Protection Island in the news

Protection Island sunset. Photo by Julie Jaman.

The Port Townsend Marine Science Center recently published in Marine Pollution Bulletin the results of their four-year study on the occurrence of plastics in the boluses of Glaucous-winged Gulls nesting on Protection Island in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge is used by more than 70% of the nesting seabirds in Puget Sound and hosts the largest nesting colony of Glaucous-winged Gulls in Washington State. Gulls are efficient scavengers that regurgitate inedible items, so their boluses (the regurgitated masses) provide a non-invasive perspective on food sources and contaminants for many species in our region. Trained volunteers dissected 589 gull boluses and identified components from four years of bolus collection. Plastic was found in over 12% of boluses, with plastic film (as in plastic bags) the most common form. When plastic film was present, it often dominated the bolus volume. The study adds significance to local governmental efforts, in Port Townsend and elsewhere, to eliminate single-use plastic bags at checkout counters.

Glaucous-winged Gulls were one of Eleanor's favorite species. Her vision and perseverence led to the creation of the Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge, the only Refuge established during the Reagan administration. Eleanor also founded our local Audubon chapter, Admiralty Audubon Society, in the late 1970s. The PTMSC awards the Eleanor Stopps Environmental Leadership award each year in early October. This was the first year that she wasn't present to witness that ceremony.

Three Americorps interns and PTMSC's former volunteer coordinator (now program director) analysed the data from the extensive study made possible in part by a two-year grant from the Washington Department of Ecology and the efforts of Port Townsend's dedicated citizen scientists. The PTMSC publication, entitled 'Plastic consumption and diet of Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens)' by Valerie A. Lindborg, Julia F. Ledbetter, Jean M. Walat and Cinamon Moffett, is dedicated to Eleanor's memory. Citation is http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.08.020.