The Nature Conservancy in Washington

Fisher Slough Draws Distinguished Guests

On a cold October morning, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and other Puget Sound leaders donned hardhats and boots to tour the Nature Conservancy’s work at Fisher Slough, where conservation groups are joining forces with the agricultural community.
Find Out What's Bringing These Groups Together

Is Oak Restoration Taking Root?

In the spring of 2008, volunteers planted 1,000 acorns in eastern Washington's Swauk Valley to try and restore a native oak woodland. Volunteers and researchers recently returned to the site to find out how those little oaks were doing.

Watch a Video and Read a Swauk Valley Oaks Update

Hero celebrates 103 years

Vic Scheffer has been a pioneer of conservation in Washington and the world. He was a devoted scientist, an inspired writer, and a tireless advocate for the natural world. And he was one of the founders of The Nature Conservancy in Washington 50 years ago!
Learn How He's Celebrating His 103rd Birthday Here

Channeled Scablands Gain New Protection

The largest flood in geological history carved out a landscape in eastern Washington that is found nowhere else in the world. Learn how Congress will expand the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge, which protects part of this mosaic of sagebrush, ponderosa and wetlands.
Learn More About This Unique Habitat

The Road Less Traveled...Is Gone

The Nature Conservancy removed more than a quarter mile of old road at its preserve in Dabob Bay. Why and how did this happen? We've got the story, plus a short video showing the newly decommissioned road and a restored stream.
Get the Scoop

Fisher Slough Flood Gates Installed

A restoration project that is creating jobs, saving salmon, and protecting Skagit farmers from flooding is underway.
Learn More about this Pioneering Project

Larks on Sticks May Help Species Survival

Can these decoys draw lovelorn larks to new digs? Perhaps some lark lovesongs would help? We’re trying to find out.
See Our Lark Decoys Right Here
Vote No on Initiative I-1033

I-1033 is a statewide measure headed for the November ballot. The Nature Conservancy is urging a "No" vote because this measure will undermine air quality, water quality, protections for Washington's natural treasures, and so much more.
Read more about this measure and why such a broad coalition opposes it.

Meet the Bat Guy of Olympia in our O&A

An unusual encounter in the dark that might have been with a bat sent Greg Falxa to his doctor for a rabies shot, and launched him on a new career as a bat researcher. Meet Greg and see photos from a bat-trapping trip to Fort Lewis in our Q&A.
See cool bat photos and meet Greg Falxa

Climate Change in Your Backyard
The Conservancy has a new interactive Web tool, the Climate Wizard, that enables you to see local projections for climate change. Washington could heat up by more than 7 degrees by the end of the century. So, what does that mean for us?
See what will happen in Washington.

Washington's Next Generation

Brand new this month is Washington's Next Generation, a community of future conservation leaders. The group was formed for individuals under 40 who are interested in conservation, philanthropy, networking and having fun.
Join us on Facebook, or give us a call. Solo the Swan No Longer Alone
Exciting news at the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge: a male swan known as Solo has sired babies for the first time in 22 years! Solo has been returning to this Refuge near Cheney every year since the 1960s. He's one of the oldest documented trumpeter swans - thought to be in his 40s.
Read about Solo and His New Brood.

Researchers Study Bats at Moses Coulee

Bats, especially evening (or vesper) bats, remain mysterious in many ways. At Moses Coulee, researchers practice the latest techniques to study bats.
See Great Photos and Learn More
It takes a Nation, and Starts with You
Pitch in this summer and join the President’s call for all Americans to lend a hand in their communities. From June 22 to September 11, United We Serve will be asking Americans to get involved in shaping our future. Volunteer for The Nature Conservancy!
Join the Conservancy in Washington as a Volunteer
Spotting the Elusive Mountain Goat
A glimpse of a mountain goat is a big reward for backcountry hikers, as these surefooted climbers stick to the highest and most inaccessible country. Photographer John Marshall hit the jackpot as he was photographing the Naches River region for the Conservancy.

Enjoy the story here.

Sustainable Prisons
People think of prisons as black holes for people, money and resources, says Dr. Nalini Nadkarni, a Washington trustee for The Nature Conservancy and a renowned forest ecologist. A new project is turning prisons green and helping connect offenders to nature.
Find out How Prisoners and Prisons are Becoming a Force for Nature.

Saving Another Great Landscape: Our Naches Acquisition
The first step in a major campaign to conserve more than 10,000 acres has been accomplished. This beautiful wild land includes high country where mountain goats roam as well as basalt cliffs and canyons, forests and shrub-steppe land used by elk, mule deer and bighorn sheep.
Learn more about this important area.

Bountiful Bluebirds Move from South Sound to San Juans
Bluebirds are returning to the San Juan Islands, with a little help from their friends. Find out how the Conservancy is helping to relocate these tiny wonders.
Watch a Video!

Ready for My Closeup!
Where can you see bluebirds nesting, owls burrowing and osprey feeding? Why, online of course! Click below to explore wild animal cams right here in Washington.
Explore Wildlife Cams in Washington

Washington's Summer Stewards Thrive on Love of Land
Want to spend time in a beautiful place, helping to bring people to a deeper understanding of the landscape? The Nature Conservancy is recruiting volunteers for two popular preserves on Puget Sound this summer.
Find out How to Volunteer and Get Outdoors this Summer!

Forest Stewardship Certification at Ellsworth Creek
The Conservancy's cutting-edge program at Ellsworth Creek was just certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). .
See How Tree Thinning Helps Restore Ellsworth Creek Preserve

Washington Wildlands Magazine: Explore Our State
Read online articles from the Spring Washington Wildlands Magazine.
Click here to read online features

Prairie Frogs Find New Friends
How is a newborn calf helping to restore habitat for the rare Oregon spotted frog near Olympia? Find out what we named the calf, and learn more about the project.
Find out what we named the calf.

Surf Smelts Good Vibrations Feed Web of Marine Life
When the tide is high, surf smelt vibrate in unison on the gravelly beaches of Puget Sound. Learn more about this highly adapted and ritualized reproductive behavior and how it supports the marine food web.
Discover the World of Smelt

Washington's Salmon Rivers
Conservancy scientists have analyzed all of Washington’s freshwater rivers, streams and lakes, and identified those that offer the greatest potential for preserving Washington’s plant and animal life. Five watersheds leaped out of the research as important to salmon and other species.
Learn More About These Important Watersheds

Volunteer For Flowers
Fighter pilot, farmer, photographer, hiker—Don Knoke has accomplished a lot in his 88 years. He’s also one of Washington’s most respected experts on native plants, and he’s put his expertise to work for The Nature Conservancy.
Get to Know Don!

Two Decades, One Billion Dollars
Twenty years ago The Nature Conservancy helped launch a state program to fund conservation and recreation across Washington. Today that program is more popular than ever and is a model for other states. Do you know what it is?
Get with the Program!

Meet Washington's New State Director
The new state director for The Nature Conservancy's Washington Program has been a leader at Microsoft, bicycled around the world and camped across Australia. But her first passion is the landscape of Washington.

Meet Karen Anderson

When Diving Ducks Date
Diving ducks abound in Washington's marine waters and can be seen all winter long, says Conservancy biologist Jo Smith. Just in time for Valentine's Day, she'll tell you where to look for buffleheads, the smallest diving duck in North America, as they make their courtship and mating displays.
Learn More About Their Unique Courtship Displays!
Floods Transform Washington's Port Susan Bay Preserve
Winter floods have changed the landscape at the Conservancy's Port Susan Bay Preserve. What can we learn from how the estuary reacts to this storm?Explore How Flooding Changes Port Susan Bay.

Spotlight Archives: 2008 »

Spotlight Archives: 2007 »

Nature picture credits (top to bottom): Photo © Kelly McAllister (calf) © Bridget Besaw (watersheds); © Barbara French(Don Knoke); © Joel Rogers (Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle) .