SeaDoc helps Coast Salish Tribes and First Nations study multiple impacts of energy projects

People talk about a new coal terminal. Others about a new pipeline. Some worry about increased shipment of crude oil by rail. But what’s the cumulative impact of all the energy projects being proposed for the Salish Sea? That’s the question that was addressed at a recent meeting of the Coast Salish Gathering, where SeaDoc scientist Joe Gaydos and Swinomish Tribal biologist Jamie Donatuto discussed a study they undertook last year.

Between coal terminals, oil pipeline terminals, liquefied natural gas terminals, and the increased shipment of coal and Bakken shale oil by train, there are at least 6 major energy transportation projects proposed, some in Canada and others in the United States.

Last summer, the Coast Salish Tribes asked SeaDoc investigate this issue. Joe, Jamie and SeaDoc summer intern Sofie Thixton evaluated how these energy projects will impact Coast Salish Tribes and First Nations. Impacts from each of the proposed or on-going projects included oil spills from vessels, increased underwater noise, vessel strikes to animals, shoreline development, pipeline spills, etc. For each of these potential impacts, they evaluated the potential effect on a multitude of species that are important to the Coast Salish.

This work was unique because it looks at all projects simultaneously, whereas most projects evaluating impact only look at one project at a time. The Coast Salish have always seen the Salish Sea as a single ecosystem and this study does too.

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Image by SeaDoc.

Lost Gear short film features SeaDoc work to recover commercial crab traps

Lost Gear from TruthBeTold on Vimeo.

This short film features a surfer, a commercial crab fisherman, and a sustainable seafood restaurant owner. The commercial crabbing section features work by SeaDoc's Kirsten Gilardi and Jen Renzullo to set up a sustainable commercial crab pot recovery program off the coast of Northern California.

Seattle Magazine recommends Salish Sea book

Seattle Magazine recommended SeaDoc's book, The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest, in a spread in its March issue.

The new book The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest (Sasquatch Books, $24.95) looks at these local waters through a scientific lens, illustrating the region’s unique geology (thanks to glaciers, plate tectonics and volcanoes) and vibrant marine ecology. Written by biologist Audrey DeLella Benedict with Joseph K. Gaydos, chief scientist for the SeaDoc Society (an Orcas Island–based conservation group focused on the Salish Sea), the book pairs bright, bold, photographs with fascinating facts about local sea creatures. (Did you know that the Salish Sea is home to the world’s largest species of barnacle, octopus and burrowing clam?)

Read the article at the Seattle Magazine website.

SeaDoc helps complete necropsy of J32, Rhapsody

Closeup of killer whale teeth by J. Gaydos

Since publishing the first comprehensive paper on diseases of killer whales in 2004, SeaDoc has worked with collaborators to learn more about diseases of killer whales and how they might impact recovery of the endangered southern resident population. Last week, that tradition continued. SeaDoc's Joe Gaydos, working with scientists from NOAA, UC Santa Cruz and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, completed the necropsy of beloved southern resident J32, known to killer whale enthusiasts as Rhapsody. In December, J32 was found dead near Comox, British Columbia. Led by Dr. Steve Raverty of UBC, researchers from 8 different organizations, including Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans, First Nations and the Vancouver Aquarium conducted a necropsy on the beach. They found she was pregnant with a near term fetus that had died. J32 was unable to expel the fetus and became sick and died. The head was sent to the United States for more extensive diagnostics.

While examining the head last week, Gaydos and Dyanna Lambourn of WDFW found roundworm parasites in and around the ears. While these were not associated with the stranding, it does add to our understanding of killer whale health. The ears were dissected out for CT scan at the VCA Veterinary Specialty Center of Seattle where preliminary evaluation showed nothing significant. During the necropsy, scientists from NOAA took samples to try to better understand how killer whales use the muscles in their heads to create sound. When all testing is completed, a final necropsy report will be prepared.

Rob Williams named as 2015 PEW Marine Fellow

Canadian scientist Dr. Rob Williams, a past SeaDoc-funded scientist, has been named as a 2015 Pew Marine Fellow. Williams is a marine conservation scientist with the Oceans Initiative and Oceans Research & Conservation Association. The prestigious award will support Williams' effort to identify solutions to reduce ocean noise in important marine habitats. Evidence shows that ocean noise caused by people is doubling every decade, and the effects of this increased noise on sea creatures are not well understood.

Learn more about Rob's work on ocean noise.

Williams is one of five distinguished scientists and conservationists from Canada, Australia, Russia, and the United Kingdom to be named a 2015 recipient of the Pew fellowship in marine conservation. For more on the Pew marine fellows, visit their website.

The SeaDoc Society funded Dr. Williams' study to determine if the accidental capture of porpoise and dolphins by commercial fishermen in British Columbia was impacting the health of these populations. Williams was also a co-investigator on a SeaDoc-funded study by Dr. Erin Ashe to use photo identification to study the population dynamics of Pacific white-sided dolphins.

Here's a video from Pew about Rob's work:

Sea lion rescue featured in Islands Sounder

Our work to rescue sea lions that are entangled in marine debris was featured on the front page of the Islands' Sounder on February 18.

“The biggest challenge when working with a 1,400-pound animal is obviously safety - for the people and for the animal,” said Gaydos, chief scientist and regional director of the Orcas-based SeaDoc Society, which conducts and sponsors scientific research in the Salish Sea. “You don’t want anybody to get hurt and you don’t want the animal to get hurt.”

Read the article at the Islands' Sounder.

National Geographic features SeaDoc work on birds and forage fish

Often overlooked, forage fish are a key part of the food web, and they’re vital to the well-being of threatened and endangered birds, fish, and marine mammals. A recent National Geographic article by Craig Welch puts a spotlight on the controversy over herring harvest, and references SeaDoc’s important paper in Conservation Biology that showed that diving seabirds that eat exclusively forage fish are 16 times more likely to be in decline than bird species with wider diets.

Read the article at the National Geographic website.

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Banner photo: Herring (not Pacific herring). Courtesy of Jacob Botter via Flickr. Creative Commons 2.0.

Geology and bathymetry of the San Juan Islands

This bathymetric map of the San Juan Islands shows the depth of the water throughout the islands, as well as the geology of the islands.

Originally published within "Geology and Seafloor Bathymetry of the San Juan Islands" produced by Greene, H.G,. Dieter, B., Endris, C. Lopez, H., Murai, L., and Erdey, M. of the Center for Habitat Studies, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.

You can download the entire 11.7MB file using the link above.

Detailed bathymetry, backscatter, and habitat maps of the San Juan Islands archipelago

The following maps were produced by the Center for Habitat Studies at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in cooperation with Tombolo, the SeaDoc Society, Natural Resources Canada, and the Canadian Hydrographic Service.

Each quadrant has three maps: bathymetry, backscatter, and habitat.

Quadrant 1:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 2:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 3:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 4:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Board member Dr. Deborah Brosnan inducted into Irish Education 100

Photo by Dorothy Davis.

Dr. Deborah Brosnan, a founding member of the SeaDoc Society's Board, was recently honored as a Irish Education 100 fellow. The award honors Irish educators who have had an impact on the education system of the United States. A marine scientist, Brosnan was recognized for her work on ocean ecosystem hazards and their effects on humans. Brosnan's organization, the Brosnan Center, focuses on ocean ecosystems, building resilience for environmental disasters and extreme events, integrating science to solve pressing problems, and planning for a changing world.

Read the award citation PDF.

Congratulations, Deborah!

Saving a sea lion off Vancouver Island

Dr. Lesanna Lahner from the Seattle Aquarium and Paul Cottrell of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada keep the sea lion close to the boat. Photo: J. Gaydos

Earlier in the week Joe Gaydos was able to work with a skilled team of experts from the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada and the Seattle Aquarium to disentangle a 1,400 lb. Steller sea lion that was being strangled by a piece of packing strap. The animal was immobilized by remote injection of an anesthetic cocktail. Once it was sedated, the team cut the packing strap loose and reversed the anesthesia, allowing the fully recovered animal to swim away free.

Plastic packing strap removed from sea lion

Like any complex procedure performed by trained experts, this procedure looks rather straight forward to any onlooker, but is actually the product of years of development by Dr. Marty Haulena and colleagues. It requires a skilled team of boat drivers, biologists, veterinarians and veterinary technicians.

Gaydos and Seattle Aquarium Veterinarian Dr. Lesanna Lahner are working with NOAA Fisheries to import the protocol into Washington and Oregon.

See more photos at the Vancouver Aquarium's Marine Mammal Rescue Centre's Facebook page.

Invasive isopods in the Salish Sea

Juvenile invasive isopod Ianiropsis serricaudis on alga. Scale bar 0.3mm. Photo by Eric Lazo-Wasem, from Hobbs, et al., 2015

A recent publication on the global introduction of the Asian isopod Ianiropsis serricaudis was a by-product of a study we funded to evaluate the impact of invasive tunicates in the Salish Sea (Cordell et al., 2012). The publication shows that this invasive isopod is well-established in communities of fouling organisms throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

While the actual ecological impact of this isopod in the Salish Sea (or in other areas where it has been introduced) is unknown, it is interesting that in multiple places, including Puget Sound, its presence is strongly associated with the introduced tunicate Didemnum vexillum or with other introduced ascidians including Botrylloides violates and Styela clava.

Sometimes, such as with this paper, science only reveals small pieces of the mosaic, but with continued work it ultimately helps us see and understand the larger picture, which hopefully will permit us to better design health coastal ecosystems!

Prevention of disease in domestic animals is an important tool in wildlife health

Did you know that diseases like canine distemper virus can spread from domestic dogs to wildlife? It's a problem around the world, with infections in lions, tigers, hyenas, ferrets, North American river otters, raccoons, bears, and more. Two seal species, Baikal and Caspian seals, have also experienced distemper outbreaks. In January 2015, Joe Gaydos presented a paper titled Canine Distemper in Wildlife: How Private Practitioners Can Help at the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando, Florida.

Proper vaccination of domestic animals can help contain outbreaks. A similar virus, Rinderpest, which circulated between wild and domestic animals in Africa, was eradicated after a massive campaign to vaccinate domestic livestock.

In 2008, SeaDoc published a paper investigating whether the Giardia and Cryptosporidium parasites in harbor seals in the Salish Sea were connected with canine parasites.

Video of lion with distemper:

Canine teeth comparison - Steller sea lion to harbor seal

Adult harbor seal canine tooth vs Steller sea lion canine tooth. Photo: J. Gaydos

Did you know that seals, sea lions and other animals put down annular growth rings on their teeth? This means that you can age an animal that has died by counting the growth rings on a sectioned tooth much like you can do for a tree that has been cut down. We were pulling teeth to age some stranded animals as part of our collaborative work with the Whale Museum and San Juan County Marine Mammal Stranding Network and were once again amazed at how large Steller sea lions are. Check out this shot comparing lower canines of an adult harbor seal and a Steller sea lion!

Video: Jared Towers on minke whales in the Salish Sea

In November of 2014, Jared Towers of MERS, the Marine Education and Research Society, spoke about his research on minke whales.

Minkes are the smallest baleen whales in the North Pacific Ocean, averaging 26 to 29 feet in length, but also one of the fastest of all the whales and dolphins. They are estimated to live for 30-60 years, are normally solitary, and prefer to spend time in very specific habitats where they forage on small schooling fishes.

Jared Towers is involved in several cutting edge research projects with minke whales, including investigations into their population structure, their habitat use, and their vocal repertoire.

Jared Towers is a cetacean expert with the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Research Director at MERS, the Marine Education and Research Society, a non-profit that studies whales and dolphins in BC and around the world.

Studying contaminants in edible seaweed from the Salish Sea

How safe is wild-harvested seaweed to eat?

Seaweeds are a nutritious source of protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. The harvest and consumption of various species of seaweed has historically been, and continues to be, important for the Coast Salish, and is gaining in popularity with non-tribal citizens interested in wild foraging.

Unfortunately very little data are available on the levels of contaminants in local seaweeds, leaving native and non-native consumers of this food source in the dark about whether they are harvesting healthy nutritious food or are being exposed to potentially harmful contaminants.

A new SeaDoc Society study, funded by generous private donations, will test for the presence and concentration of three classes of contaminants:

• heavy metals
• organochlorine pesticides and pollutants (like DDT, PCBs, and PBDEs)
• polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)

Samples will be collected from sites considered safe and those considered potentially hazardous. They will be analyzed at the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory at UC Davis.

Results will be shared with volunteers, tribes, and the Washington Department of Health.

Jennifer Hahn, author of the famous wild foraging book Pacific Feast (also an Adjunct Professor at Western Washington University) and SeaDoc's Joe Gaydos are collaborating with Robert Poppenga, a toxicologist at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, on this project.

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Banner photo: Bull kelp by Dan Hershman via Flickr Creative Commons 2.0

Growing up underwater: harbor porpoise muscle development

Harbor porpoise by Florian Graner. Licensed through NaturePL.com.

Peer-reviewed publication:

Noren, S. R., D. P. Noren, and J. K. Gaydos. 2014. Living in the fast lane: rapid development of the locomotor muscle in immature harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena). Journal of Comparative Physiology B. December 2014, Volume 184, Issue 8, pp 1065-1076.

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This study -- based on harbor porpoise tissue samples collected from strandings, fishery bycatch, or observed killings by killer whales -- looked at muscle development in juvenile harbor porpoises to understand how fast they mature into physically competent adults.

This is important because it shows that immature harbor porpoises can't dive as well as adults and consequently have limitations on the kinds of habitat they can use. It brings attention to the concept that what might be okay for adult harbor porpoise (such as a certain level of boat traffic), might not be something that harbor porpoise calves can deal with as well as adults can.

Growing Up Underwater

Humans aren’t born ready to hunt down game animals — or even order Chinese food. We need mothers to protect and feed us at least until we can read a take-out menu. Life is somewhat similar for baby dolphins and porpoises.Diving ability in marine mammals depends on specialized biochemistry. High concentrations of myoglobin provide oxygen to muscles so divers can remain active while holding their breath. They’re also able to buffer the flush of lactic acid from anaerobic activity after the oxygen is depleted. It takes time, though, for newborn cetaceans to develop these special abilities.

A recent study by SeaDoc and Drs. S. Noren from UC Santa Cruz and D. Noren from National Marine Fisheries Service Northwest Fisheries Science Center (Seattle) used samples collected by the San Juan County Marine Mammal Stranding Network to measure diving capabilities in harbor porpoise, the Salish Sea’s smallest and most bashful cetacean. The results show that harbor porpoise achieve adult myoglobin levels by 9-10 months of age, and increased acid buffering as 2-3 year olds. This is faster than other cetaceans, which tracks with their earlier maturity and shorter lifespan. However, the study also proves that there is a period of time when harbor porpoise calves cannot keep up with the adults. This probably limits the habitat range and foraging of mothers and calves, leaving them vulnerable to habitat degradation.

SeaDoc and collaborators have recently undertaken a study to pinpoint harbor porpoise calving times so that we can further protect them at this delicate stage.

interesting facts about the study

• This is one of the first studies to document muscle biochemistry development in dolphins and whales. It’s been done before with Fraser’s and bottlenose dolphins, but not with species resident in the Salish Sea.
• Specimens for this research were collected opportunistically from stranded harbor porpoises, from animals caught accidentally by commercial fishing operations, and from animals killed by killer whales. Collection was performed through the San Juan County Marine Mammal Stranding Network. This program is administered through the Whale Museum and NOAA and is composed of a huge number of very dedicated volunteers.
• Based on length, specimens were divided into 5 age classes, from fetus to adult.
• A prior study by Dr. Shawn Noren, et al. (2008) points out that "although cetaceans are born directly into the ocean, the behavior of cetacean calves may mitigate demands that may otherwise drive the maturation of muscle biochemistry. For example, cetacean neonates typically swim in echelon position (calf in close proximity of its mother’s mid-lateral flank), which lowers the effort required by the calf to move at a given swim speed. Cetacean calves are also nutritionally dependent on their mothers’ milk for prolonged periods (8–42 months depending on the species; for review see Evans 1987) so that the calves do not need to dive to meet their nutritional needs. The distinctly different swimming styles and diving requirements of cetacean calves, relative to adults, alleviate the demands of physical activity and exposure to hypoxia early in life.”

Learn more about harbor porpoise in the Salish Sea

Harbor porpoise workshop: On February 7, 2013, the Pacific Biodiversity Institute, Cascadia Research Collective and the SeaDoc Society hosted scientists from Washington and British Columbia to determine the state of knowledge on harbor porpoises and coordinate ongoing research efforts. Read the statement identifying research needs.

Marine Science Lecture on harbor porpoise

Billie Swalla and Jim West join Science Advisors

Two new scientists have come on board as SeaDoc Science Advisors. Since our inception, this important group has help prioritize and guide our scientific investigations.

Billie Swalla

We’d like to extend a big welcome to Billie Swalla (Director, UW Friday Harbor Labs) and Jim West (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife)!

Billie Swalla is the Director of the University of Washington’s Friday Harbor Laboratories, and joins the Science Advisors to bring the expertise of the Labs to the table. Swalla is an expert in the evolution of chordates (species with a central nervous system on their back sides and internal organs on the front side - like humans) and has been working at UW since 1999.

Jim West

Jim West is an expert in toxics and fishes who works as a senior research scientist at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. He has published papers on such topics as toxic hydrocarbons in Pacific herring, differences in rockfish growth between ocean and inland waters, and persistent organic pollutants in marine plankton, among many others.

We extend a most heartfelt thank you to retiring Science Advisors Wayne Palsson (NOAA Fisheries) and Ken Sebens (past director of UW Friday Harbor Labs) for your many years of insight and guidance. Our program is stronger thanks to your work!

Economic benefits of SCUBA diving in no-take marine reserves

There’s convincing science that no-take marine reserves help recover rockfish, abalone, and other threatened or endangered species that call these rocky habitats home. But what are the economic costs and benefits of marine reserves?

Most of the existing data is about the costs of marine reserves. For example, marine reserves limit fishing, and therefore have a negative effect on the commercial and recreational fishing industry.

But very little is known about the economic benefits of no-take marine reserves.

A new SeaDoc project will quantify the economic benefit of appropriately designed no-take marine reserves to the SCUBA diving industry and local economies.

Over 100 dive shops in Washington and British Columbia train and equip thousands of divers annually. These recreational divers spend handsomely to maintain their certification, purchase equipment, travel to dive sites, procure lodging, and pay for dive charters. But no one has ever conducted an economic valuation of SCUBA diving in the Salish Sea.

Resource decisions are often a trade-off between benefits to the target species and economic impacts to the people that rely on them to make a living or for recreation. Missing from this trade-off is a proper accounting for the extra economic activity that can be created by an effort to save fish and wildlife.

Project results will have a direct impact on efforts by NOAA Fisheries and the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife as they consider the merits of establishing a network of no-take reserves for rockfish recovery. Results will also be shared with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Canada as they re-evaluate the effectiveness of their Rockfish Conservation Areas.

This project is sponsored by a generous private contribution, without which it would not be possible.

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Banner photo courtesy of Janna Nichols.

Gulls switch to trash-diet as fish stocks run low

Courtesy of Jerry Kirkhart via Flickr CC.

Joe Gaydos was quoted in a New Scientist article about the implications of diet changes for gulls. In a recently published paper (find a link to it in the New Scientist article, below), UBC's Louise Blight and collaborators looked at feather samples to understand how gull diets have changed over the past 149 years. The results show that as the birds' diets have changed from fish to more garbage, the result has been population declines and lower fertility in glaucous-winged gulls.

Overfishing has meant that one of the gulls' favourite fish species, the highly nutritious eulachon, is now considered threatened in the Salish Sea area. Another former staple, the Pacific herring, no longer forms the large aggregations that gulls once feasted on.

SeaDoc recently published a study about population declines in diving birds. This study linked the highest risk of population decline to birds with very specific diets involving forage fish like eulachon and herring.

In the article, Joe Gaydos is quoted: "[Gull] populations should not decline as quickly as specialist feeders. The fact that generalists like gulls could be in decline is definitely worrisome."

Read the article, which has a link to the published paper.