Oregon Beachcomber Blog - What's washing up?

One of the very best things about my career as a marine biologist is that I never know what to expect.  Sure, I spend about 40 or 50 hours a week staring at a computer screen, but there are ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2016/02/a-whale-of-beach-find.html

We all like to see headlines now and then that show our progress in conservation and stewardship for our planet. It also appears, that lately, Californians really like to ban things.  In the...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2015/11/the-problem-with-entropy-or-why.html

Is it that time already? I have fond memories of last April - hiking two miles down a steep headland to retrieve as many buoys as I could on a secluded beach before hiking the two miles back up i...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2015/03/beach-combing-is-all-in-wind.html

You may all remember when a striped beakfish washed ashore in the hull of a Japanese boat in Oregon in April of 2013.  This little guy was the sole survivor of a group of five that washed up...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2015/03/striped-beakfish-pacific-hitchhikers.html

Hi all!  I know it has been a while since I have posted any new content (more coming soon, I promise!) However, right now I want to leave you with this wonderful drawing.  Sometimes as ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2015/02/a-most-excellent-summary-of-sea-star.html

After what has been a very active year trying to understand sea star wasting disease, scientists at Cornell University and Western Washington University have identified what appears to be the cul...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/11/mystery-of-sea-star-wasting-disease.html

Howdy folks, If any of you are sad that you might have missed the By-the-Wind Sailors on your local beaches, never fear!  I am still getting lots of reports of these guys floating around in ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/07/velella-update.html

Members and volunteers from the Oregon Surfrider Foundation, OSU's Coastal Society and the American Cetacean Society gathered at Nye Beach in Newport, Oregon on Saturday for a summer beach cleanu...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/07/surfrideramerican-surfrider-beach.html

A strange site is greeting beachgoers, fishermen, and coastal residents along the Oregon and Washington coasts this summer- strandings of thousands of jelly-fish like creatures lining beaches and...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/07/by-wind-sailors-take-over-eastern.html

As spring's easterly winds die down (at least for now), what is likely the last of the wave of boats to reach US shores is rolling in. Despite a Memorial Day Weekend with relatively calm weather,...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/05/boats-continue-to-roll-in-as-spring.html

Adding to the enormous amount of marine debris that has washed ashore on eastern Pacific shores this week, two more boats (one intact, the other partial) and a small section of floating dock have...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/05/two-more-boats-dock-section-wash-ashore.html

 Update: ANOTHER boat washed ashore at Cape Arago yesterday (May 20th), making the new number of boats nine TEN.  More on this boat soon. Boat #10 makes it ashore in Cape Arago, Oregon ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/05/nine-boats-wash-ashore-on-pacific-coast.html

A large spring storm brought hail, rain, strong easterly winds, and something else along the Washington and Oregon coasts this past weekend. Win many floating objects ashore.  The easterly w...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/04/two-more-boats-and-much-more-wash.html

Sea Star Wasting Syndrome is the new buzzword in marine biology these days.  But what is it?  Sadly, nobody really knows for sure.  However, the consequences for large populations ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/04/when-starfish-melt-sea-star-wasting.html

Greetings! I'd like to tell everyone about two upcoming marine science events in Newport, Oregon today, April 8th. And don't forget Hatfield Marine Science Center's Marine Science Day from 10-4 t...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/04/newport-oregon-events.html

Hello Bloggers, I sadly report that an 8.2 magnitude earthquake has struck the coast of Chile, prompting evacuations and tsunami warnings.  At 5:04pm Pacific Standard Time, a quake from the ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/04/chiles-thrust-fault-82-magnitude.html

Spring is a special time in the Pacific Northwest, when the winter rains let up and we even have a few beautiful windless days before the blustery summer days set in.  If you are getting cab...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/03/spring-events-are-just-around-corner.html

Are you interested in learning out the Navy's plans for sonar and bomb testing in the Northwest, and how that might impact whales and other marine organisms?  As a citizen, do you have stron...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/03/public-hearing-naval-sonar-testing-and.html

A series of winter storms hailing strong western and southern winds has pushed tsunami debris ashore in the Pacific Northwest. The debris ranges from larger to small objects, and is mingled with ...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/03/winter-storms-push-debris-ashore-in.html

On January 15, 2014,  the first boat of Japanese origin was reported in Twin Harbors Beach State Park in Westport, Washington.  While the boat didn't make the evening news, it was quick...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2014/02/first-japanese-boat-of-2014-washes.html

Okay, how could you not think of Sir Mix-A-Lot's 'Baby Got Back' when you hear about this topic?  At least, I couldn't.  In a news release from Oregon State University this month, an in...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2013/12/it-was-long-and-strong-and-scientists.html

Sometimes science reporting can be something like a game of 'telephone', played between various reporting agencies, primary sources, and the public.   The power of this has been shown b...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2013/12/noaa-debunks-mass-of-debris-story-that.html

Support Community Recovery: Typhoon Haiyan Greetings bloggernauts- today I want to bring to mind the disaster that is currently still ongoing in the Phillipines- Super typhoon Haiyan and its deva...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2013/11/super-typhoon-haiyan.html

Can you 'ride out' a tsunami? We've all heard the stories: a fisherman rides out a tsunami far out at sea, then returns to land to find his home port devastated without his knowledge.  But i...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2013/11/how-far-out-at-sea-should-you-be-to.html

Happy Halloween to my lovely readers! Halloween is the time when creatures from our wildest dreams and nightmares come to life.  The ocean has its fair share of these mystery animals which h...

http://www.oregonbeachcomber.com/2013/10/happy-halloween.html