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Conservancy buys critical bird, salmon habitat in Snohomish County

Purchase is largest land-conservation acquisition in county history

Seattle, WA — September 24, 2001 — The Nature Conservancy of Washington has purchased 4,122 acres at the mouth of the Stillaguamish River on Port Susan Bay, protecting an extensive estuary, critical salmon habitat and one of the region's most important sites for thousands of migratory birds.

The acquisition is the largest private purchase of land for conservation in Snohomish County's history. The property, located three miles south of Stanwood near Camano Island, has long been identified by biologists and ornithologists as one of the private parcels in the Puget Sound region most in need of conservation.

"I've been working in the Pacific Northwest for more than 20 years, and I've not seen a private piece of ground that approaches this one as far as importance to migratory birds," said Carey Smith, coordinator of the Pacific Coast Joint Venture for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The joint venture is one of 10 around the country that seeks to protect and manage the nation's most important lands for waterfowl.

"This is an incredible acquisition," said David Weekes, state director of The Nature Conservancy of Washington. "With this purchase, some of the best remaining bird and fish habitat in the region is now protected forever."

The Conservancy has been working to protect this property for 11 years. The land was owned by Snohomish County resident Menno Groeneveld, who passed away four years ago. The Conservancy bought the property from his estate.

The property contains 160 acres of diked uplands. The rest is a vast expanse of estuarine wetland, tidally influenced channels and mudflats, straddling the southern and northern mouths of the Stillaguamish River.

Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel said he was pleased the Conservancy purchased the land.

"It's a significant step in protecting the county's rich natural heritage -- its salmon, its birds and the estuaries that support them," Drewel said. "Land conservation of this magnitude is a community asset and a gift to future generations. We're all made richer by it."

The property, a part of the Pacific Flyway, is of particular importance to thousands of migratory birds.

The area is internationally recognized as a critical staging area for tens of thousands of migratory shorebirds, including western sandpipers, dunlins and dowitchers, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. It supports more than 50,000 Wrangell Island snow geese, a distinct population which breeds on Wrangell Island off the Russian coast and migrates to Port Susan Bay and the Central Valley of California for the winter.

More than 400 trumpeter swans and hundreds of raptors -- including bald eagles, peregrine falcons, rough-legged hawks and short-eared owls -- are also known to winter on the property's tidelands and fields.

The river and estuaries at Port Susan Bay also provide critical habitat for coho, chum and the federally listed chinook salmon, as well as steelhead and sea-run cutthroat trout. The area contains one of the most extensive estuaries in the Puget Sound region, creating an important transition area between marine and freshwater habitats. It is one of the most important sites in the Puget Sound region for herring and hake, both listed as state species of concern.

The Conservancy plans to manage the property in a way that benefits the estuary and wetlands, salmon, birds, and other wildlife. The Conservancy also wants to offer the public opportunities to enjoy the site and its abundant wildlife and will allow public use consistent with its management objectives.

However, the Conservancy needs some time to figure out how best to accommodate public use -- including parking, restroom facilities and other issues -- and asks the public to be patient while it crafts a management plan. Meanwhile, the Conservancy plans to offer several docent-led walks this winter, when birding activity will be at its peak.

The purchase was made possible in part by way of a $600,000 corporate gift from WRQ Inc., a software developer based in Seattle. Doug Walker, CEO and co-founder of WRQ, is a member of the Conservancy's board and was recognized earlier this year as one of the Conservancy's national heroes.