Justin Cox
Meet Our 3 New Board Members: Scott White, Barb ...

The SeaDoc Board is instrumental to our mission here in the Salish Sea. Scott, Barb, and Jeff bring unique expertise, passion, and dedication to our team and we’re so excited to have them! View the whole board here and learn more about Scott, Barb and Jeff below.

Justin Cox
A Non-Invasive Tool For Collecting Killer Whale ...

Drones can be powerful tools in gathering important health data about wildlife, including marine species like the Salish Sea’s endangered killer whales. Scientists have already established the benefits of collecting breath samples to monitor orca health, but we wanted to scientifically understand if it is less invasive than previous sampling methods–namely the use of a long pole with a petri dish extended from a nearby boat toward the whale’s blowhole.

A new study published in the peer-reviewed journal, Marine Mammal Science, led by SeaDoc Society Research Assistant Catherine Lo, answered that question by analyzing more than 1,000 drone-collected killer whale breath samples. 

A Non-Invasive Tool For Collecting Killer Whale Breath Samples
Justin Cox
Meet SeaDoc's Newest Science Advisors, Caitlin ...

This summer, our brilliant Scientific Advisory Committee gathered in Seattle to assess and ultimately determine funding for five new critical research projects here in the Salish Sea. You can read about those here.

Our Science Advisors are a vital part of our mission, and we’re excited to introduce two exciting new additions. They are Caitlin Magel of Puget Sound Institute and Phil Bloch of Confluence Environmental Company. We asked them a few questions so you can get to know them a bit better. 

Welcome Caitlin and Phil! 

Justin Cox
SeaDoc Announces More than $200,000 in New ...

We're excited to announce that SeaDoc Society will fund five new scientific research projects aimed at improving the longterm health of the Salish Sea. Each project was carefully reviewed and selected by our Scientific Advisory Committee and funded through your donations from people like you.

We look forward to sharing more about each of these as fieldwork ramps up, but here is a brief look at the newly funded projects:

SeaDoc Announces More than $200,000 in New Funded Research
Justin Cox
Joe Gaydos Elected to Washington State Academy ...

The Washington State Academy of Sciences has elected 36 new members in recognition of their outstanding record of scientific and technical achievement. Among the select group in this year’s slate is SeaDoc Society Science Director Joe Gaydos!

Joe Gaydos Elected to Washington State Academy of Sciences

herring

Recovering Herring Stocks Through Indigenous Practices  

Recovering Herring Stocks Through Indigenous Practices  

Herring are a small species of fish, but they play an outsized role in the food web, culture, and the economy here in the Salish Sea and beyond. These small forage fish provide food for larger fish, birds and marine mammals all throughout the sea. If herring stocks suffer, as many of them currently do, the ecosystem-wide ripple effect is large.

A new SeaDoc-funded study will test herring recovery tools adapted from Indigenous practices to support or improve spawning and reproduction. The collaborative work will be led by Long Live the Kings, the Nisqually Indian Tribe, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the University of Washington.

Salish Sea Wild: The Salish Sea’s Greatest Spectacle

Salish Sea Wild: The Salish Sea’s Greatest Spectacle

Team SeaDoc witnesses the Pacific Northwest’s most awesome wildlife spectacle as more than 100 million spawning herring lure the greatest annual gathering of Salish Sea predators to the Strait of Georgia. Join us for front-row seats above and below the water as thousands of marine mammals and seabirds, hundreds of hungry raptors, and packs of killer whales assemble for the feast.

Ensuring the Future of Pacific Herring in the Salish Sea

Ensuring the Future of Pacific Herring in the Salish Sea

Herring are a small fish that play a big role up the food chain, and at the moment scientists don’t know nearly enough about their health status in the Salish Sea. That’s why SeaDoc funded a study that helped bring many top herring experts together for the first time–a crucial first step in ensuring their future.  

The team recently published a report, “Assessment and Management of Pacific Herring in the Salish Sea: Conserving and Recovering a Culturally Significant and Ecologically Critical Component of the Food Web,” which included the creation of a model that simulated how herring populations respond to key environmental stressors under various scenarios.