Justin Cox
Nature is Not a Luxury

SeaDoc is a science-based marine conservation program. We understand that science informs policy, including priority setting and budgeting.

Washington State faces difficult budget choices. With multi-billion-dollar shortfalls, lawmakers are scrutinizing every line item. In moments like this, funding that supports biodiversity — everything from living soil to forests, from bugs to whales, and from mountain streams to the sea—can look like a luxury. It is not.

Nature is Not a Luxury
Justin Cox
Welcome Two New Science Advisors; Farewell Meg ...

Science is at the foundation of everything we do at SeaDoc—from Salish Sea Wild and Pod of Orcas to our efforts to inform policy. For decades our Scientific Advisory Committee has played a vital role on that front. 

The Committee is made up of respected individual scientists doing important work throughout the Salish Sea. This month we say a heartfelt goodbye to one longtime advisor, Meg Chadsey, and we welcome two new exciting additions, Jennifer Russell and Lisa Watkins.

Justin Cox
Science With an Impact: Giles Talks Southern ...

The SeaDoc Society's Dr. Deborah Giles traveled to Washington DC in early February to meet with legislators, including Washington State Senator Patty Murray, and other senior legislative staff members from both the House and Senate.

Justin Cox
Thanks, Michelle!

After years as part of our small but mighty Admin Team, our friend and coworker Michelle Homewood completed her time at SeaDoc last month. She’ll now embark on the exciting next chapter of her career.

As an Administrative Assistant with SeaDoc, Michelle’s hands were on everything from arranging field-work logistics to processing the donations that make that work possible.

Thanks, Michelle!
Justin Cox
Olympia Oysters, Ancient Parasites, Modern ...

When shell-boring marine worms were first documented in Olympia oysters in 2020, they raised an important question for restoration: were these parasites always part of the Salish Sea ecosystem, or were they accidentally introduced with Pacific oysters a century ago? That mystery sent researchers on an investigation thousands of years into the past. 

Olympia Oysters, Ancient Parasites, Modern Lessons

Heavy Metals in Harbor Seals of the San Juan Islands

Heavy Metals in Harbor Seals of the San Juan Islands

Toxins of concern in the Salish Sea include persistent organic pollutants (like PCBs), hydrocarbons (from fuel), pharmaceutical compounds, and trace elements (including heavy metals).

Some elements (like copper, selenium, and calcium) are necessary for life at lower concentrations but can be toxic at higher levels. Other elements considered non-essential (like lead and mercury) also can be toxic to aquatic organisms at elevated concentrations. Monitoring trace element exposure in marine organisms is essential to assess potential risks to wildlife and humans.

Joe Gaydos Receives Local Hero Award at Friday Harbor Film Festival

Joe Gaydos Receives Local Hero Award at Friday Harbor Film Festival

SeaDoc Society Science Director Joe Gaydos received the Local Hero award at the Friday Harbor Film Festival over the weekend for his work with the SeaDoc Society and his involvement in the San Juan Islands community. He took a moment to thank the local supporters who have made SeaDoc’s work possible. For those who weren’t able to attend, we offer Joe’s thanks in this post.

Salish Sea Wild: The Scoop on Southern Resident Killer Whales

Salish Sea Wild: The Scoop on Southern Resident Killer Whales

In this episode, Team SeaDoc works with scientists trying to save the Salish Sea’s most iconic and endangered species: the Southern Resident killer whale. The goal is to collect critical health and diet data from each of the 73 surviving animals. So how does a wildlife veterinarian make a house call to do non-invasive medical tests on 10-ton killer whales in the open sea? It takes sharp eyes and a fine mesh net.

Ocean Night: Winter 2019-2020 Schedule

Ocean Night is back for another awesome season at the Sea View Theatre! See you there!

Browse the schedule and join us for a free night of family-friendly science. We’ll keep the theatre nice and warm, so don’t let the cool weather and the early nights keep you at home. Ocean Night is a perfect opportunity to engage with the community during the down season.

Plastic Packing Strap Removed From Sea Lion's Neck

Plastic Packing Strap Removed From Sea Lion's Neck

The SeaDoc Society joined forced with the Vancouver Aquarium marine mammal rescue staff and officers from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) last week at Race Rocks Ecological Reserve, a marine protected area near Sooke, on Vancouver Island. The teams were responding to reports of at least one Steller sea lion and one California sea lion seen entangled in plastic. 

On arrival by DFO boat to Race Rocks, and with the help of the Race Rocks Eco-Guardians, teams were able to spot a male Steller sea lion, weighing more than 1,000 pounds, with a plastic packing band wrapped tightly around its neck. The depth and severity of the wound indicated that the plastic had been there for some time.

Photos: REEF Divers Count Species Around Hornby Island

Photos: REEF Divers Count Species Around Hornby Island

This year REEF and SeaDoc Society’s Advanced Assessment Team was deployed at Hornby Island in British Columbia. The team spent a week doing REEF surveys of fish and invertebrates at the wonderful dive sites around Hornby Island in the Care of Hornby Island Diving. Visibility was quite good for most of the dive sites, reaching 60 feet a couple times. The Team did 10 dives at different sites and also added in a few dives right in front of the resort. This video by Ed Gullickson is just a few of the highlights of this effort.

Returning: Joe Gaydos on What Makes the Salish Sea Special

Returning: Joe Gaydos on What Makes the Salish Sea Special

The Salish Sea is a great example of a beautiful place where people and the natural world are dependent on one another. In scenic locales like protected national parks, people are not so much participating in nature as they are observing it. In the Salish Sea people are fishing, heating their homes with firewood, and more.

In this short segment is a “b-side” for the mini feature film, Returning. In the clip, SeaDoc Society Science Director Joe Gaydos reflects on what makes this ecosystem special.

Joe Gaydos to be Honored as Local Hero

Our Science Director, Joe Gaydos, will be honored with the Local Hero Award at the Friday Harbor Film Festival on San Juan Island this fall! The award will be presented at 7pm on October 27th, the final night of the festival. If you’re interested in attending the event, which takes place at the Whittier Theatre at the San Juan Community Theatre, check out their website for ticket information.

What the Loss of 3 Southern Resident Killer Whales Means

What the Loss of 3 Southern Resident Killer Whales Means

In early August, three Southern Resident killer whales were declared dead by the Center for Whale Research. That brings the population down to just 73. Each of the dead whales are from separate Southern Resident pods. 

“There is nothing good about losing three animals in a population that was numbered at 76,” said SeaDoc Science Director Joe Gaydos. “In no way can I find a silver lining to this news.”

Deep Green Wilderness Sets Sail to Find the Rarest Whale in the World

Deep Green Wilderness Sets Sail to Find the Rarest Whale in the World

A local crew of sailors and marine scientists are leaving on an expedition this week to look for the rarest whale in the world, the North Pacific right whale.

The expedition will be led by Kevin Campion, founder of marine education nonprofit Deep Green Wilderness and member of SeaDoc Society’s Board of Directors. Campion and a crew of four are setting sail out of Dutch Harbor, Alaska on Wednesday, August 14, en route to the Bering Sea to continue their search for the rare whale.

Team SeaDoc Does the Salish Splash! (VIDEO)

The Salish Splash is an annual event that brings awareness to the Salish Sea and its many species. Our Science Director Joe Gaydos was challenged by Mindy Roberts of the Washington Environmental Council. After doing a backflip for this event last year, Joe wanted to take it up a notch, so he invited all of Team SeaDoc to join him for an even bigger splash! What better way to show your support and enthusiasm for orca recovery and Salish Sea health than by jumping for joy into the water?  

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Where On Earth Is the Salish Sea?

Where On Earth Is the Salish Sea?

Less than half of the people in Washington and British Columbia have heard of the Salish Sea, even though they live alongside it.

That’s according to a recent study from The SeaDoc Society, a program of the University of California, Davis’ School of Veterinary Medicine, and Oregon State University. The study reveals that only 5 percent of people in Washington and 14 percent of British Columbians can identify the Salish Sea—the marine ecosystem that spans the United States-Canada border and includes both Seattle and Vancouver.

Ocean Outbreak: Confronting the Rising Tide of Marine Disease (Book Review)

Ask any ocean lover to name the biggest threats to ocean conservation and you’ll get a list so long it will make you uncomfortable: derelict fishing gear, increasing underwater noise, invasive species, ocean acidification, overharvest, plastics, toxins, warming water, and so on.

What you probably won’t hear is the word disease—not because the agents of disease are microscopic and out of sight, but because we know so little about how they affect the marine environment. Most people have never thought of parasites and pathogens as agents of change or important ocean stressors.

Knowing, Connecting, and Protecting the Salish Sea (Joe Gaydos at Huxley College of the Environment)

Knowing, Connecting, and Protecting the Salish Sea (Joe Gaydos at Huxley College of the Environment)

Our Science Director Joe Gaydos spoke Western Washington early this year as part of their Huxley Speaker Series. He discussed the importance of having a sense of place when it comes to protecting an ecosystem like the Salish Sea. How can you work to protect something if you don’t first connect with it? Watch the presentation below to hear more. Thanks to Huxley College for hosting us!

Exciting New Faces at SeaDoc Society!

Exciting New Faces at SeaDoc Society!

We’re excited to announce two exciting additions and (one transition) to the greater SeaDoc team!

Laura Donald is our newest member of the the Board of Directors and Marco Hatch and Marguerite Pappaioanou have joined our Science Advisory Committee. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have all three of them in these roles! Their insight and drive will be immensely valuable as we carve our way through 2019 and beyond with science as our foundation and new outreach and education opportunities on the horizon.