Cape Meares NWR, Oceanside, Oregon: This birds-eye view of Cape Meares National Wildlife Refuge near Oceanside, Oregon, shows why it’s so important to so many species. The nearly inaccessible coastline, with its rugged perpendicular cliffs and sheltered coves, invites hundreds of thousands of seabirds—common murres, pigeon guillemots, petrels, tufted puffins, Brandt’s and pelagic cormorants, black oystercatchers, for instance—as well as large concentrations of sea lions and harbor seals. Cape Meares also protects one of the few remaining stands of coastal old-growth forest along the Oregon coast. The forest is predominated by Sitka spruce and western hemlock. Endangered marbled murrelets have been seen in the forest, but breeding has not yet been confirmed. Although there are some past records (more than a decade old) of threatened northern spotted owls being seen there, the area is much too small to support them and there is no adjacent habitat. Any spotted owls seen there are likely young dispersing from other areas. A bald eagle nest in the forest has been present for more than a decade. On the sea cliffs is a peregrine falcon eyrie discovered in 1987. It was the first one found on the Oregon coast, has been activeevery year, and is in full view of the public. Refuge staff soon will have a deck and interpretive panel to enhance that view. The Fish and Wildlife Service does most of its interpretive development in cooperation with adjacent Cape Meares State Park and most bird observations occur there. To protect the threatened and endangered species on the refuge, public access is confined to the Oregon Coast Trail that runs through it. All of the refuge (except the trail) is within a Research Natural Area. Public uses on the trail and adjoining state park include hiking, wildlife observation, photography, and environmental education and interpretation. From the cape on the state park, viewing of whale and migratory bird migration is spectacular.
Hide.
