10/30 Diatryma, wolf protection, warm Pilchuck R, Colstrip sale, glass sponge reef, PS crabber

Diatryma [Marlin Peterson/WWU]

Diatryma
Fifty million years ago, there were giant, 7-foot-tall chickens wading around palm trees in the subtropical swamp that is now Whatcom County. And the remnants of this geology are still present. Those chickens were Diatryma, a flightless bird whose tracks were found in sandstone slabs uncovered by a mudslide above Racehorse Creek east of Deming and discovered by Western Washington University geologists in 2009. Ron Kleinknecht writes in "The Chuckanut Formation in Our Backyard." (Whatcom Watch)

Wolves To Lose Federal Protection In Washington And Oregon, Conservation Groups Vow A Fight
The federal government says it will remove endangered species protections for gray wolves in the Lower 48. The move will reduce protections for the predators in the western two-thirds of Washington and Oregon. “Today’s action reflects the Trump administration’s continued commitment to species conservation based on the parameters of the law and the best scientific and commercial data available,” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in a statement. Several conservation groups have already vowed to fight the decision. The final rule will be officially posted Nov. 3. States and tribes will then take responsibility for wolf management on Jan. 4, 2021. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will continue to monitor wolves for the next five years. Courtney Flatt reports. (NW News Network)

Development has made the Pilchuck River warmer, harming fish
The Pilchuck River is getting warmer, and that’s not a good sign for future salmon runs. The temperature of the water has risen about 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit above the historic norm, according to the state Department of Ecology. Higher temperatures stress fish — including endangered species of salmon — and make them more susceptible to disease while affecting their reproductive system. The Department of Ecology released a plan this month detailing strategies to cool down the river. Development is the main cause of warmer water into the river, Ecology watershed planner Heather Khan said. Julia-Grace Sanders reports. (Everett Herald)

Deal falls through to sell Puget Sound Energy's stake in Montana's Colstrip coal plant.
The future of Colstrip, the Northwest’s largest coal plant, got more uncertain Monday as a deal fell through to sell Puget Sound Energy’s stake in one of the four generating units in Montana. Puget Sound Energy is required by a 2019 Washington law to have a coal-free energy supply by 2025. And, in announcing the deal in December of last year, PSE said the sale of generating capacity in Colstrip Unit 4 to two other companies — NorthWestern Energy and Talen Montana — would help to meet that deadline. But the transaction, which also included the sale of PSE’s interest in a Montana transmission line, needed the approval of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission. And in early October its staff recommended the sale be rejected by the commissioners because PSE had not shown this was the lowest, reasonable cost option for meeting the requirements of the 2019 law. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

'Otherworldly' glass sponge reefs a symbol of what this world has to lose
It takes an experienced deep-water diver like Hamish Tweed to reach most of the glass sponge reefs. You have to descend more than 60 metres into the depths of Howe Sound where, even in the middle of the day, you're sinking into total darkness. Tweed has seen plenty of glass sponges in his years diving off of B.C.'s South Coast, but those were individual animals; the enormous reefs are different. He still remembers the date of his first visit to one of them: Feb. 23, 2013, a Saturday. Rafferty Baker reports. (CBC)

A Day in the Life of a Puget Sound Crabber, Fourth-Generation Whatcom Fisherman Kaegan Gudmundson
As the season turns to fall, Kaegan Gudmundson knows he will soon depart Blaine Harbor on his small commercial crabbing boat Njordor, named after the Norse God. His vessel—at 25 feet—is one of the smaller boats in the fishery. But for Gudmundson’s style, it works well. He often operates a one-man crew and never has more than one other person crabbing with him. “There’s not very many people that crab alone with two permits,” Gudmundson says. “There’s a few of us, but inherently it’s a lot more dangerous; if you fall off, there’s no one there to help you get back on.” Tony Moceri writes. (Whatcom Talk)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  247 AM PDT Fri Oct 30 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TONIGHT   
TODAY  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 7 ft  at 9 seconds building to 14 ft at 12 seconds in the afternoon. A  chance of rain in the morning then a slight chance of rain in the  afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming S to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft subsiding to 1 ft or less after midnight. W  swell 12 ft at 11 seconds subsiding to 9 ft at 11 seconds after  midnight. A slight chance of rain in the evening. 
SAT  SE wind to 10 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 9 seconds. 
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  4 ft at 8 seconds. 
SUN  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft  at 18 seconds.

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