Habitat, Research and Monitoring
Senior Research Scientist: Hans Daubenberger
Email: hans@pgst.nsn.us
Research Scientist:
Julianna Sullivan
Email: julianna@pgst.nsn.us
Research Scientist:
Khadijah Homolka
Email: khomolka@pgst.nsn.us
Habitat, Research and Monitoring Technician:
Shane Baze
Email: shaneb@pgst.nsn.us
The Port Gamble S’Klallam Natural Resources Department’s Habitat, Research and Monitoring Program conducts research and monitors habitat conditions for environmental enhancement and conservation. Supported by Federal and State grant funding, our program strives to provide the regulatory and restoration communities with improved scientific understanding for harvest management and treaty resource protection.
Partnerships: Salmon Recovery
Hood Canal Coordinating Council: Lead Entity Program Process
- The Hood Canal Coordinating Council’s (HCCC) Lead Entity Program Process provides guidance to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRF Board) which seeks to implement key salmon recovery actions within the Hood Canal and Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca watersheds using Federal and State funding.
- The Lead Entity Program Process evaluates habitat protection and restoration project proposals that meet regional goals for salmon recovery efforts.
- Tribal representatives serve on three aspects of Lead Entity Program’s decision-making process: the Technical Advisory Group (TAG), the Citizens’ Advisory Group (CAG), and the Hood Canal Coordinating Council Board of Directors.
- Tribal representatives in the Lead Entity’s Program process influence the SRF Board by providing economic, scientific, and cultural values relevant to the recovery of salmon.
Research Projects & Studies
Hood Canal Bridge Ecosystem Impact Assessment
- Strong evidence suggests that the Hood Canal Bridge is acting as a salmon migration barrier driving increased mortalities. In partnership with Long Live the Kings, the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe’s research supports the investigation of the Hood Canal Bridge’s impact on salmon and its effect on the ecosystem.
Puget Sound Zooplankton Monitoring Program (PSZMP)
- Established in 2014 as part of the Salish Sea Marine Survival Project, PSZMP is a collaborative effort between Tribal, county, state, federal, academic, and non-profit organizations that monitors temporal and spatial changes in zooplankton throughout the Salish Sea. This long-term monitoring effort enables researchers and managers to assess ecosystem health and better understand food sources for juvenile salmon and forage fish.
Admiralty Inlet and Hood Canal Nearshore Habitat Assessment
- The objective of this project is to better understand the Admiralty Inlet and Hood Canal nearshore ecosystems as they relate to ESA-listed juvenile salmonids and forage fish. Hydroacoustic surveys and acoustic telemetry tagging will be used to quantify bull kelp canopy development and better understand the functional role of kelp forests as nurseries and migration corridors for out-migrating juvenile salmon and forage fish.
Mapping Nearshore Nodal Habitat of Juvenile Salmon within the Hood Canal and the Eastern Strait of San Juan de Fuca
- Using a variety of methods and techniques, this study mapped the distribution and abundance of juvenile salmon in the nearshore of the Hood Canal and Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca. This research intends to assist in prioritizing nearshore restoration and protection efforts to improve the success of salmon recovery efforts in local watersheds.
Tribal Mass Marking Project
- Since the early 1990’s, the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe has conducted annual spawner surveys on streams in north Hood Canal. Survey data helps to assess the level of hatchery salmon population straying in wild Coho systems. This data is used to develop escapement estimates, assess sustainable yield and evaluate the integrity of wild stocks.
Stream Temperature Monitoring
- As part of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe’s Climate Impact Assessment, ongoing long-term data collection provides current temperature regimes in streams and rivers within Tribe’s Usual and Accustomed areas.