Blog
Important coyote follow up
This is a follow up to our previous blog post about coyotes at the Sheep Dog trials. Since last Friday, we have learned more. Because Vashon Nature Center’s focus is to provide information about local wildlife and ecosystems, we would like to share resources on living...
Living with coyotes
There were 6 coyotes spotted at the Sheep Dog trials last weekend. These coyotes preyed on and killed 2 sheep and a lamb that had been released into the meadows for the weekend and two of them were shot when they returned to hunt sheep the next night. In light of...
Christensen Counts!
Bioblitz 2014 July 12-13 Christensen Creek Watershed Even on this small island, each of our Bioblitz events has been unique both in terms of species composition and overall feel. At Neill Point in 2012, everything was new, even rather ordinary things hadn’t been...
Zen and the Art of Tadpole Rescue
I have been engaged in a ritual the last couple of weeks that involves such focus, attention and agility, that the world drops away and I go into a near meditative state. It’s not a wise Eastern tradition, drugs or hypnotherapy, but it is mind-expanding and...
Handbook for Not Owning Land
I step off the gravel road onto a trail hidden by undergrowth. Sword ferns and cedar branches close behind me like a curtain, and my breathing subtly changes. My senses tune to nature’s frequency and I begin to hear them: The high chiming of golden-crowned kinglets;...
Volunteers keep an eye on stream health–Salmon watchers 2013
A version of this article also appeared in the January 1st edition of the Vashon Island Beachcomber as an invited series on citizen science. When John Martinak signed up for the Vashon Nature Center Salmon Watcher Program last fall, he wasn’t convinced he’d actually...
Sea star wasting syndrome
By Adria Magrath A shorter version of this blog article appeared in the Christmas issue of the Vashon Beachcomber. It seems that you can always count on seeing sea stars when you visit a rocky beach - the Pacific Northwest boasts the largest diversity and numbers of...
Citizen Science Connects Students with Real-World Lessons
A shorter version of this article recently appeared in the November 13th issue of the Beachcomber. “I got another one!” “Look at this!” “It’s a mayfly — see the tails!” “I don’t understand why kids don’t like science… This is the best lab ever.” These comments echoed...
A magical weekend at Fern Cove Bioblitz 2013
A huge, heartfelt thanks to all of you who made the 2nd Annual Vashon Island Bioblitz a success in every way. Even with our raw count we found more species than last year at 386 (compared to 354 at Neill Point in 2012). We identified 159 plants, 75 shoreline species,...
Header Photo: Bianca Perla