Justin Cox
Velcro Star Eating a Spotted Ratfish in the ...

Check out this velcro star with a spotted ratfish locked in a full nelson! SeaDoc Society scientists Joe Gaydos and Cat Lo came across this scene during a research dive in Howe Sound in British Columbia.

Justin Cox
Training The Trainers at Camp Orkila

Thousands of fifth-graders will cycle through Camp Orkila on Orcas Island this summer to engage with our marine ecosystem. As we round the corner into Spring, the counselors who will guide those kids (5,800 total!) are deep in preparation and training. 

Last week, our team was honored to lead a low-tide beach walk at Camp Orkila to train this year’s Orkila staff. All of the counselors received a signed copy of our best-selling (and award-winning!) book for fifth graders, Explore the Salish Sea: A Nature Guide for Kids. 

Training The Trainers at Camp Orkila
Justin Cox
Rochelle Severson and Kevin Campion Cycle off ...

After a decade of service on the SeaDoc Society’s Board of Directors, Rochelle Severson and Kevin Campion will cycle off, with Board Member Ardi Kveven taking over as Board Chair.

Justin Cox
Farewell Southern Resident IPA & Thank You ...

As I write this, sitting in The Woods taproom where Southern Resident is brewed, Two Beers has donated more than $15,000 in support of the SeaDoc Society’s collaborative work to save Southern Residents. 

Not to mention the story they’ve helped tell on thousands of boxes and cans sold throughout the Pacific Northwest over the last five years. In that initial creative design phase, their team was insistent that the whales’ story and SeaDoc’s mission be clear and prominent on the packaging. 

Farewell Southern Resident IPA & Thank You Two Beers Brewing
Justin Cox
Why are Killer Whales Harassing and Killing ...

For decades, fish-eating killer whales in the Pacific Northwest have been observed harassing and even killing porpoises without consuming them—a perplexing behavior that has long intrigued scientists.

A study published today in Marine Mammal Science, co-led by Deborah Giles of Wild Orca and Sarah Teman of the SeaDoc Society, a program of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, looked at more than 60 years of recorded interactions between Southern Resident killer whales and porpoises in the Salish Sea to better understand why they exhibit this behavior.

Why are Killer Whales Harassing and Killing Porpoises Without Eating Them?

joseph gaydos

Book Review: Between the Tides in Washington and Oregon

Book Review: Between the Tides in Washington and Oregon

Kelly, Klinger and Meyer are marine biologists. The real deal. They’ve spent most of their lives exploring and studying beaches and oceans. But their recent book, Between the Tides in Washington and Oregon, isn’t for pointy headed marine ecologists who study the minute details of riotous complexity of life that graces the coastline in this region. While scientifically on-point and detailed enough for a young marine biology student studying intertidal ecology, this book is really aimed at the average Joe. The non-expert. The newcomer or the dad or mom that want to explore the “why” with their kids as they journey to the ocean. This book won’t tell you the names of the thousands of plants and animals you’ll find at the shoreline. It’s bigger than that. This book will help you be a shoreline detective and increase your happiness index while at the beach.

Meet Our New Research Assistant, Catherine Lo!

Meet Our New Research Assistant, Catherine Lo!

We’re so excited to introduce our newest Research Assistant, Catherine Lo!

Cat’s predecessor, Sarah Teman, started her PhD program at the University of Washington this fall and we can’t wait to watch her bright future unfold! Like Sarah, Cat will work alongside Joe Gaydos on all things science and research here at SeaDoc Society. She joins us on Orcas Island this fall and has hit the ground running!

“Cat comes to SeaDoc with strong research skills and experience in data collection, data analysis, project management, scientific writing, and field work,” said SeaDoc Science Director Joe Gaydos. “Plus she loves the ocean and is a delightful person to work with. What’s not to like about that?”

How do Harbor Seals Behave After Rehabilitation & Release?

How do Harbor Seals Behave After Rehabilitation & Release?

A recent tracking study published by Samantha Sangster and Dr. Martin Haulena of the Vancouver Aquarium, and Co-authored by SeaDoc Society Science Director Joe Gaydos, shed some new information on the post-release outcome of rehabilitated harbor seals.

The study, titled “Interannual differences in postrelease movements of rehabilitated harbor seal pups (Phoca vitulina richardii) in the Salish Sea” and published in the June 2020 issue of Marine Mammal Science, built upon a study published by the SeaDoc Society in 2012 that looked at one year of wild and rehabilitated harbor seal weaned pup movements. The new study compares rehabilitated harbor seal movement over multiple years, telling a more nuanced story.