Puget Sound Institute

The next Salish Sea Science Roundtable is Tuesday, Dec 2 | 12:30 - 1:30. Hear from the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and Fisheries and Oceans Canada on salmon, clam, and crab research projects in Burrard Inlet. Register at: washington.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

How is Puget Sound doing? The 2025 State of the Sound report from the Puget Sound Partnership takes a candid look at the progress and challenges driving Puget Sound recovery. Among the takeaways: "When we do invest in recovery, we see results." stateofthesound.wa.gov

Experts expect the recent arrival of chum salmon to bring orcas back to Puget Sound | Puget Sound Institute UPDATE: Monday, Nov. 3 Whales return to Central Puget Sound without youngest calf All three pods of southern resident killer whales traveled into Central Puget Sound Sunday, making it as far south as ...

Updated SKRW news.

Investigation underway after humpback whale washes up dead in Howe Sound | CBC News An investigation is underway to determine what happened to the four-year-old humpback whale named Wisp.

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Puget Sound Marine Waters 2024 Overview | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound Since 2011, the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program has released the annual Puget Sound Marine Waters Overview report. The latest report combines a wealth of data from comprehensive monitoring pr...

The Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program released the latest Marine Waters Overview.
The report combines a wealth of data from comprehensive monitoring programs and provides a concise summary of what happened in Puget Sound’s marine waters during 2024.
#pugetsound #marinewaters #waterquality

Field notes: Sightings of marbled murrelets in Commencement Bay | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound Marbled murrelets are a rare sight in Puget Sound. The threatened birds have declined severely in California, Oregon, and Washington, and biologists are intrigued by their summer presence in Commencem...

Rare marbled murrelets in Commencement Bay? Wait, what? Biologist and science writer Eric Wagner reports for our magazine Salish Sea Currents on summer sightings of one of our region's most threatened bird species. www.eopugetsound.org/article/fiel...

With one mystery solved, researchers examine new strategies for sea star recovery | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound Knowing the cause of sea star wasting disease allows scientists to look for ways to increase resilience among the ravaged sea star population.

New in our magazine Salish Sea Currents: Knowing the cause of sea star wasting disease allows scientists to look for ways to increase resilience among the ravaged sea star population. Christopher Dunagan reports.
www.eopugetsound.org/article/one-...

October 7 roundtable about THORR, which maps river temperatures from space | Puget Sound Institute The Salish Sea Science Roundtable online speaker series continues on Tuesday, October 7 from 12:30 – 1:30 pm. The University of Washington’s Thermal History of Regulated Rivers (THORR) tool transforms...

EVENT TODAY: Mapping river temperatures from space.

Don't miss the Salish Sea Roundtable (10/7/25) from 12:30 – 1:30 pm. Learn how advanced data-driven techniques enable accessible mapping of water temps across remote streams — vital for salmon survival.
www.pugetsoundinstitute.org/october-7-ro...

Invasive snails harmful to oyster health Ornate little snails hanging out in the Skokomish estuary have sneaky intentions with Pacific oysters. Much like humans who love slurping oysters, so does the invasive Japanese oyster drill, a 1.5-inch brown snail that attaches itself to an oyster, drills a toothpick-size hole though the shell with its sharp tongue-like structure, then secretes a digestive enzyme into the oyster to liquefy and eat it.

Invasive snails harmful to oyster health

Ornate little snails hanging out in the Skokomish estuary have sneaky intentions with Pacific oysters. Much like humans who love slurping oysters, so does the invasive Japanese oyster drill, a 1.5-inch brown snail that attaches itself to an oyster, drills a…

What is driving ongoing contamination in Commencement Bay? | Puget Sound Institute Despite more than four decades of a Superfund cleanup along Tacoma’s industrial Tideflats, research suggests that large amounts of toxic chemicals like PCBs and PBDEs may still be entering the waterwa...

Contamination mystery in Commencement Bay

40+ years of Superfund cleanup, yet PCBs & PBDEs remain high in Commencement Bay. Scientists at the Center for Urban Waters are investigating undiscovered contamination sources.
#SuperfundSite #WaterQuality #PCBs #PugetSound #CommencementBay

Voices of experience: What collaborative leadership means for natural resources | Puget Sound Institute The challenges facing Puget Sound—from salmon recovery to climate resilience—demand more than technical expertise. They require leaders who can navigate complex relationships, build trust across diver...

What does collaborative leadership mean to you?
We asked 60+ WA natural resource practitioners. Their answers reveal a different approach to power and relationships.
Watch: key insights from some of these voices of experience shorturl.at/2Xy2J
#CollaborativeLeadership #PugetSound

Event: Microbial source tracking for Puget Sound.
Friday, 9/12, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm PT on Zoom.
A workshop presented by PSI and co-hosted with the Shellfish SIL. Explore emerging tools to track and reduce fecal pollution in Puget Sound. washington.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

New Puget Sound study examines when and where aquatic species may be deprived of oxygen | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound The project relies on the Salish Sea Model plus new information about the oxygen needs of various species to pinpoint danger areas.

New Puget Sound study maps "danger zones" where species face oxygen shortages using tolerance data for 150+ species including Chinook salmon, Dungeness crabs, and English sole. Hood Canal shows high risk for bottom-dwellers in late summer as waters warm.
#PugetSound #MarineBiology #ClimateChange

Person photographing a whale's tail fluke as it surfaces in calm water, with forested hills and residential development visible across the bay.

Virtual series: Conservation incentives for Puget Sound

3 free sessions: market methods (Sept 8), motivation strategies (Sept 18) & program evaluation (Sept 24).

𝘊𝘰-𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘗𝘚𝘐, 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘌𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘴, 𝘐𝘯𝘤., 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘖𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘯 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺.

Register now! shorturl.at/9A8yF

#PugetSound #Conservation

Ten years of confronting a costly green crab invasion in Puget Sound | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound Crab Team members maintain a massive surveillance program to track the population’s advance, while researchers probe the inner workings of the invasive species.

A decade into Puget Sound's green crab invasion: From one trapped in 2016 to nearly 200,000. Control efforts helped by citizen scientists and @waseagrant.bsky.social have evolved to functional eradication — controlling populations to keep damage manageable. #InvasiveSpecies #PugetSound #Conservation

Young Humpback Whale “Starry Knight” Freed from Second Entanglement in the Salish Sea - https://cascadiaresearch.org Community effort helps whale for the second time in just over a month San Juan Islands, WA [August 22, 2025] - For the second time in just over a month, responders with the Pacific Northwest Large Wha...

Follow-up: Young Humpback Whale "Starry Knight" Freed from Second Entanglement in Salish Sea. Community effort helps whale for the second time in just over a month. Report via Cascadia Research Collective. cascadiaresearch.org/young-humpba...

Wildlife refuges on the Olympic Peninsula under new, old management | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound One year ago this month, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe signed an agreement to become co-managers of two of Puget Sound’s most prominent national wildlife refuges...

Wildlife refuges on the Olympic Peninsula under new, old management www.eopugetsound.org/magazine/wil...

Threatened Guadalupe fur seals are finding their way into the Salish Sea | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound The threatened Guadalupe fur seal is not officially recognized as a Washington state marine mammal, but more than 200 strandings along the coast, and several sightings in the Salish Sea, suggest they ...

The threatened Guadalupe fur seal is not officially recognized as a Washington state marine mammal, but more than 200 strandings along the coast, and several sightings in the Salish Sea, suggest they are more common here than previously thought. www.eopugetsound.org/node/164596

August 15: Temperature-dependent oxygen supply and demand — a pilot on marine life vulnerability in Puget Sound | Puget Sound Institute Friday, August 15 from 11 am – 1 pm  We’re excited to continue the Science of Puget Sound Water Quality workshop series, which explores emerging science and insights to help protect water quality in P...

How do species in Puget Sound respond to low oxygen levels in the water? UW biologist Tim Essington says warmer waters squeeze marine life, decreasing oxygen supply while increasing demand. He presents today at PSI's virtual workshop on water quality. www.pugetsoundinstitute.org/august-15-te...

August 15: Temperature-dependent oxygen supply and demand — a pilot on marine life vulnerability in Puget Sound | Puget Sound Institute Friday, August 15 from 11 am – 1 pm  We’re excited to continue the Science of Puget Sound Water Quality workshop series, which explores emerging science and insights to help protect water quality in P...

Aug. 15 event: Temperature-dependent oxygen supply and demand — a pilot on marine life vulnerability in Puget Sound. Dr. Tim Essington presents new work on the impacts of low dissolved oxygen on aquatic species. Friday, Aug. 15 from 11 am – 1 pm (virtual).
www.pugetsoundinstitute.org/august-15-te...

Free microbial source tracking workshop: Fri Sep 12, 9:30a-12:30p PT on Zoom. Learn from U of Arizona and SCCWRP experts about protecting public health, restoring shellfish beds, E. coli sensors, and Puget Sound applications. Registration is required. shorturl.at/sfOT9
#WaterQuality #PugetSound

Scientists say they have solved the mystery of what killed more than 5 billion sea stars Scientists have solved the mystery of what killed over 5 billion sea stars — also known as starfish — off the Pacific coast of North America.

Scientists have solved the mystery of what killed over 5 billion sea stars — also known as starfish — off the Pacific coast of North America.

Coffee Chat Roulette is back! Network with others who care about Salish Sea ecosystem recovery.
We'll randomly pair you with someone for virtual or in-person coffee chats.

Sign up by August 8. shorturl.at/WbJk7

Biologists are tracking the recovery of a juvenile humpback whale rescued from entanglement in the Salish Sea in July, even as Canadian officials have received reports of more entangled humpbacks in British Columbia.
www.pugetsoundinstitute.org/juvenile-hum...