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.
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.
After nearly a decade of valuable guidance as a member of SeaDoc Society's Scientific Advisory Committee, we want to thank Jamie Donatuto for her service! Jamie has helped shape SeaDoc Society's science funding since 2017 in her capacity as community environmental health analyst for the Swinomish Tribe. SeaDoc Soiety has funded dozens of projects to the tune of many hundreds of thousands of dollars since Jamie joined the committee 9 years ago.
Can I tell you a story that changed my life?
We crested the hill on the west side of San Juan Island and watched as Haro Strait opened up before us. It was July 7th, 1987—my 18th birthday.
Next came the sound of blows echoing across the water, and there they were: nearly a hundred Southern Resident Killer Whales all within calling distance of each other! I would later learn that every member of J, K, and L Pods was in attendance that day. A true Superpod.
I stepped out of the car and started to cry.
SeaDoc Society is thrilled to welcome two new members to our Scientific Advisory Committee, which plays a vital role in our mission to fund and conduct impactful science here in the Salish Sea. Our newest members are Tim Ragen and Noelani Villa, both of whom bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to our team.
A lifelong marine scientist and conservation leader, Tim Ragen has spent decades advancing the protection of ocean wildlife. Meanwhile Noelani Villa is blending science, culture and community to help shape a more resilient future for Tribal nations and coastal ecosystems. Learn more about Tim and Noelani below! Welcome to the team!
Julia Bluth is a 15-year-old SeaDoc supporter who lives in Sacramento. Two years ago, she held a garage sale to raise money for SeaDoc as her Bat Mitzvah community service project. She raised more than $1,000 and will be a lifelong supporter! Julia even wants to study marine biology and work for SeaDoc herself someday!
We caught up with her to ask a few questions about herself and the sea!
In 2012, scientists discovered a dead harbor porpoise with a fungal disease that had not been previously documented in marine mammals in the Salish Sea. Over the next eight years, 20 more marine mammals were diagnosed with that same disease: mucormycosis.
Mucormycosis is caused by a group of fungi called Mucorales, things commonly found in organic matter. People, terrestrial animals and marine mammals are all routinely exposed with little to no effects so long as they have no underlying health issues that weaken the immune system. However, once it takes hold, this disease spreads quickly and has a very high mortality rate.
SeaDoc was recently featured on the brand-new San Juan Island Community network, which you can check out here!
In this segment, Science Director Dr. Joe Gaydos talks Southern Resident killer whales, shares SeaDoc’s efforts to engage kids in marine conservation through its free curriculum, Junior SeaDoctors, and offers a sneak peak into SeaDoc’s ‘entertainment zone’ with film director Bob Friel.
SeaDoc Society is excited to fund a project that will study the effects of pollution on surf smelt embryos, which could not only improve conservation of the species, but also our ability to measure pollution in general.
Surf smelt are small fish that play a huge role in the food chain, serving as a key food source for sport fish, including the salmon that feed the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales. Similar to other forage fish including Pacific herring and sand lance, surf smelt spawn near the shore in areas most vulnerable to land-based pollution.
The SeaDoc Society’s latest funded research project will focus on surf smelt habitat, which is being increasingly encroached upon by urban development. There are currently no monitoring methods for assessing the role of contaminants on the health of this important fish.
Not only is Apple State Vinegar a wonderful product that comes in just about the most beautiful bottle you have ever seen, but the company’s owners are also champions of wildlife! Six percent of all Apple State Vinegar profits gets donated to organizations that restore clean ocean habitats—one of which is SeaDoc Society! They are also one of the sponsors for our upcoming Cheers to 20 Years virtual event and will have a featured raffle prize.
We asked them why ocean conservation is a key part of their product, from the design to the charitable giving:
We’re excited to announce the latest addition to our team, Michelle Cartier Homewood! Michelle comes aboard to help SeaDoc on the admin and operations side of things. While the pandemic has changed things, we’re as busy as ever and Michelle has already proven to be an excellent addition as we prepare for our Cheers to 20 Years virtual event on September 17.
Last week, our Science Director, Joe Gaydos, presented to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission about an upcoming decision they face concerning new whale watching guidelines.
Like most of SeaDoc's science-based work, our efforts are integrated and layered to be more effective at driving conservation. Here’s how how something like this presentation (which you can read in full here) comes about and how it can help drive change:
Ocean Acidification is projected to have a major impact on marine ecosystems and resources in the years ahead. A recent SeaDoc-funded study determined the biological risks facing the Salish Sea if current levels of human-caused Ocean Acidification exposure are maintained.
Through years of groundbreaking science, Nina Bednaršek, who led the team that conducted the study and was awarded SeaDoc’s 2018 Salish Sea Science Prize, discovered that tiny marine mollusks called pteropods could be used to understand the biological effects of Ocean Acidification—a growing threat due to human-caused pollution. Pteropod, whose shells deteriorate with increased acidification, are an indicator species for the ecosystem as a whole.
You may already know Jean Lyle, who worked at SeaDoc for 10 amazing years and remains part of our extended family. She’s a truly wonderful person and a lover of the natural world, most specifically the Salish Sea. If there’s a body of water, she’s swimming it in. If there’s a trail, she’s hiking it.
A few years ago, Jean pledged a legacy gift to the SeaDoc Society, and she shares her reasons below. A legacy gift is a planned future donation - a way to make an investment in something you care about after you are gone. It also can make a difference for you. Legacy giving can provide important tax benefits, including a charitable income tax deduction or savings on capital gains taxes. Gifts can be structured to give you lifetime use of your property or lifetime income from your investments. It’s what we call a win-win.
We’re thrilled to announced the latest addition to our Board of Directors, Eleanor Parks.
Eleanor was born and raised in the Seattle area and spent her youth plying the waters of the Salish Sea, including the San Juan and Gulf Islands, where she developed a passion for the region and a commitment to place-based conservation. She and her husband and also have a cabin on Lopez Island.
Have you managed a dedicated team? Do you have demonstrated fundraising experience? Do you know how to engage a high-level Board of Directors and shepherd a team towards the big, hairy and audacious, but critical, goal of creating a healthy Salish Sea? If so, we have the opportunity for you.
The SeaDoc Society is hiring a Regional Director to provide development and management leadership for our team. This is a position within the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. The person hired will work closely with our Science Director, Dr. Joe Gaydos, our Executive Director Dr. Kirsten Gilardi, and our Board of Directors to advance SeaDoc's overall mission in the Salish Sea. She/he also will oversee and manage SeaDoc Society outreach, education and administrative staff and workloads.
How were Vancouver Island’s Nuu-chah-nulth people, California red abalone, Chinese quicksilver, and 18th century Spanish Treasure Fleets connected to each other? In two enlightening pages, author Ann Vileisis weaves a fascinating story of world trade for bright shiny objects, plush furs, and technology that illuminate a web of dependency among the Salish Sea, China, California, Mexico, and Spain all tied to a big marine snail with a miraculous shell—abalone. It’s an engaging introduction.
Dean and Audrey Stupke have championed SeaDoc's efforts to heal the Salish Sea through science and education for well over a decade. They've regularly donated to our annual GiveBig campaign and our Wine & Sea auction, both of which are crucial to making our science-based work possible. They are also a long-time sponsor of our Ocean Night event series each winter, helping us bring amazing speakers and educational films to Orcas Island.
Scientists learn a lot about marine mammal health from stranded animals. Afterall, marine mammals don’t spend much time above water, so they’re pretty hard to study. Studying stranded animals teaches us about diseases that are important for marine mammal health and human health. But finding stranded animals is challenging, because everything from tides and currents to coastal conditions can determine where a dead animal might end up on shore. And are there really such things as stranding hotspots?
Pinto abalone populations in the Salish Sea have been decimated after years of poaching and over-harvest, falling by 98 percent in recent decades. There are not enough remaining in the wild for them to reproduce naturally because they are “broadcast spawners,” meaning if one releases sperm, a female needs to release her eggs close enough to be fertilized.
When abalone are not close enough to other reproductively active abalone there can be no reproduction, making them functionally extinct in the wild.
The European green crab is a damaging invasive species that has wreaked havoc on ecosystems around the world, and recently they’ve found their way into the Salish Sea. Thanks to Washington Sea Grant’s Crab Team, major scientifically based efforts are being made to stop its spread before it starts. For this use of science to improve the health of the Salish Sea, this Earth Day they have been announced as winners of the SeaDoc Society’s 2020 Salish Sea Science Prize, which comes with a $2,000 no-strings-attached cash award.
When introduced into ecosystems outside of its native range, the green crab’s impact has been both ecological and economic. Not only do they disturb native habitat, displace resident species and alter natural food webs, but they have decimated shellfish industries upon which livelihoods depend. Amid the current COVID-19 pandemic, the Crab Team’s work is a reminder that intervention is most effective before the impacts of an invasion even become visible.
Three different types of killer whales can be found in the Salish Sea. They don’t mix, even though they look similar to humans and live in the same place. They are genetically distinct, and they don’t breed with one another. They have different calls, different behavioral patterns, and they eat different prey.
As many of you may have already guessed, we have canceled the 2020 SeaDoc Society Wine & Sea Auction due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. This event was originally planned for July 11th on Orcas Island. This annual fundraiser is one of our favorite days of the year because it allows us to gather with you, our supporters, and celebrate our shared accomplishments and make investments in future ones. At this time, however, our collective health is most important, and we look forward to the time when we can come together again.
