Other News
Apr 11, 2024: Community Meeting: Sea Level Rise Adaptation for Outer Bay and Agate Beach Areas on Lopez Island
Mar 11, 2024: Queers in Unexpected Places: Searching for (and Finding) Gender and Sexual Non-Conformity in the Rural and Early PNW
Mar 7, 2024: DRAFT Richardson Marsh Preserve Stewardship and Management Plan Now Open for Public Comment
Dec 5, 2023: County Council Member Jane Fuller and Senator Liz Lovelett to Host Public Meeting on Lopez
Nov 3, 2023: County and Town Send Open Letter to State Officials Regarding Impacts of Poor Ferry Service
Sep 29, 2023: Conservation Land Bank Announces Special Meeting to Discuss Watmough Bay Preserve Addition
Sep 14, 2023: The mobile dental van is coming to Lopez! // ¡La camioneta dental móvil ya llega a López!
Aug 22, 2023: San Juan County Adopts 32-Hour Work Week in the Name of Fiscal Health, Recruitment, and Islander Wellness
May 25, 2023: Recap of Lopez Neighborhood Meeting Regarding the Relocation of Public Works Facilities
May 23, 2023: District 3 Councilmember Jane Fuller Opens Office on Lopez and Hosts Community Conversation
Apr 17, 2023: Give Lopez Starts April 17th - A two week fundraiser benefiting 15 Lopez Island Non-Profits
Sep 22, 2022: Interim Watmough Preserve Addition Stewardship and Management Plan Now Open for Public Comment
Green Crab Community Science Opportunity
Apr 29, 2023
By Friends of the San Juans
Calling all community scientists, volunteers, shoreline landowners, and beachgoers!
The European green crab is a hardy and voracious predator native to Western Europe and Northwestern Africa. This species has invaded intertidal zones around the globe, and according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, it is considered one of the world’s worst invasive species.
This invasive crab threatens shellfish, juvenile Dungeness crabs, eelgrass beds which provide critical habitat for juvenile salmon, the food supply for shorebirds, and the overall health of Washington’s marine waters.
European green crabs were first detected in the Washington area of the Salish Sea - found in Westcott Bay on San Juan Island and in Padilla Bay. Since 2018, they have been found in an increasing number of places. In 2021, European green crab numbers expanded dramatically in the Lummi Nation’s Sea Pond, and in outer coastal areas such as Grays Harbor, Makah Bay, and Willapa Bay.
WDFW, Washington Sea Grant, tribal co-managers, and partners (a coalition known as The Crab Team) currently monitor and trap European green crab at about 60 sites, but these only cover a small fraction of the suitable nearshore habitat for this animal. The detection of European green crab molts could serve as an early indicator of the presence of European green crab in the area. If community scientists, volunteers, shoreline landowners, and beachgoers knew what to look for, they could provide valuable information that would help to guide future Crab Team monitoring and trapping efforts.
WSU Extension is collaborating with WA Sea Grant on a training workshop to teach volunteers how to conduct a systematic 20-minute survey for crab molts, how to properly identify the European green crab, how to take measurements of the invasive crabs as well as Dungeness crabs and how to report their findings using a mobile app.
Friends of the San Juans is coordinating the Green Crab Molt Surveys for San Juan County and will hold a volunteer training workshop at the San Juan Island Grange on May 19th from 11:30-1:30 pm, followed by a field training (BioBlitz!) at Jacksons Beach from 2:00 pm-4:00 pm.
Register for the upcoming workshop on Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/green-crab-molt-search-volunteer-training-san-juan-county-tickets-616724358157
For more information email Jess Newley, Community Science and Education Director at Friends of the San Juans, jess@sanjuans.org.
This invasive crab threatens shellfish, juvenile Dungeness crabs, eelgrass beds which provide critical habitat for juvenile salmon, the food supply for shorebirds, and the overall health of Washington’s marine waters.
European green crabs were first detected in the Washington area of the Salish Sea - found in Westcott Bay on San Juan Island and in Padilla Bay. Since 2018, they have been found in an increasing number of places. In 2021, European green crab numbers expanded dramatically in the Lummi Nation’s Sea Pond, and in outer coastal areas such as Grays Harbor, Makah Bay, and Willapa Bay.
WDFW, Washington Sea Grant, tribal co-managers, and partners (a coalition known as The Crab Team) currently monitor and trap European green crab at about 60 sites, but these only cover a small fraction of the suitable nearshore habitat for this animal. The detection of European green crab molts could serve as an early indicator of the presence of European green crab in the area. If community scientists, volunteers, shoreline landowners, and beachgoers knew what to look for, they could provide valuable information that would help to guide future Crab Team monitoring and trapping efforts.
WSU Extension is collaborating with WA Sea Grant on a training workshop to teach volunteers how to conduct a systematic 20-minute survey for crab molts, how to properly identify the European green crab, how to take measurements of the invasive crabs as well as Dungeness crabs and how to report their findings using a mobile app.
Friends of the San Juans is coordinating the Green Crab Molt Surveys for San Juan County and will hold a volunteer training workshop at the San Juan Island Grange on May 19th from 11:30-1:30 pm, followed by a field training (BioBlitz!) at Jacksons Beach from 2:00 pm-4:00 pm.
Register for the upcoming workshop on Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/green-crab-molt-search-volunteer-training-san-juan-county-tickets-616724358157
For more information email Jess Newley, Community Science and Education Director at Friends of the San Juans, jess@sanjuans.org.