Category: Shell Creek

Subcategory for Shell Creek related posts

Baby salmon head out to sea. Then they do something unexpected, new research shows

April 30, 2025
By Lynda V. Mapes
Seattle Times environment reporter

Link to Seattle Times article

Coho salmon smolts are collected in a fish trap as researchers assess local salmon populations in an Olympic Peninsula stream. (Karrie Hanson)
Coho salmon smolts are collected in a fish trap as researchers assess local salmon populations in an Olympic Peninsula stream. (Karrie Hanson)

Who knew that baby salmon were such explorers?

The long-held understanding that baby salmon emerge from the streams where they hatched to head out to sea actually is missing a far more complex story — and a far more interesting one, scientists explain in a new paper.

Continue reading “Baby salmon head out to sea. Then they do something unexpected, new research shows”

Coho fry released in Shell Creek

On Saturday, April 12th, Megan Moran from Sound Salmon Solutions and Joe Scordino released several thousand Coho fry with the help of volunteers and local residents. These “baby” salmon were released in Yost Park near Olympic Avenue and near Holy Rosary parish in Edmonds.
It was great fun.

Here are a few photos:

Student volunteers release coho frye into Shell creek near Holy Rosary in Edmonds
Student volunteers release coho frye into Shell creek
Joe Scordino describing the release process Yost parl
Joe Scordino describing the release process
Great turnout
Great turnout
Joe catching the action
Joe catching the action
Little fishies are fun!
Little fishies are fun!

Coho fry released into Shell creek

Yost Park: Volunteers help save Shell Creek salmon

Posted Sunday, April 13, 2025
By Joe Scordino, Stream Team Project Leader

A large crowd gathered at Yost Park to help release several salmon at a time. They used clear cups so everyone could see the baby salmon. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)

Link to Edmonds Beacon aticle

Continue reading “Yost Park: Volunteers help save Shell Creek salmon”

Bolstering Shell Creek’s salmon population

By Joe Scordino
For the Beacon

Posted 3/20/25

The Edmonds Stream Team released 5,000 baby chum salmon into lower Shell Creek on Monday. The Suquamish Tribe donated the salmon fry to help the community effort to bolster salmon populations in local creeks that flow directly to Puget Sound.

This item is available in full to Beacon subscribers.

Sandra Centala
Sandra Centala helps carry aerated buckets loaded with chum salmon fry donated by Suquamish Tribe for release in Shell Creek. (Photo courtesy Edmonds Stream Team)
Continue reading “Bolstering Shell Creek’s salmon population”

Press release: Bolstering Shell Creek’s Salmon Population

By Joe Scordino, Project Leader
Edmonds Stream Team
March 12, 2025

Photos by Clint Wright, Joe Scordino, and John Brock

Reported in My Edmonds News

Sandra Centala helping carry aerated buckets loaded with Chum salmon fry donated by Suquamish Tribe for release in Shell creek

The Edmonds Stream Team released 5,000 “baby” chum salmon into lower Shell Creek on Monday. These chum salmon “fry” were donated by the Suquamish Tribe to help the community effort to bolster salmon populations in local creeks that flow directly to Puget Sound.

Continue reading “Press release: Bolstering Shell Creek’s Salmon Population”

Stream Team report: Record number of salmon in Shell Creek

Posted Sunday, January 12, 2025 6:12 pm

By Joe Scordino
Edmonds Stream Team

  • Maija Jinneman observing a female chum salmon protecting her eggs laid in the gravel. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • Meadowdale High students – Maija Jinneman, Aspen Spivey, Maya LaBelle, Emma Roberts. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • Meadowdale Beach Park visitors responded to this sign with photos and videos. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • Edge of this bridge was modified to provide a salmon passage channel after the underside of the bridge was blocked by sediment, (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • Avery Bergan helps salmon passage in her backyard by clearing debris that washed into creek during rainstorm. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • High scchool students collecting data on stream conditions and salmon .occurrence. (Photo courtesy Joe Scordino)
  • Maya LaBelle examining a chum salmon that died before it could lay its eggs in the creek. This “pre-spawn mortality’ may have been caused by toxic tire dust (6PPDq) that enters the creek through storm drains on roads.

There’s good news coming from the Edmonds Stream Team after completion of its annual adult salmon surveys last month in Edmonds’ Shell Creek and Lund’s Gulch Creek in Meadowdale Beach Park.

Continue reading “Stream Team report: Record number of salmon in Shell Creek”

Letter to Mayor Rosen – THE REST OF THE STORY – Excess sediment in Shell Creek impacting salmon

By Joe Scordino
November 2, 2024

Mayor Rosen;

As you may know, this is the time of year when I’m out with Edmonds Stream Team volunteers (students and adults) in/along the “salmon-bearing” creeks in/near Edmonds (i.e., Shell Creek and Lunds Gulch Creek in Meadowdale Park) to survey adult salmon returns and spawning.  Besides the salmon occurrence data, we also collect habitat condition data (and have been doing that each fall since 2017).

Continue reading “Letter to Mayor Rosen – THE REST OF THE STORY – Excess sediment in Shell Creek impacting salmon”

‘Give them a chance’: The fight to bring salmon back to Edmonds stream

For years, locals have begged the city to remove fish barriers in Perrinville Creek. A federal grant could help.

by Ta’Leah Van Sistine
Saturday, September 21, 2024 6:30am

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/give-them-a-chance-the-fight-to-bring-salmon-back-to-edmonds-stream/

An overflow diversion structure sits along a section of Perrinville Creek near Talbot Road on Monday in Edmonds. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)

Future stewards lend a hand to baby salmon

My Edmonds News
Posted: May 27, 2024

Last week marked the final releases this year of “baby” coho salmon from Edmonds’ Willow Creek Salmon Hatchery into local streams to help the salmon populations in Puget Sound. On hand to help were community volunteers including future stewards of the environment and even Edmonds Mayor Mike Rosen.

Lucy-and-Theo-Kopp-take-special-care-in-releasing-salmon-into-lower-Shell-Creek
Continue reading “Future stewards lend a hand to baby salmon”

Reader view: Can we stop the demise of Edmonds salmon streams?

By Joe Scordino
Posted: August 26, 2023

Joe Scordino
Joe Scordino

First it was Perrinville Creek and now it is Shell Creek that is losing its natural functions and salmon habitat — this time because of neglect and inaction by city administration in Edmonds’ Yost Park.

In the case of Perrinville Creek, the loss of salmon is due to both inaction to implement a watershed restoration plan (as promised by Mayor Nelson in a press release over two years ago), and an apparent illegal action the city took in January 2021 to totally block salmon access to Perrinville Creek.

Continue reading “Reader view: Can we stop the demise of Edmonds salmon streams?”