Your gift sponsors our Citizen Wildlife Monitoring intern. Interns play a special role in this volunteer-based program as they help our staff with trainings and dealing with all the photos and data returned from the field.

Emily has this to say: “The cake comes out of the oven as I sift through literally thousands of images looking for wildlife. There are anywhere from 10 to 1,000 pictures per memory card per camera per visit. Every once in a while I see an adorable picture of black bear cubs or a silly picture of a coyote (check out our Flickr page!). It makes all the time spent flipping through photos of trees worth it. My ultimate dream is to come across a photo of a wolf, which would be something to see. It’s a lot of work keeping the program running smoothly, but ultimately it’s all worth it for wildlife. It’s been my dream to work with wildlife and I’ve enjoyed every minute of the work I do. I may be in the background of the monitoring program, but I’m in the forefront of documenting wildlife in Washington. Together, volunteers are making our state a better place for wildlife.”

Thank you for helping Emily monitor wildlife in the Pacific Northwest!

Exhilaration lingers around every corner for Citizen Wildlife Monitoring volunteers. Your support sends a volunteer like Cathy into the field for the season with batteries, maps, cameras and other supplies. Cathy hasn’t been volunteering for very long, and her cameras haven’t captured any wildlife photos, but that doesn’t hinder her enthusiasm for this project.

“It is probably how many hunters feel, not bringing home a trophy [animal],” Clark said. “[Hiking into the camera sites, we're] watching the changes in the seasons, noting the wildflowers and the birds and animals we see and hear, and the signs they leave. We are still out there, enjoying our wilderness together and having a good time.”

Volunteers’ relationship to wildlife and other like-minded people keeps them coming back for more. This is a chance to connect and make a difference for Washington’s wildlife.

Thank you for helping Cathy monitor wildlife in the Pacific Northwest!