karen Yochem has seen many changes since moving there in 1959. While traffic and development have increased significantly, her amazing views of Mt. Rainier, Puget Sound and the refuge remain the same.

Another thing also has remained remarkably constant for the last 24 years – Karen Yochem.

Every week since 1993, Karen has been making the short drive down the hill to the refuge. Not for a job, but to volunteer. She has put in more than 18,821 volunteer hours at the refuge. That is equivalent to 2,352 eight-hour work days and more than 9 years of full-time work.

Karen is believed to have the third most hours among active volunteers at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Her paycheck comes in the form of smiles of appreciation, watching young faces eager to experience nature, and a huge grateful “family” at the refuge.

“They’ll have to carry me out of here,” Karen says. “It’s such a joy to work here, that’s why I stayed here as long as I have.  It’s been a real joy.  I appreciate being able to be here all these years.”

Karen is every bit as much of a fixture at Nisqually Refuge as the trails and boardwalks, wildlife and water. She is Nisqually.

“I can’t imagine Karen not being a part of this place,” Glynnis Nakai, project leader at Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Complex, says. “Karen’s longevity is a testament to her invaluable support for who we are and what we do, and she is so dedicated to keeping her schedule as if she were being paid.  In our eyes, she is part of the staff. All our volunteers are dedicated and passionate about the refuge.  But Karen, she is our rock.”

After retiring in 1992, Karen responded to an ad looking for volunteers.  She started as a receptionist and continues to be the first face you see when walking through the door. She also has helped with festivals, the Federal Junior Duck Stamp Program, the Summer Lecture Series, and trail roving. As if that weren’t enough, she has also taken on the membership duties for the Friends of Nisqually NWR Complex.

She started working five days a week, but has scaled back to two days now. “But I’ll come in three or four days if they need me,” Karen says.

“When I retired from the state in 1992, I wanted to keep busy. Not that there’s nothing to do at home, but I wanted to keep busy all the time. I get bored if not,” Karen says. She said that Gene, her husband of 61 years, encourages her to volunteer as long as it makes her happy.

And I can tell from her voice that it certainly does make her happy.

“I like everything here. I love the people. The staff treats me like one of the gang, and there are so many nice volunteers. I have made many good friends here. It’s is a lot of fun. It doesn’t seem like work around here.”

Still, after 24 years at Nisqually, there’s one thing that surprises Karen: the visitors.

“It’s amazing how many people do come here,” she says. “I see where they all come from, and they leave us little notes and nice things. They’re really a bunch of nice people who come out here. They really enjoy our place. Of course, you can’t help but enjoy it.”

Yes, the views are amazing at Nisqually. And Karen, well, she’s every bit as amazing as the views.

[8arracuda-21]

First time seeing a coyote today! @ Nisqually NWR 3-13-19.

[buckle4up]

Sandpiper

Sandpiper at Billy Frank Jr Nisqually NWR © Louise Buckles 2018

[avianphotography-blog]

Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus

Date & Time - July 10, 2019 at 11:57am

Latitude & Longitude - 47.078013, -122.711473 Nisqually NWR, Olympia WA

Weather - 66 degrees Fahrenheit, wind 5 mph, .3 inches of precipitation.

Description - Ah, the Black-capped Chickadee. These little fellas are easily distinguishable with the black and white patters of their head. As their name explains, the top part of their head is black, while they have a horizontal bright white stripe through the auriculars, followed by black on the throat. 

[madmenbirds-blog]

Northern Harrier

Olympia, WA (Nisqually NWR)

[maritimeorca]

eBird Report - Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Feb 18, 2019

Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Feb 18, 2019 7:17 AM - 11:06 AM

Protocol: Traveling

6.38 mile(s)

Comments:     Equipment: Camera with telephoto lens

Additional sightings: Gray Squirrel, Harbor Seal

44 species (+3 other taxa)

 Cackling Goose  400

Canada Goose  9

Northern Shoveler 33

Gadwall  5

American Wigeon 140

Mallard  52

Northern Pintail 17

Green-winged Teal 42

Ring-necked Duck  7

Bufflehead  22

Common Goldeneye  9

Hooded Merganser  4

Common Merganser  3

Red-breasted Merganser 2

Killdeer  2     Heard

Least Sandpiper  10

peep sp.  50

Greater Yellowlegs 4

Mew Gull  20

Ring-billed Gull  3

Western/Glaucous-winged Gull  3

Double-crested Cormorant 1

Great Blue Heron  4

Northern Harrier  1

Bald Eagle  8

Red-tailed Hawk  1

Belted Kingfisher 1

Downy Woodpecker  1

Hairy Woodpecker  1

Northern Flicker  2

Steller's Jay 1     Heard

American/Northwestern Crow  100

Black-capped Chickadee 1

Pacific Wren  1

Bewick's Wren  1

Golden-crowned Kinglet 2

Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1

Varied Thrush 1     Heard

American Robin  5

European Starling 20

Fox Sparrow  1

Dark-eyed Junco  2

Golden-crowned Sparrow 5

Song Sparrow  3

Spotted Towhee  1

Western Meadowlark 2

Red-winged Blackbird 2

 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52901273

 This report was generated automatically by eBird v3

[stopandseethenature-blog]

Great blue herron... As we were walking on the boardwalk we passed this herron having a seriously hard time choking down this fish... He tried just about every way possible, it was funny to watch 😂 I didn't know if he actually ever swallowed it... As we walked out the tide turned and started coming in. So if you notice that branch there above and behind the herron... Swipe left... That is the branch he's sitting on in this picture when we passed him on the way back on the boardwalk and saw him again. I was surprised how fast it was all covered in water. 🌊🌊🌊 . . . . . #herron #blueherron #sushi #pugetsound #washington #WAnderland #goexplorewander #goforawalk #govisitawildliferefuge #nationalwildliferefuge #naturephotography #oregonphotographer #pnwlife #pnwlove #pacificwonderland #tide #shorebirds #lifeofbirds #birdphotography #bigbird #nwr #wanderlust #wildlife_shots #wildlifeaddict #goforawalk #nisquallywildliferefuge (at Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge)

[ihaveliftoff]

Vole 2685 by Old Wrangler on Flickr.

[oddman-the-oldman]

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I don’t know what it was about this little wren, maybe it  was the way it was interacting with the pond and the floating debris around the margin. Maybe it was just how light and happy it appeared as it played in the water.

Nisqually NWR

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[oddman-the-oldman]

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Vincent (aka Starry Starry Nights)

This has a very long introduction I haven’t posted it here in years. Recorded at Nisqually NWR 20141214

@quiet-in-the-wild

[oddman-the-oldman]

Great Blue Heron

Nisqually NWR