It's Our Nature
Transport yourself to a few of the forests and trails, clearings and creeks protected by Metro's voter-approved Natural Areas Program. Goosebumps guaranteed. Watch the video
Become a volunteer wildlife monitor
Planning and conservation › Natural areas, parks and trails › Restoring the landscape › Wildlife monitoring › Become a wildlife monitor
See nature up close and personal as a Metro wildlife monitoring volunteer.
There are a number of ways to get involved in Metro's volunteer-mediated wildlife monitoring program. If you are interested in any of the following volunteer positions, call Katy Weil, program coordinator, at 503-797-1688 or send e-mail to katy.weil@oregonmetro.gov for more information or to receive an application.
Current volunteer positions
Amphibian monitors
Late January through mid-April
Each year a courageous team of volunteer wildlife monitors search the wintry waters within Metro's pristine natural areas for frog and salamander egg masses. Last year 60 volunteers gave more than 400 hours of their time at 14 natural areas looking for a variety of amphibian species. Join the volunteer team and help make a difference in Metro's natural area restoration programs. Surveys are conducted in February through early April. Volunteer training will be held in late winter and includes amphibian identification and survey techniques.
Avian monitors
Mid-May through end of June, and November through February
Are you able to identify birds by sight and sound? If so, please consider joining our team of avian monitors. Metro seeks enthusiastic, responsible people with intermediate to expert bird identification skills. Volunteer monitors will adopt one of ten natural areas for seasonal and year-round monitoring of waterfowl and breeding bird species. Winter waterfowl surveys begin in late fall and continue through spring. Breeding bird surveys are conducted during the peak of the breeding season, mid-May through the end of June, and follow a specific habitat-based protocol.
Data entry
Year-round
Detail oriented? Metro is seeking volunteers with good computer skills to input and manage data entry for all monitoring information collected.
Internships
January through June
Looking for an internship opportunity? Each year Metro recruits volunteer interns to assist the wildlife monitoring program. Interns act as a liaison between Metro staff and volunteers, providing the necessary motivation and guidance to ensure that assigned sites are properly monitored, safety rules are followed and volunteers have a positive experience. The interns also conduct occasional site visits, perform monitoring as needed and collect and process information from volunteers. Interns need to be available approximately 10 hours per week from January through July to support amphibian and avian monitoring.