Humboldt Bay NWR offers accessible viewing of wildlife, habitats through new scopes, large digital screen

–  Two generous donations provide for colorful closeups of the refuge – 

July 22, 2024 – Loleta, Calif. - Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge announces the addition of two viewing scopes adapted with lenses for color blindness and a large digital screen that will benefit all visitors especially those with limited mobility and Color Vision Deficiency.

A public reception acknowledging and celebrating these meaningful contributions will be held on Friday, August 2, at 6:00 p.m. at the Richard J. Guadagno Headquarters and Visitor Center at 1020 Ranch Road in Loleta. A brief presentation will be followed by light refreshments and a walk along the Shorebird Loop Trail, which will stay open until 8:00 p.m.

These new visual aids are due to two families who wanted to ensure others would be able to access and enjoy the scenery of this unique coastal refuge.

Lee Ann Moore, a Wiyot Tribal member, donated two dual-mount spotting scopes for visitors to use along the Shorebird Loop Trail in honor of her parents, Donald and Melva Duclo. The Duclo’s held a deep respect for this land and wanted to ensure others a chance to see it. Each scenic viewer has both an upper and lower spotting scope, allowing children and those with mobility limitations to enjoy expansive views of the refuge. The scopes are engineered with special lenses to enable those with color vision deficiency (CVD) to experience the vibrant colors of the wetland habitats and wildlife. While people with normal color vision see over one million shades of color, those with CVD only see an estimated 10% of hues and shades. CVD affects one in 12 men (8%) and one in 200 women (0.5%); 350 million people worldwide, 13 million in the US, 166,000 in California and roughly 5600 in Humboldt County.

David and Deanna Thomson were inspired by the natural wonder, beauty, and peacefulness of the refuge. David has been photographing the refuge for over 15 years, almost daily, patiently assembling a huge collection of images and sharing them via presentations, albums and other media. Recently, that evolved into the donation of a large digital screen system to display photos and videos under the covered deck at the Visitor Center. The 65-inch screen is located in a protective outdoor enclosure sealed and durable against the effects of heavy rain, dust, extreme temperatures, high impact forces, and electrical surges. It is operated by remote control and compact digital storage drive. Visitors can now experience the incredible diversity of the refuge every day, rain or shine.

Located along the Pacific Flyway, Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge is about 5,000 noncontiguous acres of diverse habitat including mudflat, saltmarsh, freshwater wetlands, grasslands, ocean beaches, dunes and coniferous and riparian forests. This dynamic situation creates some of the most productive ecosystems on earth and provides critical seasonal and year-round habitat for wildlife.

“Accessing these areas is not always easy or possible, so these new visual aids offer everyone a chance to see these habitats and wildlife up close and in full color,” said Deputy Refuge Manager, Jason Storlie. “We would like to express our deepest gratitude to Lee Ann, David and Deanna. These heartfelt donations exemplify the shared love of natural spaces within our community.”

For more information and special accommodation requests, please call 707-733-5406, ext. 5

or email denise_seeger@fws.gov

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service works with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. For more information about our work and the people who make it happen, visit https://www.fws.gov/about/region/pacific-southwest or connect with us via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Flickr.

About EnChroma

Based in Berkeley, Calif., EnChroma produces leading-edge eyewear for red-green color blindness and low vision, and other solutions for color vision, sold online and through Authorized Retailers worldwide. Invented in 2010, EnChroma’s patented eyewear combines the latest in color perception, neuroscience and lens innovation to improve the lives of people with red-green color vision deficiency around the world. EnChroma received an SBIR grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It earned the 2016 Tibbetts Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration in recognition of the firm’s innovative impact on the human experience through technology, and the 2020 Innovation Award in Life Sciences from the Bay Area’s East Bay Economic Development Alliance. Visit enchroma.com for more information.