Oregon WildBlog

Not long after moving to Eugene for graduate school, I took a field trip to the Warner Creek fire area outside of Oakridge. At that time it was 10 years since the 1991 fire. I remember the tall black snags rising tall above, and sapling trees crowded all around me -- head high and coated in dew that soaked through my sub-par rain gear.

Although porcupines may be slowpokes, most other animals know to keep a wide berth from those sharp quills! The porcupine's prickly self defense mechanism makes it easily recognizable, however their vital importance in the ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest is often less known. Porcupines are intertwined with healthy forest lifecycles, turning trees into critical habitat for dozens of other species. Aside from the quills, they also have many other valuable physical characteristics, allowing them to be true adventurers of every elevation of a forest.

We all love Oregon's lush forests, but now you can also see just how much carbon these giants are storing with the new Conservation Carbon Map!

To protect our climate forests, President Biden’s executive order puts an awful lot of power in the hands of the agencies that have spent decades cutting them down. Oregon Wild is leading the Climate Forests Campaign to take that power back.

In February, a federal district court ruled in favor of Oregon Wild and partners by striking down a 2020 Trump Administration decision that removed Endangered Species Act protections from gray wolves across much of the U.S.

As a result of our successful lawsuit, federal Endangered Species Act protections have been reinstated for wolves in Western Oregon and 43 other states!

To celebrate Pride Month, here are 5 LGBTQ+ environmentalists you should know about

Guest author Bobbie Snead from the Northwest Nature blog spent a year exploring the Hackleman Creek Watershed, at the headwaters of the McKenzie River, getting to know its uplands, valley, and seasonal lake.

Wildlife face many challenges, many of them due to the degradation, destruction, and development of their native habitats. One of the last-ditch ways to reverse the decline of native wildlife populations and combat the extinction crisis is going to court to protect those animals through the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and other bedrock environmental laws. Learn more about how wolverines, red tree voles and wolves have benefitted from the power of the law, and what this means in the fight for their protection. 

Whether hovering or diving from a branch, a belted kingfisher's headfirst plunge to snap fish near the surface is swift and precise. The jay-sized birds flourish across North America where water is clean, and in places with plentiful fish, perches, and coveted earthen nest banks. Oregon's many rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, and coastal bays offer refuge for this dazzling bird.

Learn about our state's journeying marine mammals. From the biggest animals on Earth like the blue whale, which weighs as much as 33 elephants (~200 tons) and has a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle, to some of the smartest and most agile, like the bottlenose dolphin, Oregon's ocean has it all. We gave a warm whale-come to Dr. Ballance, the Director and Endowed Chair for the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University. She discussed the cutting edge science surrounding marine mammals, threats, and what can be done to protect them.