5/17 Orange honeysuckle, culverts, forage fish, BC steelhead, Big One, green crab, deer kill, 'unceded' land

Orange honeysuckle [Xera Plants]

 
Orange honeysuckle Lonicera ciliosa
The orange honeysuckle is a twining deciduous perennial vine with hollow twigs which grows in open-to-dense forests. it grows from British Columbia to Oregon, and east to Montana. This plant grows on both sides of the Cascades crest, and at the coast in Washington. Many Pacific Northwest tribes (including the Chehalis, Klallam, Lummi, and Nlaka'pamux, and others) have used an infusion of crushed leaves as a hair wash for hair growth. A poultice of chewed leaves has been applied to bruises. A decoction of leaves has been taken as a tuberculosis remedy and a strengthening tonic. The sweet nectar has been siphoned from the flower tubes as a candy and an anti-convulsive. An infusion of bark or chewed leaf juice has been taken as a cold remedy and to treat sore throats. Vine pieces have been placed under pillows to induce sleep. The stems have been used as a black dye. The vines have been used as building material. The fiber from the stems has been used as twine and thread. This genus is named for German naturalist Adam Lonitzer. The twining habit of this plant creates nest areas for small birds. (Washington Native Plant Society)

King County’s culvert hunters — and a $9 billion plan to save salmon habitat
....Urban creeks are the arteries and veins of the region carrying the lifeblood that animates the region’s ecology: salmon. Food for more than 123 species of animals — including endangered southern resident killer whales that frequent Puget Sound. It’s no desk job, being a culvert hunter. These are the field medics looking for the blockages impairing the health of the region’s signature fish in their home waters. Lynda Mapes reports.  (Seattle Times)

The PNW is a leader on forage fish management — but it needs better data
A U.S. Senate bill highlights West Coast progressiveness in managing fisheries, but even our region is a long way off from really knowing what’s out there. Hannah Weinberger reports. (Crosscut)

DFO ignored pleas from scientists, altered report to downplay risks to imperilled steelhead: docs
More than 2,600 pages of government documents shed new light on allegations Fisheries and Oceans Canada ignored scientists when forgoing protections for disappearing Thompson and Chilcotin steelhead. Stephanie Wood reports. (The Narwhal)

Buried danger: A slumbering geologic fault beneath us
An earthquake along the southern Whidbey Island fault reshaped the land some 2,700 years ago. Another big one is expected, and it could be devastating. Part 1 of 3. Julia-Grace Sanders reports. (Everett Herald) Built on pudding: Can modern quake engineering prevail?  Part 2 of 3. Julia Grace-Sanders reports.

Invasive green crabs continue to spread in Washington, especially in coastal estuaries
European green crabs were found in Washington’s inland waters in 2016, prompting extensive monitoring. Now state officials say this destructive invasive species is spreading in several coastal locations. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

‘A Garage Sale for the Last Old Growth’
As BC’s watchdog slams the province’s own logging agency for wrecking ecosystems, advocates demand action. A special report. Zoe Yunker reports. (The Tyee)

To restore Sidney Island’s ecology, a push to kill 500 fallow deer
A coalition of First Nations, property owners and Parks Canada is planning a “final eradication” of the invasive species that will see up to 500 of the animals rounded up and killed. Darron Kloster reports. (Victoria Times Colonist)

Unceded: Why we acknowledge, or don't, that B.C. First Nations never signed away land
Who, ultimately, possesses the land? That is a question at the root of the territorial acknowledgments that have become pervasive across Canada, a sombre public rite...As the Canadian writer Stephan Marche once said, “Acknowledgments force individuals and institutions to ask a basic, nightmarish question: ‘Whose land are we on?’” Douglas Todd writes. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  646 AM PDT Mon May 17 2021   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH  TUESDAY MORNING   
TODAY  SW wind to 10 kt rising to 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. SW swell 2 ft at 16 seconds. A chance of  rain in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  SW wind 15 to 25 kt becoming W after midnight. Wind  waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 5 ft at 9 seconds. Rain in the evening  then a chance of showers after midnight.

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