Salish Sea Estuaries & Birds
Each year, thousands of waterfowl, shorebirds, secretive marsh birds, and other coastal bird species rely on Salish Sea estuaries as critical wintering, breeding, and migratory stopover habitat. Many of these species have seen significant population declines in recent decades, in part due to the modification or loss of estuarine habitat to coastal development, agriculture, and other anthropogenic land use. Restoration efforts in recent years have made great strides toward revitalizing these landscapes, but avian responses to these actions at a regional scale are poorly understood.
Ongoing Research: How are we learning about estuary birds?
The Salish Seas Estuaries Avian Monitoring (SSEAM) Framework is a multi-year collaborative research project aimed to help us learn about how birds are using estuarine habitats in the Puget Sound region and beyond. The objectives of the Salish Seas Estuaries Avian Monitoring Framework are:
- To implement standardized study design and monitoring protocol
- Establish a network of regional partners for monitoring.
- Build a central, shared database for data input, storage, and access.
- To determine fine-scale regionally specific avian habitat associations and patterns of estuary use.
- Improve our understanding of avian estuary habitat use across Puget Sound and the greater Salish Sea region.
Data collected using the protocols outlined in the framework will allow practitioners to examine fine-scale habitat relationships and distribution, providing a foundation for informing estuary restoration efforts and predicting avian responses to management.
Learn more about why Ecostudies and partners have developed the SSEAM framework, the timeline of this project’s development, and how we are meeting the objectives of the project below.
Estuaries are tidal marshes found at the mouths of rivers or creeks, where saltwater and freshwater meet. Estuary ecosystems create a relatively gentle gradient of water salinity that can be used by a diverse host of species at different stages of their life cycle. These unique ecosystems have historically been modified for development, agriculture, and other human land use.
The Puget Sound is home to the largest estuary system in the US. The health of this highly interconnected ecosystem depends of the health of each of its components.
- Healthy Water – Estuaries help filter runoff and pollutants as they flow off the watersheds surrounding the Puget Sound. Responsible wastewater management is essential to decreasing the load of pollutants that the estuaries must handle, and in turn contribute to overall health of all animals and people that use the waters of the Salish Sea.
- Healthy Shellfish – Shellfish such as clams, oysters, and crabs thrive in the estuaries of the Puget Sound. They are economically and culturally important, having served as a nutrient-dense source of food for indigenous peoples throughout history, and contributing $270 million to Washington’s annual economy. Shellfish are sensitive to pollutants, so maintaining the health of the Salish Sea means healthy, sustainable shellfish harvests.
- Healthy Salmon – Estuaries are critical habitat for juvenile salmon because the salinity gradient helps them adjust to life in the ocean. Deep channels provide shelter from predators, and invertebrate diversity keeps them well-fed for their further journey out to sea. Adult salmon also use estuaries as a resting area where they adjust to the decreased salinity as they prepare to travel upstream to spawn.
- Healthy Birds – Estuaries are critical habitat for birds during the wintering, breeding, and migratory stopover stages of their life cycles. Every part of an estuary is used by a diverse host of bird species at different times of year, making it challenging for us to understand bird response to modification, loss, or restoration of estuary habitats. Birds are often indicators of overall ecosystem health – by understanding their behaviors in changing estuary habitats, we can address the factors contributing to population declines.
- Healthy People – Recreation in the Puget Sound region is frequently centered on the water. Clean water, healthy fish and shellfish, and beautiful landscapes are important for our wellbeing. Connection to their cultural food harvest practices and canoeing are important to the wellbeing of Indigenous peoples of the Salish Sea – supporting overall ecosystem health includes supporting people!
Diverse estuary vegetation at a Salish Sea Estuaries Avian Monitoring project site. Photo Credit: Isabel Brofsky
Webinar
Hosted by Ecostudies and Audubon WA in February 2024. Learn more about how we are implementing the framework at locations throughout Puget Sound, review study design and survey protocols, and hear from new and existing partners.
Public Involvement: How can I help?
There are opportunities for the public to support the Salish Sea Estuaries Avian Monitoring program, whether at home or alongside our biologists.
- Volunteer Work – The Salish Sea Estuaries Avian Monitoring program is not currently accepting volunteers, however, volunteer opportunities may become available as this project progresses. For more information, reach out to Isabel Brofsky at ibrofsky@ecoinst.org.
- Citizen Science – Ecostudies uses eBird historical records and observation data allow us to make inferences between past and present management strategies. By submitting observations of birds at estuary sites to eBird, the public can help biologists understand the bigger picture in conjunction with our structured survey protocol.
- Conservation At Home – Support for wild birds can be as simple as learning about your local wildlife, planting native species in your garden, and keeping your cats indoors. Being mindful of chemical runoff from private property helps keep the Puget Sound clean. Follow your city’s regulations about washing your car, disposing of household, automotive and marine chemicals, and consider reducing pesticide use.
- Vote – Policy plays an important role in the conservation of species that rely on estuaries, from clams to salmon to birds. You can be a voice for the Salish Sea estuaries by supporting federal and state legislation that limits the use of dangerous pesticides, improves infrastructure that handles runoff, designates land for protection, and allocates funding for conservation work, like what we do here at Ecostudies.
- Join The Crew – Ecostudies offers employment opportunities for seasonal work on the Salish Seas Estuary Monitoring project. Learn more about our currently available positions!
Contact
Are you a resource manager or biologist who would like to implement the framework at your site? We are looking to expand our network of partners throughout Puget Sound and the Pacific Northwest.
For more information, please reach out to Isabel Brofsky at ibrofsky@ecoinst.org.
