The Tacoma News Tribune reported on the latest project of Tacoma Power's hydroelectric program on the North Fork of the Skokomish River, as part of the 2009 settlement with the Skokomish…
The steelhead population in the Skokomish River has doubled since the Skokomish Tribe started a supplementation project in 2006, part of a 16 year-long project to boost the steelhead population in Hood Canal.
“The increase in the number of egg nests has given us an early indication that the project is working, but the long-term monitoring will be the true test of its success,” said Matt Kowlaski, the tribe’s steelhead biologist. “We expect numbers to continue to increase over the next four years because there will be active supplementation of steelhead into the river. After the project is over, we expect the egg nest numbers to likely flatten out or decrease, but hopefully remain at elevated levels.” (more…)
Construction has started on the Skokomish River with the expectation that sockeye salmon will return to the river after being absent for nearly a decade. The Kitsap Sun (subscription required)…
The Skokomish Tribe has strategically placed nearly 100 cinderblocks on the Skokomish tidelands with hopes of attracting an invasive shellfish, the ornate Japanse oyster drill.
“Oyster drills are known to seek out hard vertical structures to gather and lay their egg cases, so by experimentally baiting them with cinder blocks, we’re hoping to lessen their impacts on our oyster seed,” said Chris Eardley, the tribe’s Shellfish Biologist. “We’re going to try and use the biology of these creatures against them.”
The snails release a pheromone to attract others, so Eardley hopes his 72 cinder blocks across eight acres of tidelands will be covered with snails and eggs soon, which will be collected by the staff and removed from the tidelands. The tribe is employing a few methods of drill control and will do an end-of-season survey in late summer to see if the population decreased. (more…)
Members of the Skokomish Watershed Action Team, which includes the Skokomish Tribe, have been collaborating for a decade on how to best restore the Skokomish watershed, located at the southern…
Fishermen in Hood Canal saw a record number of fall chum salmon return this year with an expected runsize of 1.4 million. Tribal and state managers reported that tribal and…
Skokomish Tribe shellfish technician William Williams leans over the side of a boat and drops a cement block bristling with Pacific oyster shells into the water near the Skokomish tidelands.…
Kneeling in a thicket of vegetation in the Skokomish estuary, Shannon Kirby combs her hands through the tall green grasses in front of her, calling out codes that identify them…
The Skokomish Tribe is upgrading its water quality lab to a state-of-the-art facility. The tribe recently purchased high-end water quality lab equipment from the Shoalwater Bay Tribe to conduct more…
The Skokomish Tribe has solid data showing how salmon are using the Skokomish Tidelands after a year of monitoring the 400-acre restored estuary. While the tribe monitors the estuary year…