WA State voter Initiative No. 1401

We at SeaDoc have spent some time studying Washington State's proposed voter Initiative, Measure No. 1401. This Initiative is designed to increase Washington State's capacity to prosecute people for the intrastate trafficking of endangered species parts. There is already a federal mechanism for doing this, but this Initiative is proposed to strengthen our State's ability to address this issue.

SeaDoc took the time to look at this proposed voter Initiative (signatures are currently being collected to put it on the fall ballot) because multiple species of marine turtles, sharks and rays are included and we thought the SeaDoc family might have questions about the science backing the Initiative.

Like the elephant and rhinoceros, marine turtles, sharks and rays are species that are also being illegally harvested. Their illegal harvest and trafficking are playing a large role in the decimation of these populations. SeaDoc is not an advocacy group, nor do we lobby or take positions on policies, but we want you to know that from a scientific perspective, this Initiative works to address a real threat to marine turtles, sharks and rays. Species included are those that are currently listed in Appendix I or II of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) or are listed as critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable on the IUCN Red list of threatened species. While probably variable in degree of importance depending on the species, the illegal capture of these animals and sale of their parts for jewelry, food (like shark fin soup), or perceived medicinal purposes is a real threat to the long-term viability of their populations.

One local example of an affected species is the Basking shark. These magnificent plankton-eating sharks were once common in the Salish Sea, but were tragically extirpated by a targeted fishery. Recovery has been slow. On the international market, by-catch has been a problem for Basking sharks, but shark finning also has hindered recovery, especially when large "trophy fins" can command as much as $57,000 US (Clark, S., 2004, TRAFFIC, East Asia).

Click this link to read the entire initiative.

For more information on this Initiative, please see the following websites:

• Washington Rare Species Trafficking Measure, Initiative 1401 (2015), Ballotpedia
• Seattle Times: Paul Allen backs state ban on rare species trafficking
• Save Animals Facing Extinction website

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Banner photo: Leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). Courtesy of Alastair Rae via Flickr CC.

Coverage of Washington Department of Wildlife Citizen Award

The SeaDoc Society received a 2015 Citizen Award from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. From the press release:

Another organization honored during this year's ceremony was the SeaDoc Society, a program of the Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Health Center at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

Headquartered on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands, SeaDoc was recognized for efforts to protect Washington's salt-water habitats and wildlife. Its work in Washington includes data gathering, mapping and analysis on issues such as derelict fishing gear, marine bird population declines, orca whale disease, forage fish spawning areas and the status of tufted puffins.

"It's difficult to pare down a short list of the important contributions SeaDoc has made in working with the department," said Eric Gardner, WDFW wildlife program deputy assistant director. "They have been active, productive contributors on a surprising range of topics in support of Washington's marine wildlife and coastal ecosystems."

The award was covered in many news outlets, ranging from The Olympian to AmmoLand Shooting Sports News.

SeaDoc's Jen Renzullo quoted in LA Times article on whale entanglements

SeaDoc's Jen Renzullo, who works on derelict fishing gear programs in California, was quoted in a Los Angeles Times article about the record number of whales that have been entangled in crab fishing gear off the California coast.

“There are a couple of things going on here, and they’ve become political,” Jennifer Renzullo, a research biologist at UC Davis, said in an interview. “For some reason, perhaps because of unusual conditions at sea, humpback and gray whales that tend to migrate through the areas such as Monterey Bay have been spending more time there. Coincidentally, the crab population was healthiest there this year, in terms of harvesting.

“More fishing pressure,” she added, “combined with more whales hanging out in the area are contributing to a spike in entanglements.”

Read the full story at the Los Angeles Times website.

Tracking "Leo Henderson," a Steller sea lion pup

What do we learn from stranded marine mammals - and from tracking them after they are rehabilitated and released? In short, a lot!

Over the past few months, SeaDoc partnered with multiple other organizations to help a young Steller sea lion pup that stranded off the coast of Washington State. The effort has required complicated decisions about how to best provide care and release the animal back into the wild.

Steller sea lion pups nurse for about a year and have been known to stay with their mothers for up to three years. This pup stranded at about 4 months old.

It was initially recovered in October of 2014 by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Marine Mammal Investigations unit and was then transferred to PAWS Wildlife Center in Lynnwood, WA for stabilization, treatment, and care.

The pup was nicknamed "Henderson" after the Ocean Shores police officer that responded to the pup on the beach.

Due to the long length of rehabilitation needed for this animal to reach weaning age and the need to provide conspecifics during rehabilitation, the animal was moved from PAWS to The Marine Mammal Center (TMMC) in Sausalito, CA.

In partnership with the United States Coast Guard the pup was flown from Seattle, WA on a C-130 training flight to Sacramento, CA on November 13, 2014. The Marine Mammal Center staff called him "Leo" (as the name "Henderson" was already in use by another patient) as they continued his care and rehabilitation.

The Marine Mammal Center outfitted Leo with a satellite tag and in mid-April WDFW staff released Leo Henderson on the outer coast of Washington State. SeaDoc is funding the satellite time to track him post-release. The goal is to monitor his activity and learn about how rehabilitated pups survive along the outer coast of Washington. The tracking is a joint project of NOAA, WDFW, PAWS, TMMC, SeaDoc, and SeaTurtle.org. Check out his travels to date.

You can sign up for free daily email updates on his location from SeaTurtle.org - it's pretty fun to watch his movements.

Regarding the map (per the seaturtle.org website):

• The presentation of data here does not constitute publication. All data remain copyright of the project partners. Maps or data on this website may not be used or referenced without the explicit written consent of the data owners.
• For more information please visit the project website.
• This map connects positions generated by the ARGOS system designated as location class (lc) '4', '3', '2', '1'. Locations that have been "filtered" are displayed as small red dots.
• This maps also shows locations of class '0', 'A', 'B', 'Z', 'X' as small black dots which are not connected by a route line.
• Bathymetry layers are derived from the GEBCO One Minute Grid.
• Sea surface temperature and chlorophyll are derived from NASA's Ocean Color data.
• Ocean currents and sea surface heights are derived from AVISO's Ssalto/Duacs Gridded Absolute Dynamic Topography & absolute geostrophic velocities data.

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Banner photo: Leo Henderson makes a dash for the water. Photo courtesy of Robin Lindsey.

GiveBIG to SeaDoc on May 5

You're awesome! Thanks for jumping in to the biggest one-day giving event in the Pacific Northwest and making a BIG impact on the health of the Salish Sea! On Tuesday, May 5 (and not before!) make a secure donation to the SeaDoc Society.

Your donation will be stretched by the partial challenge match from The Seattle Foundation. Plus every donation has a chance to be one of 5 Golden Tickets, which earns you a cool gift card and automatically earns SeaDoc an extra $1000, donated by the Seattle Foundation.

Thank you!

SeaDoc killer whale stranding research referenced for Northern California stranding

In April 2015 a dead male orca stranded near Fort Bragg, California. In an article about the stranding, the Lost Coast Outpost referred to the rarity of finding dead orcas. "A 2013 study analyzing North Pacific killer-whale strandings back to 1925 noted that, "while orcas are some of the most widely distributed whales on Earth, very few dead ones are ever found." That 2013 study is our Spatial and temporal analysis of killer whale (Orcinus orca) strandings in the North Pacific Ocean and the benefits of a coordinated stranding response protocol, published in Marine Mammal Science.

Here's the article at Lost Coast Outpost.

The orca was found with derelict crab gear wrapped around its tail.

SeaDoc helps Coast Salish Tribes and First Nations study multiple impacts of energy projects

People talk about a new coal terminal. Others about a new pipeline. Some worry about increased shipment of crude oil by rail. But what’s the cumulative impact of all the energy projects being proposed for the Salish Sea? That’s the question that was addressed at a recent meeting of the Coast Salish Gathering, where SeaDoc scientist Joe Gaydos and Swinomish Tribal biologist Jamie Donatuto discussed a study they undertook last year.

Between coal terminals, oil pipeline terminals, liquefied natural gas terminals, and the increased shipment of coal and Bakken shale oil by train, there are at least 6 major energy transportation projects proposed, some in Canada and others in the United States.

Last summer, the Coast Salish Tribes asked SeaDoc investigate this issue. Joe, Jamie and SeaDoc summer intern Sofie Thixton evaluated how these energy projects will impact Coast Salish Tribes and First Nations. Impacts from each of the proposed or on-going projects included oil spills from vessels, increased underwater noise, vessel strikes to animals, shoreline development, pipeline spills, etc. For each of these potential impacts, they evaluated the potential effect on a multitude of species that are important to the Coast Salish.

This work was unique because it looks at all projects simultaneously, whereas most projects evaluating impact only look at one project at a time. The Coast Salish have always seen the Salish Sea as a single ecosystem and this study does too.

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Image by SeaDoc.

Lost Gear short film features SeaDoc work to recover commercial crab traps

Lost Gear from TruthBeTold on Vimeo.

This short film features a surfer, a commercial crab fisherman, and a sustainable seafood restaurant owner. The commercial crabbing section features work by SeaDoc's Kirsten Gilardi and Jen Renzullo to set up a sustainable commercial crab pot recovery program off the coast of Northern California.

Seattle Magazine recommends Salish Sea book

Seattle Magazine recommended SeaDoc's book, The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest, in a spread in its March issue.

The new book The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest (Sasquatch Books, $24.95) looks at these local waters through a scientific lens, illustrating the region’s unique geology (thanks to glaciers, plate tectonics and volcanoes) and vibrant marine ecology. Written by biologist Audrey DeLella Benedict with Joseph K. Gaydos, chief scientist for the SeaDoc Society (an Orcas Island–based conservation group focused on the Salish Sea), the book pairs bright, bold, photographs with fascinating facts about local sea creatures. (Did you know that the Salish Sea is home to the world’s largest species of barnacle, octopus and burrowing clam?)

Read the article at the Seattle Magazine website.

SeaDoc helps complete necropsy of J32, Rhapsody

Closeup of killer whale teeth by J. Gaydos

Since publishing the first comprehensive paper on diseases of killer whales in 2004, SeaDoc has worked with collaborators to learn more about diseases of killer whales and how they might impact recovery of the endangered southern resident population. Last week, that tradition continued. SeaDoc's Joe Gaydos, working with scientists from NOAA, UC Santa Cruz and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, completed the necropsy of beloved southern resident J32, known to killer whale enthusiasts as Rhapsody. In December, J32 was found dead near Comox, British Columbia. Led by Dr. Steve Raverty of UBC, researchers from 8 different organizations, including Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans, First Nations and the Vancouver Aquarium conducted a necropsy on the beach. They found she was pregnant with a near term fetus that had died. J32 was unable to expel the fetus and became sick and died. The head was sent to the United States for more extensive diagnostics.

While examining the head last week, Gaydos and Dyanna Lambourn of WDFW found roundworm parasites in and around the ears. While these were not associated with the stranding, it does add to our understanding of killer whale health. The ears were dissected out for CT scan at the VCA Veterinary Specialty Center of Seattle where preliminary evaluation showed nothing significant. During the necropsy, scientists from NOAA took samples to try to better understand how killer whales use the muscles in their heads to create sound. When all testing is completed, a final necropsy report will be prepared.

Rob Williams named as 2015 PEW Marine Fellow

Canadian scientist Dr. Rob Williams, a past SeaDoc-funded scientist, has been named as a 2015 Pew Marine Fellow. Williams is a marine conservation scientist with the Oceans Initiative and Oceans Research & Conservation Association. The prestigious award will support Williams' effort to identify solutions to reduce ocean noise in important marine habitats. Evidence shows that ocean noise caused by people is doubling every decade, and the effects of this increased noise on sea creatures are not well understood.

Learn more about Rob's work on ocean noise.

Williams is one of five distinguished scientists and conservationists from Canada, Australia, Russia, and the United Kingdom to be named a 2015 recipient of the Pew fellowship in marine conservation. For more on the Pew marine fellows, visit their website.

The SeaDoc Society funded Dr. Williams' study to determine if the accidental capture of porpoise and dolphins by commercial fishermen in British Columbia was impacting the health of these populations. Williams was also a co-investigator on a SeaDoc-funded study by Dr. Erin Ashe to use photo identification to study the population dynamics of Pacific white-sided dolphins.

Here's a video from Pew about Rob's work:

Sea lion rescue featured in Islands Sounder

Our work to rescue sea lions that are entangled in marine debris was featured on the front page of the Islands' Sounder on February 18.

“The biggest challenge when working with a 1,400-pound animal is obviously safety - for the people and for the animal,” said Gaydos, chief scientist and regional director of the Orcas-based SeaDoc Society, which conducts and sponsors scientific research in the Salish Sea. “You don’t want anybody to get hurt and you don’t want the animal to get hurt.”

Read the article at the Islands' Sounder.

National Geographic features SeaDoc work on birds and forage fish

Often overlooked, forage fish are a key part of the food web, and they’re vital to the well-being of threatened and endangered birds, fish, and marine mammals. A recent National Geographic article by Craig Welch puts a spotlight on the controversy over herring harvest, and references SeaDoc’s important paper in Conservation Biology that showed that diving seabirds that eat exclusively forage fish are 16 times more likely to be in decline than bird species with wider diets.

Read the article at the National Geographic website.

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Banner photo: Herring (not Pacific herring). Courtesy of Jacob Botter via Flickr. Creative Commons 2.0.

Geology and bathymetry of the San Juan Islands

This bathymetric map of the San Juan Islands shows the depth of the water throughout the islands, as well as the geology of the islands.

Originally published within "Geology and Seafloor Bathymetry of the San Juan Islands" produced by Greene, H.G,. Dieter, B., Endris, C. Lopez, H., Murai, L., and Erdey, M. of the Center for Habitat Studies, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.

You can download the entire 11.7MB file using the link above.

Detailed bathymetry, backscatter, and habitat maps of the San Juan Islands archipelago

The following maps were produced by the Center for Habitat Studies at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in cooperation with Tombolo, the SeaDoc Society, Natural Resources Canada, and the Canadian Hydrographic Service.

Each quadrant has three maps: bathymetry, backscatter, and habitat.

Quadrant 1:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 2:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 3:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Quadrant 4:

• Bathymetry
• Backscatter
• Habitat

Board member Dr. Deborah Brosnan inducted into Irish Education 100

Photo by Dorothy Davis.

Dr. Deborah Brosnan, a founding member of the SeaDoc Society's Board, was recently honored as a Irish Education 100 fellow. The award honors Irish educators who have had an impact on the education system of the United States. A marine scientist, Brosnan was recognized for her work on ocean ecosystem hazards and their effects on humans. Brosnan's organization, the Brosnan Center, focuses on ocean ecosystems, building resilience for environmental disasters and extreme events, integrating science to solve pressing problems, and planning for a changing world.

Read the award citation PDF.

Congratulations, Deborah!

Saving a sea lion off Vancouver Island

Dr. Lesanna Lahner from the Seattle Aquarium and Paul Cottrell of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada keep the sea lion close to the boat. Photo: J. Gaydos

Earlier in the week Joe Gaydos was able to work with a skilled team of experts from the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada and the Seattle Aquarium to disentangle a 1,400 lb. Steller sea lion that was being strangled by a piece of packing strap. The animal was immobilized by remote injection of an anesthetic cocktail. Once it was sedated, the team cut the packing strap loose and reversed the anesthesia, allowing the fully recovered animal to swim away free.

Plastic packing strap removed from sea lion

Like any complex procedure performed by trained experts, this procedure looks rather straight forward to any onlooker, but is actually the product of years of development by Dr. Marty Haulena and colleagues. It requires a skilled team of boat drivers, biologists, veterinarians and veterinary technicians.

Gaydos and Seattle Aquarium Veterinarian Dr. Lesanna Lahner are working with NOAA Fisheries to import the protocol into Washington and Oregon.

See more photos at the Vancouver Aquarium's Marine Mammal Rescue Centre's Facebook page.

Invasive isopods in the Salish Sea

Juvenile invasive isopod Ianiropsis serricaudis on alga. Scale bar 0.3mm. Photo by Eric Lazo-Wasem, from Hobbs, et al., 2015

A recent publication on the global introduction of the Asian isopod Ianiropsis serricaudis was a by-product of a study we funded to evaluate the impact of invasive tunicates in the Salish Sea (Cordell et al., 2012). The publication shows that this invasive isopod is well-established in communities of fouling organisms throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

While the actual ecological impact of this isopod in the Salish Sea (or in other areas where it has been introduced) is unknown, it is interesting that in multiple places, including Puget Sound, its presence is strongly associated with the introduced tunicate Didemnum vexillum or with other introduced ascidians including Botrylloides violates and Styela clava.

Sometimes, such as with this paper, science only reveals small pieces of the mosaic, but with continued work it ultimately helps us see and understand the larger picture, which hopefully will permit us to better design health coastal ecosystems!

Prevention of disease in domestic animals is an important tool in wildlife health

Did you know that diseases like canine distemper virus can spread from domestic dogs to wildlife? It's a problem around the world, with infections in lions, tigers, hyenas, ferrets, North American river otters, raccoons, bears, and more. Two seal species, Baikal and Caspian seals, have also experienced distemper outbreaks. In January 2015, Joe Gaydos presented a paper titled Canine Distemper in Wildlife: How Private Practitioners Can Help at the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando, Florida.

Proper vaccination of domestic animals can help contain outbreaks. A similar virus, Rinderpest, which circulated between wild and domestic animals in Africa, was eradicated after a massive campaign to vaccinate domestic livestock.

In 2008, SeaDoc published a paper investigating whether the Giardia and Cryptosporidium parasites in harbor seals in the Salish Sea were connected with canine parasites.

Video of lion with distemper:

Canine teeth comparison - Steller sea lion to harbor seal

Adult harbor seal canine tooth vs Steller sea lion canine tooth. Photo: J. Gaydos

Did you know that seals, sea lions and other animals put down annular growth rings on their teeth? This means that you can age an animal that has died by counting the growth rings on a sectioned tooth much like you can do for a tree that has been cut down. We were pulling teeth to age some stranded animals as part of our collaborative work with the Whale Museum and San Juan County Marine Mammal Stranding Network and were once again amazed at how large Steller sea lions are. Check out this shot comparing lower canines of an adult harbor seal and a Steller sea lion!