Puget Sound

Dave,
The beaver was swimming around in the pool behind the upper most dam when I was there earlier this week.
They have wire around many of the trees now to prevent damage. I hope they leave it but I’d put money on them removing it due to flooding concerns. One park bench is already surrounded by water. Some folks on Nextdoor are very concerned about how the chum salmon will handle the dams this fall.
I really wonder how salmon back in the day even survived with all the beaver dams back then. Today’s salmon just aren’t that tough.
😂
I’ve had a beaver swim up to me before while fishing the beach. At first I thought it was an otter until I got the big tail slap. They definitely utilize saltwater for moving around.
SF
I've read of marine beavers being highly prevalent during the early European exploration days. Establishing dams and ponds in the intertidal zone. I cant find the link, but I recall reading that the first beaver trappers here rarely went beyond the tidal zone.

This is a cool link about their current prevalence and role in the estuary environment.

 
@DimeBrite and I did about a five mile hike this morning looking for crabs on the opener .
We got four keepers between the two of us. Not great crabbing, but it’s what for dinner. Always a fun day on the water looking for those crabby, pissed off bastards. 😉😂
Thanks for the invite Tim!
My two getting ready for a hot bath.
SF

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This is a cool link about their current prevalence and role in the

Ahhh….I have seen the salty beaver dam then on the Stilly estuary, helped form a big pool on one side, a narrow canal and small dam waterfall on the other. This was also in a transition zone from grassy tides to saplings….I assumed it was just flood debris but in retrospect engineered makes more sense
 
Somewhere between the two. Still alive but I think not destined to be for long. I didn’t see any visible wounds - maybe just old?
It could simply be an old individual. But while I have't read of any mass deaths among marine mammals in Washington, there have been recent reports in the news of a numbers of deaths among sea lions and dolphins along the Southern California coast; other individuals have been sickened and are in rehabilitation. The cause is apparently the impacts of a neurotoxin, domoic acid. The toxin is produced by planktonic diatoms in the genus Pseudo-nitzschia. When members of this genus bloom, the toxin is picked up by filter-feeders, such as filter-feeding bivalves (e.g., mussels and razor clams) and fishes. The toxin increases in concentration as it moves up the food chain (bioaccumulation) until it causes amnesiac shellfish poisoning. Initial symptoms include disorientation, motor weakness, and even death. The risk of amnesiac shellfish poisoning (and other products of toxic algal blooms) is one reason why shellfish beds are frequently tested by the Department of Health for the presence of toxins and harvest closed if the levels are too high.
Steve
 
Saturday night off Edmonds.
Who handles salvage in cases where small private boats sink? I assume it doesn’t just get left there?
That looks very scary as the boat sinks in seconds (Broken bilge pump? Forgot boat plugs?), boat still with Bimini top deployed and crab gear still onboard all potentially deadly snags to the two people still inside the boat. Other news show the same boat beached and some comments mention a drowned dog I don't know the details on that sinking. I do know I was crabbing Saturday too and marine radio channel 16 was a mess, Coast Guard asking for assistance on a suspected drowning S. of Bainbridge, a boat on fire near the fuel dock at Shilshole marina, a kayaker with a punctured kayak, a capsized boat near Bremerton with people on the water....all of that only just in the morning...Stay safe out there!

As per who does the salvage, Washington DNR has a Vessel derelict program. https://www.dnr.wa.gov/derelict-vessels. Earlier this year I saw the progression of what looked like a suspect anchored live aboard vessel with an oversized Boston whaler wedged on the stern deck, a few days latter only the bow of a Boston whaler with an Olympic mountains pattern (snow an all, see picture below) was in the same general area. I radioed the Coast Guard, they asked me to send a few pictures and check if there were any people on the water, any spills or if it was a inmediate navigational hazard, barring any of that I was told that ultimately DNR was the agency to contact if the owner did not attempt to salvage. Coast Guard was unaware of the sinking, they had found a note a few days earlier stating that people had run into engine issues and were sorry they had anchored and left the vessel there. Several days later things started floating including a fridge also wedged to the whaler line still attached to the sunk vessel. Not sure what happened to it, I had not returned to the area. With the increased number of boats abandoned or used as temporary/precarious housing arrangements in many of the Puget Sound waterways, ramps and marinas I wouldn't be surprised if similar issues become a more common occurence in Puget Sound.

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Hit a SRC beach for a couple of hours this morning. Got 4 small and very small fish. Forgot the net at home so no pics except for this guy. Snapped a quick shot since it looked like a good chunk of his tail had been bitten off (quick pic so missed part of it). Tough little fish!

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Was close to wrapping up and got hammered by what I assumed was one of the bigger SRC I’ve ever run into in PS. Nope, just a nice, healthy, very feisty rezzie in the 2 - 3 lb range. Did a few cartwheels and a couple of short fast, coho runs. Hoping that’s a good sign for later this summer!

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This crab tried getting strong with me. Pretty sure I heard him say “YOU WANT SOME”??

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This crab tried getting strong with me. Pretty sure I heard him say “YOU WANT SOME”??

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Nice report and fish. Probably you misheard the red rock crab(s) as they are both about to "get some" in their pre-mating hug :love: (note the smaller female protected by the male waiting for her to molt to mate).
 
Red rock crabs are the devil. They will f’ you up given the opportunity. Dungies are minor leaguers compared to red rocks when it comes to claws and pinches.
SF
 
Pretty smoky sunrise at the "green can" today. A short, unplanned outing motivated by fireworks induced insomnia. Not a lot of bait or birds and little water features at slack high tide, but visibility was excelent as Central Puget Sound was flat as a mirror. Found a herring baitball being harrased by a coho at the surface and somehow the fish connected with the stinger hook of the fly on the second cast. Another rezzie came trolling while looking for bait. The 2-3 lb early season rezzies are growing into the occassional 4 or 4+ lb fish and graduating soon into my late season cooler as some are getting bendy on the mid-size cooler I am using now. Fun outing before work, back at the dock by 7am.1688580679277.png1688580027390.png1688579879275.png
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