Anadromous: Fish born in freshwater who spend most of their lives in saltwater and return to freshwater to spawn.

Estuary: Simply put, it's an area where fresh water and salt water meet and mix. The mixing of fresh water and salt water provide high levels of nutrients, making estuaries among the most productive natural habitats in the world. Healthy estuaries are critical to supporting healthy fish populations.

Salmonid: Any fish that belongs to the Salmonidae family (like me!), including the salmons, trouts, chars, and whitefishes.

What benefits can estuaries provide to salmonids?

a) Shelter from predators

b) Rearing habitat

c) Food

d) Transition to saltwater

e) All of the above

If you answered "e," you're right! Did you know Puget Sound is the largest estuary, by water volume, in the contiguous United States?! Puget Sound encompasses many other estuaries, including large ones and small ones, found in sheltered bays, inlets, and lagoons.

Heterotroph: An organism that cannot manufacture its own food and instead obtains its food and energy by taking in organic substances, usually plant or animal matter.

Zooplankton: A type of heterotrophic plankton that range from microscopic organisms to large species, such as jellyfish. Zooplankton drift in oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water. Zooplankton eat a variety of bacterioplankton, phytoplankton, and even other zooplankton species. Since such organisms live at the surface of bodies of water, zooplankton are also typically found in the upper waters.

Which of these are not a type of zooplankton?

a) Trysopods

b) Amphipods

c) Krill

d) Crab larvae

e) Copepods

You’re correct if you answered “a!” We tried to trick you on this one. Trysopods isn’t even a real word. But amphipods, krill, crab larvae, and copepods are all types of zooplankton. Many factors can impact the health of zooplankton. This makes it difficult to tell people exactly what they can do to help beyond the essentials – reduce energy consumption, dispose of waste properly, fix oil leaks on cars, etc. By gathering more data and comparing to other data sets, researchers hope to be able to prioritize actions to focus their efforts and come up with new solutions.

Forage fish: Small schooling species that serve as prey for larger commercially and recreationally important fish, as well as for marine mammals and sea birds. Anchovies, herring, chub mackerel, and sardines are some common forage fish.

Which of these is not considered a “forage fish” of the Pacific Northwest?

a) Pacific herring

b) Surf smelt

c) Pacific cod

d) Sand lance

e) Anchovies

You’re right if you answered “c.” Pacific cod are not forage fish. Herring, smelt, sand lance, and anchovies are all forage fish, which supply salmon with the energy they need to avoid predators and grow into huge orca-snacks. In many cases, shoreline property owners can do their part to restore forage fish spawning habitat by removing seawalls and bulkheads and replacing them with engineered, natural shorelines. (But remember to obtain the proper permits before moving ahead with any new shoreline development activity.)

Predator: An animal that naturally preys on others.

Prey: An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food.

Which of these does not eat juvenile salmon?

a) Harbor porpoises

b) Humans

c) Seals

d) Birds

The correct answer here is “b.” While humans do eat adult salmon, they do not fish for juvenile salmon, or the juvenile steelhead featured in Survive the Sound. But seals, harbor porpoises, and some birds certainly enjoy the young fish. Predators are often blamed for the decline of salmon and steelhead populations, and their impact is significant, but the collective health of the ecosystem can play a larger role. When talking about predator management, it’s important to consider factors that could be exacerbating predation, such as migration barriers, lack of habitat, disease, and pollution. A healthy ecosystem can provide more fish for everyone.

Stormwater runoff: Water from rainfall and snowmelt that runs off surfaces such as rooftops, paved streets, highways, and parking lots and flows into surface water including drainage facilities, rivers, streams, lakes, and Puget Sound. Stormwater runoff can also come from hard grassy surfaces like lawns, playfields, and from graveled roads that don't absorb water very well.

Watershed: A land area that channels rainfall and snowmelt to creeks, streams, and rivers, and eventually to outflow points such as reservoirs, bays, and the ocean. Learn how to make your own watershed model using a piece of paper, a few markers, and some water.

Approximately what percentage of juvenile steelhead that make it to the Hood Canal Bridge will not survive past it?

a) 5

b) 20

c) 30

d) 50

e) 80

The right answer is "d." Up to 50% of juvenile steelhead that make it to the bridge do not survive past it. Isn't that crazy? Addressing environmental problems involving public infrastructure is no easy task. Everyone pays for it, benefits from it, and never realized it would be a problem for fish. It’s important to encourage research to identify issues early and find new solutions so we can enjoy our modern conveniences while protecting the environment. It can be expensive, but in the long run it’s much cheaper to invest in solutions sooner than later. You can’t fix extinction!