5/13 Fairy slipper, Nahmint forest, curbing carbon, Big Melt, Chico Cr bridge, Skagit dams, green crab, yellow-breasted chat, decolonizing seabirds

Fairy slipper [Bill Bouton/WikiMedia]

 
Fairy slipper Calypso bulbosa
The jewel-like fairy slipper, also known as calypso orchid or calypso bulbosa in Latin, is one of more than 40 native orchids found in the state of Washington, and at least seven species that can be found on the Quimper Peninsula. Each fairy slipper flower is solitary on a short stem emerging from a single broad basal leaf. The name calypso refers to the lid or hood (from the Greek word kalyptra, meaning covering or veil) that protects the reproductive parts of the flower. Like many terrestrial orchids, the fairy slipper has a bulbous root, inspiring its species name, bulbosa. They are sometimes called Venus’ slipper after the Greek goddess of love and beauty. Katherine Darrow/Port Townsend Leader)

B.C. ‘shouldn’t have approved’ plan that failed to protect Nahmint old-growth forests: watchdog
A three-year review by the forest practices board found the provincial government did not meet its legal objective to protect ecosystems and ancient forests in a treasured Vancouver Island watershed. Sarah Cox reports. (The Narwhal)

Community Voices / Local team launches innovative approach to help curb climate change
We must act, not just worry, and use as many solutions to curb climate change as we can, say a team of professors, graduate fellows, student interns and sustainability professionals working on one solution for Whatcom County — that can be replicated anywhere. Allison Roberts writes with reporting by Kiahna White-Alcain. (Salish Current)

How The Big Melt Will Change Life for People and Nature
As BC’s coastal mountain glaciers recede the effects alter ecosystems. Can human engineering begin to compensate? Second in a series. Christopher Pollon reports. (The Tyee)

'Herculean effort' will build new Highway 3 bridge over Chico Creek to help salmon passage
Two years of construction work that will remove box culverts under Highway 3 and build a bridge over Chico Creek is set to begin this fall, according to the state's Department of Transportation. Transportation officials say the $58.3 million project will improve salmon habitat and migration in perhaps Kitsap County's most abundant salmon stream. But the complex work to help fish passage makes for a tricky balancing act to ensure human passage remains as smooth as possible during construction.  Josh Farley reports. (Kitsap Sun)

Stakeholders: Proposed Skagit River dam studies "inadequate"
Despite Seattle City Light expanding its study plan associated with the relicensing process of its Skagit River dams, at least 17 commenting government agencies, tribes and nonprofits wrote in letters last week that they remain dissatisfied. From the National Marine Fisheries Service to the Skagit County Board of Commissioners to the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, those with legal, cultural and economic stakes in how Seattle City Light manages the dams used terms such as “inadequate” and “data gaps” to describe Seattle’s revised study plan. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

The Bright Side of the Green Crab
In Nova Scotia, a suite of innovative projects has creatively met this invasive species head on. Moira Donovan reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Rare yellow bird needs wild roses to survive in British Columbia, researcher says
A little yellow bird's rescue from the brink of extinction in British Columbia hinges on an oft-overlooked wild flower in the province's Okanagan region, according to one Canadian government researcher. The importance of local wild roses emerged over a nearly 20-year experiment concentrating on the yellow-breasted chat, a tiny bird whose characteristics and precarious status have preoccupied scientists for decades. Hina Alam reports. (CBC)

Decolonizing Seabirds
A cultural working group is developing Hawaiian names for seabirds in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, after an extensive period of colonization eradicated many of those names. Jason Gregg reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  246 AM PDT Thu May 13 2021   
TODAY  Light wind becoming N to 10 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 2 ft at 10 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  2 ft at 10 seconds.

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