News
July Volunteer Opportunities
Tuesday, July 2 – Trash Pick Up Meet at the Visitor Center at 8:00 a.m. Gloves, water and insect repellent are recommended. Trash bags, vests, and grabbers are provided. Wednesday, July 3 – Guard Rail Grass & Brush We’ll be clearing grass and brush from the guard rails along the roads. We need people to…
Read MoreSpringtime in the Wichita Mountains
Spring is the perfect time to get outdoors. The animals are active and visible. The wildflowers are starting to bloom. The weather is neither too hot nor too cold. The number of people visiting the refuge are not overwhelming, yet. So, this is the ideal time to break out of those winter doldrums and enjoy…
Read MoreInterpretive Tours to begin in March
March is not only the month that officially ushers in spring, it is also the month that the Public Interpretive Tours begin on the Wichita Mountains NWR. The first tours, the Historical Sites Tours, will be offered on two Saturdays this year – March 2nd & 9th at 1:30 pm. A complete schedule of all…
Read MoreUpdate: Government Shutdown
The Federal government shutdown is still in progress, but the US Fish & Wildlife Service has expanded operating guidelines for 38 National Wildlife Refuges starting Monday, January 14. The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge (WMWR) is one of those 38 refuges. The expanded guidelines for the WMWR are: Normal activities are permissible during daylight hours. All…
Read MorePartial government shutdown affects Refuge activities
The WWMR has been affected by the partial government shutdown. A quick overview of its effect: The Visitor’s Center is closed and there are no staff there to answer the phones. The Nature Store is closed, because although operated by non-federal employees, the building they are located in is closed. Volunteerism is limited to off-site…
Read MoreOklahoma Eagle Spotting
Oklahoma’s January weather is dicey at best. So it’s no wonder that the “In Search of Eagles” tour was the least well attended, and most often cancelled tour FOW assist with. The fact that Oklahoma’s wintering Bald and Golden Eagles prefer to fish in large lakes with tall trees on the shorelines like those of…
Read MoreWinter on the Refuge is a Great Time to Visit
Winter is a very nice time of year to visit the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is quieter with considerably fewer people. The deciduous trees have lost most of their leaves, which makes spotting large animals much easier. “Winter is my favorite time for visiting the refuge. There are hardly any two-legged animals running…
Read MoreNo Interpretive Public Tours in December
There are no Interpretive Public Tours for the month of December. The Tour Schedules for 2019 will be posted online soon. Not many activities are happening on the Refuge in December. This is the time of year when we can all reflect on what a wonderful year 2018 was and look forward to an even…
Read MoreVolunteers continue to clean up graffiti on the Refuge
As has been reported through various media outlets – KSWO, Lawton Constitution, KJRH, KFOR – vandalism is on the rise at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. In July, large areas of graffiti were removed in the Parallel Forest and on Mt. Scott thanks to a number of volunteers including the OKC Chapter of the Alpine Club. The…
Read MoreShopping on Amazon? Donate to FOW!
Shopping list needs something the Nature Store doesn’t have? You can support FOW when you shop on Amazon! Just shop using Smile.Amazon.com from a web browser (using smile.amazon.com as the address), you can donate a half a percent of the price of eligible purchases to the Association of the Friends of the Wichitas (FOW’s real…
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