So Close

In March, a key habitat-connectivity project made a huge leap closer to bridging the divide created by Interstate 5 in southwestern Washington state.

Conservation Northwest, the conservation group that launched its Cascades to Olympics connectivity program several years ago, announced on March 27 that the program's capital campaign had acquired its final piece of property. 

The acquisition increases the possibility for building a wildlife overpass on Interstate 5 to offer animals migrating between the Cascade Mountains and the Olympic Mountains a safe passage over a perilous freeway. Although the overpass is not yet a done deal, southwest Washington is now much closer to restoring important habitat connectivity that was broken with the creation of the freeway.

Work remains to bring the wildlife overpass to fruition. However, it's almost within our grasp, and I look forward to the realization of this dream.

We're so close!

A Touch of Brightness

The very sight of something can leave an instant and profound impression.

Two weeks ago, a flurry of activity outside my window attracted my attention. Immediately, I zeroed in on the yellow and blue of an Audubon's yellow-rumped warbler. I recognized the bird right away, and almost as quickly, I noticed a feeling of happiness welling up inside.

I have always liked yellow-rumped warblers. Both of the variants, the myrtle and the Audubon's, have beautiful feather patterns highlighted by bright patches of yellow. For some reason, the Audubon's coloring has had a special appeal for me.

After noticing the rush of happiness produced by the Audubon's variant two weeks ago, I realized how deeply the species had left its mark on me. To produce such joy in a quick sighting indicates the bird's bright appearance contains a great power to touch my heart.

It was just a touch of brightness, but what an impression it made!

Finns of a Feather

Finns around the world have some similar ideas when it comes to birds.

As a Finnish-American, I have long wondered about the impacts of logging during bird breeding season. Wouldn't it be a good idea to take a seasonal hiatus from logging while birds nest in the trees?

Apparently, I'm not the only Finn who's had these concerns about birds. According to this news article, the Finnish government plans to ban logging in some forests during nesting season. Under the bill, loggers would also have to assess a forest's bird population before logging. Finland's proposed logging regulations respond to a 2025 ruling by the European Court of Justice, which upheld a similar ban in nearby Estonia.

When I saw the news, I felt very excited for two reasons. First, I loved seeing a government protecting birds. Second, it was cool to see my idea reflected in the policies of a country to which I have a personal and a cultural connection.

In summary, Finnish minds flock together on the subject of protecting birds.

Where are You, Winter?

If you see winter around, could you please remind it about us in the Pacific Northwest?

After a very dry summer in Washington state last year, I was looking forward to fall and winter even more than usual. Things started out in a promising way with gorgeous fall foliage and a decent amount of rain in October. Yeah, the temperatures were a bit warm with few of the crisp fall evenings and mornings, but they weren't too alarming.

As fall progressed and turned toward winter, the situation became more disconcerting. The rain continued, which was nice because of how dry the summer had been, but the warm temperatures refused to budge. This turned out to be a devastating problem in Washington when a December storm dumped heavy rainfall in the mountains. In most years, the precipitation would have fallen as snow at the higher elevations, added to the snowpack, and gradually run off in the coming year. When so much of it fell as rain, it produced destructive flooding along rivers with headwaters in the mountains.

At the same time people began to recover from the flooding, a second major problem asserted itself. With the warmer-than-usual temperatures, the state snowpack fell well below average, leading to concerns about drought and fire in 2026. When we finally received some colder temperatures last week, they came with clear skies and no snow. The rain returned this week, but the temperatures spiked again and are predicted to reach the low 60s for the first week of February.

With El Niño predicted to return in 2026, the problems brought on by our missing winter will likely compound. The weather pattern tends to bring drought and record heat to the Pacific Northwest, and if it does so again this year after winter's vanishing act, the summer could be quite rough.

So if you see winter, I'd appreciate it if you'd tell it the Pacific Northwest would love to see it soon.