The humble guardian of Ormond Beach
Walter Fuller inside his modest trailer. He has been working for 17 years to preserve Ormond Beach Wetlands in Oxnard. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Walter Fuller, right, greets Lorenzo Salcedo, a fisherman. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Lorenzo Salcedo shows his morning catch of ocean Perch at the entrance to Ormond Beach Wetlands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Fencing protects the nesting area of the California Least Tern at the Ormond Beach Wetlands in Oxnard. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Walter Fuller, right, looks for birds with friend Roger Poirier at the Ormond Beach Wetlands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A snowy egret at the Ormond Beach Wetlands in Oxnard. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Walter Fuller, right, scans the ocean for wildlife as he walks the beach with friend Roger Poirier. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A man walks his dogs on Ormond Beach Wetlands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
The track of a raccoon at the Ormond Beach Wetlands in Oxnard. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A tall slag heap behind walls and gates, a remnant of the closed Halaco steel recycling plant that is part of a Superfund hazardous waste north of the Ormond Beach Wetlands. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A tall slag heap behind walls and gates, a remnant of the closed Halaco steel recycling plant. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
A tall slag heap behind gates, a remnant of the closed Halaco steel recycling plant. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)