Coastwatch News Archive

All articles related to Coastwatch

Rocky Habitat Proposals Reach Decision Stage

The view from Blacklock Point.\Photo by Alex Derr. The state of Oregon is developing a new Rocky Habitat Management Strategy, the first revision of Oregon’s policy for protecting rocky intertidal and nearshore subtidal ecosystems since 1994. Oregon Shores has been actively engaged in this slow-moving process for more than four years. The basic framework of the...Read more

King Tides Project about to Surge Again

King tide assaults the Hwy 101 seawall at Waldport.\Photo by Roy Lowe. The Oregon King Tides Project is entering its 13th year. Here are the dates for the three high-tide sequences that will be the focus for the 2022-2023 edition of the project: Nov. 24-26, Dec. 22-24, and Jan. 20-22, 2023. We will be hosting a set of King Tides-related events to provide...Read more

Rocky intertidal habitat at Oswald West State Park.

Decisions Coming on Rocky Habitat Protection Proposals

Rocky intertidal at Oswald West State Park.\Photo by Molly Sultany. What’s next for designating new rocky habitats in Oregon? Six proposals are alive and in continuing consultation. These sites include Ecola Point and Chapman Point in Clatsop County, Blacklock Point in Curry, Cape Foulweather, Cape Lookout in Tillamook, and Fogarty Creek and Cape Foulweather in...Read more

Image of CoastWatch iNaturalist Challenge banner over photo of sea anemones.

CoastWatch Fall Challenge

CoastWatch is inaugurating a new, special project this autumn, the CoastWatch Fall iNaturalist Challenge, which will take place Sept. 23-Oct. 3. (Note--this event has been extended by one day, through 11:50 p.m. Oct. 3.) The ten-day challenge, which anyone (not just CoastWatchers) can join, is in effect a coastwide bioblitz, during which CoastWatch mile adopters and others are invited to observe...Read more

Oregon Shores Honored by NAME

NAME Award. At this year’s Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators (NAME) conference, held in Netarts, the Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition was given the outstanding organization award for leadership in marine and aquatic education. CoastWatch Volunteer Coordinator Jesse Jones accepted the award at the closing ceremony of the conference. Oregon Shores and...Read more

Orientations Provide Introduction to CoastWatch

If you are thinking about adopting a mile of the Oregon coast through CoastWatch, or if you are a new CoastWatch volunteer or a veteran mile adopter needing a refresher course, consider joining a CoastWatch orientation. These field experiences are designed to introduce the program and sharpen observational skills. Orientation sessions will be held a number of times times this summer and fall, in...Read more

$CoastWatch training on rocky shore habitats.\Photo by Daniel Anderson.$

CoastWatch Webinars Available on YouTube

CoastWatch training on rocky shore habitats.\Photo by Daniel Anderson. With the onset of pandemic restrictions, CoastWatch pivoted toward working online to maintain volunteer training and public education and to keep the mile adopter community connected. This required some re-orientation for a program that has always relied on community events and beachwalks,...Read more

Citizen Scientists Help Track Sea Star Populations

Volunteers conducting sea star observations.\Photo by Fawn Custer. Sea stars are keystone species in intertidal ecosystems. Through their predation, they structure rocky shoreline habitats. Monitoring the status of sea star populations is therefore important in understanding the health of intertidal communities—and all the more essential in the wake of the “sea...Read more

CoastWatchers Aid in Beachgrass Search

Comparison of beachgrass species including new hybrid. The search continues for the new hybrid beachgrass that may be spreading on the Oregon coast. CoastWatch volunteers are helping researchers at Oregon State University map the range of the new hybrid, the offspring of two invasive beachgrass species. To sharpen the observational skills of volunteers, two in-...Read more

Photo of Western Snowy Plover with chick by Mick Thompson.

CoastWatchers Monitor Snowy Plover Nesting Sites

Sign marks snowy plover protected area.\Photo courtesy of OPRD. Nesting season has begun for the threatened Western Snowy Plover, the only resident shorebird that nests on the Oregon coast. Signs are going up, warning beachgoers about the presence of plovers. CoastWatchers can help by carefully observing restrictions on beach use to protect the nesting birds,...Read more