We all love our local southern resident orcas, but they continue to struggle as they face ongoing strain on their local habitat and food supply. The Seattle Aquarium along with numerous local leaders, researchers, conservationists and partners from the Orca Salmon Alliance are advocating for greater protections for this iconic species and the salmon they depend on for food.
Washington’s shellfish population—clams, oysters and mussels—have been called the “canaries in the coalmine” for ocean acidification. Rising acidity in our local waters has already made it difficult for some shellfish populations to reproduce.
Did you get out and explore our beaches this past week during some of the lowest tides we will have this summer? Our naturalists were out every day, mingling with our intertidal neighbors and helping our visitors see and learn about even the tiniest of creatures!
Longtime Aquarium Aquarist Chris Van Damme joined forces with Associate Curator of Life Sciences Joel Hollander and Aquarium volunteer Eva Funderburgh Hollis to create a beautiful and authentic-looking piece of rockwork that was recently unveiled in our Puget Sound Fish exhibit.
Last month, during our annual octopus census, Aquarium staff and divers from around Puget Sound counted 41 giant Pacific octopuses (GPOs) at 13 locations. Below is a Q&A with Senior Aquarist Kathryn Kegel about the results.
Going to work can be such a drag, right? You get up early and choose an outfit for the day…then there’s the commute…and when you finally arrive, it feels like you’re surrounded by a bunch of wild animals!
“How deep can you dive?” It’s a question frequently asked by Aquarium visitors attending one of our daily diver shows. And it prompted us to look into depths overall—specifically, what you might see at various depths in Puget Sound.
Why is the water in the Seattle Aquarium’s exhibits sometimes a bit cloudy? Because it’s pumped directly from Puget Sound, where the underwater weather report has recently included (in addition to 100% humidity) colder temperatures and partially cloudy waters.
Ever wondered where the Aquarium gets new animals for its exhibits? Not surprisingly, it isn’t simply a matter of heading to a local beach with a bucket at low tide. Below, staff aquarist Kathryn Kegel provides a behind-the-scenes peek at the Seattle Aquarium’s cold-water collection methods.
