9/10 Fraser sockeye, Skagit pinks, reconciliation talks, Orca Tour, Dungeness Spit, WA ESA

Whimbrel (Gregg Thompson/BirdNote)

If you like to watch: Late Summer Shorebirds
In September, all across North America, the southward migration of shorebirds reaches its peak. Millions of shorebirds – the sandpipers and plovers that grace our shorelines – are on the move. And many birders now flock to the mudflats to watch the annual pilgrimage. Gregg Thompson is one of those. (BirdNote)

River temperatures down in B.C., but so are projected sockeye returns: DFO
Late summer can be “sockeye crazy” in British Columbia’s rivers, but one fish expert says this year’s salmon season seems to be non-existent. Low river flows and hot water temperatures likely combined to create poor conditions for the annual sockeye migration, said Ken Ashley, director of the Rivers Institute at the B.C. Institute of Technology. But because the weather has cooled in recent days, warm water that’s often lethal to returning salmon has become more hospitable, said the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Wednesday. Tamsyn Burgmann reports. (Canadian Press)

Low pink salmon return prompts Upper Skagit Indian Tribe to close its fishery
Because it saw few returning fish, the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe made the difficult decision Wednesday to close its pink salmon fishery…. The tribe sets its pink salmon fishery based on how many fish it expects to return to the river. The forecasts are based off previous spawner surveys and fish harvests. This year, the tribe expected to see about 500,000 pinks return to the Skagit River to spawn. Based on past catch records, this week should have been the peak of the season. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

B.C. chiefs call reconciliation talks 'strike two'
The chasm separating British Columbia's political and aboriginal leaders could not have been defined more clearly as the second annual all-chiefs meeting got underway in Vancouver Wednesday. B.C.'s Minister for Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation, John Rustad, opened the two day gathering by calling advances over the past decade "remarkable."… But for some, it seems, patience is wearing thin. Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Grand Chief Stewart Phillip responded that when it comes to reconciliation, B.C. is at "strike two." Dirk Meissner reports. (CBC News)

News Release: Killer Whale Expert and Author Erich Hoyt In October "Orca Tour 2015" Talks in BC, Puget Sound
Internationally-renowned author and killer whale expert Erich Hoyt will speak in October along the Whale Trail at locations in British Columbia and Puget Sound.  “Orca Tour 2015” celebrates the seasonal return of the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales to central Puget Sound and builds awareness of the whales throughout their range in the Salish Sea and along the Pacific Coast. This transboundary tour is especially timely with the birth of the fifth calf in the Southern Resident Killer Whale pods since December 2014. (The Whale Trail)

Mother Nature and the Dungeness Spit
How does Mother Nature affect the Dungeness Spit? Let me count the ways, starting at the beginning. Current estimates are that the spit is about 6,000 years old, older than the first pyramids in Egypt. But its origin goes back to the last ice age when the Cordilleran glacier, a mile deep river of ice, came south. This particular glacier bulldozed millions of tons of rocks, sand and clay south out of the mountains of British Columbia and onto our shores. John Maxwell reports. (Sequim Gazette)

State reviews status of spotted owl, snowy plover
The state Department of Fish & Wildlife has released draft status reviews for snowy plovers and Northern spotted owls that recommend keeping the birds on the state’s endangered species list. The agency is taking public comment on the draft recommendations through Dec. 8. The birds are two of 46 species the state has listed as endangered, threatened or sensitive. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT THU SEP 10 2015
TODAY
LIGHT WIND. WIND WAVES LESS THAN 1 FT. W SWELL 5 FT AT 11 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG IN THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
W WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING E AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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