Tag Archives: fauna

Butter Clams (Saxidomus giganteus)

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“I’ll take a bucket of steamed clams with garlic butter and plenty of napkins…”

How can one live in the Pacific Northwest and not know the taste of fresh steamed clams dripping of parsley and garlic butter?

Butter clams can be found throughout Oregon’s nearshore areas and larger estuaries. They are also found at many fine dining locations.

Where are they?

Butter clams are most often found living 6-12 inches down in the substrate of large estuarine systems, such as Coos, Tillamook, and Yaquina and in bays like Yaquina and Netarts where there is higher salinity. The mud and sandy substrates in these areas are some of the easier places to dig.

They are excellent burrowers and abundant in shell, sandstone, and even rocky areas. Like other types of clams, Butter clams create a distinctive rectangular ‘show’ or mark in the sand that exposes their general location. The Butter clam mark looks like an indent created by a flathead screwdriver.

The clam is usually not directly below the mark but relatively close vertically and will burrow away from you (in other words, sneak up on them and dig fast if you want to get them!). Butter clams will dig 50 feet below the low-tide line.

What did you find?

When digging, more than one type of clam may be found. Depending on the type of clam, you must keep anything that you dig up regardless of size or condition. Meaning? You might dig up more than just a Butter Clam. It may be possible to return unbroken clams to the immediate dig site if unbroken (see ODFW regulations).

Butter clams can reach up to 4-inches wide.

Details to know

Be sure to check the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) regulations for licensing, limits and catch requirements, catch activity reports, techniques, tools, and seminars (https://myodfw.com/crabbing-clamming/licensing-info).  A license for Oregon resident in 2020 is a bargain at only $10.00 per year! Butter clams are called a variety of names including Washingtons, Martha Washingtons, Beefsteak, and Quahog.

The ODFW website (above) includes information on seasonal opportunities, identifying the various species, safety, and provides local maps for where to look. Butter clam harvest is possible on the North Spit, Strawberry Island, Clam Island, Pigeon Point, Empire, Barview, and the Charleston Triangle and Flats. The site also lists locations accessible only by boat.

One more note—be sure to back fill any holes you create and have fun! 

Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)

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What lives in those exposed large, stick nests built on power poles, communication towers, and large trees? Most likely an Osprey.

Osprey image from Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife

As you can imagine, a bird with a nearly 6-foot wingspan builds a big nest. Now imagine the bird adding a bit more to its nest each year. In the end, it is hard to imagine a nest becoming, over time, 10–13 feet deep and 3–6 feet in diameter!

Nest Challenges

Osprey build big nests and will build on any natural or man-made structure that meets its needs. Sometimes, what looked like a good choice doesn’t work out. Osprey nesting has caused power and service outages. There is always a risk of being electrocuted or collisions.

An Osprey’s nest contains more than just sticks we can see. Moss, bark, vines, grass, and lichen make the nest comfortable. But the birds will also add in other interesting things such as fishing line, baling wire, Styrofoam, and sometimes even plastic containers. Baling wire and fishing line can be fatal if the birds or young become entangled.

Nesting platforms and mitigation techniques reduce these conflicts and increase the number of birds and survival. The species is considered a conservation success story.

Where to see them

You can find Osprey nests near a lake, pond, swamp, reservoir, river, etc.  Live fish is key part of their diets unlike other raptors. They will also eat other smaller birds, snakes, voles, squirrels, muskrats, and salamanders.

Feet first!

Osprey are amazing fishers. Part of their fishing success, compared to other hawks, is undoubtedly due to an unusual toe/claw placement that helps them grip fish tightly. Their real success, however, is in technique.

The technique? Osprey dive feet first into shallow waters (up to about 3 feet) and grab a fish. They will also do this in deeper water where fish swim near the surface. Osprey have water-resistant feathers are the only raptors that dive.

Amazing Migration

In recent years, the number of Osprey residing year-around on the Pacific coast has increased. Normally, the birds would migrate as far south as Honduras. Researchers have found that some Osprey will migrate around 160,000 miles in their lifetimes. They are not sure what is causing this change.

Protection

Osprey are an amazing raptor and are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) 16 U.S.C. Sections 703-712 of 1918 (as amended). All active nests (incubating adult, eggs, or young present) of migratory bird species are also protected by the MBTA. In Oregon, Osprey are protected by both state statute and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife administrative rules. Oregon Revised Statute (ORS 498) protects osprey from take, disturbance and harassment. Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 635-044 0130 categorizes osprey as Nongame Protected Wildlife. It is unlawful for a person to hunt, trap, pursue, kill, take, catch, or have in possession, either dead or alive, whole or in part, any Nongame Protected Wildlife.

References and where to find out more…Check the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife site at https://myodfw.com/wildlife-viewing/species/raptors and be sure to download their “Living with Wildlife” brochure at https://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/living_with/docs/osprey.pdf. Another excellent resource is the All About Birds page by the Cornell Lab (see https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Osprey/id).

Whale Watching in Depoe Bay, OR

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Depoe Bay, OR does not just have the reputation of being the world’s smallest harbor; it is the “Whale Watching Capital of Oregon’s Coast.”

In this six-acre harbor (also called Depoe Bay) you can come see whales almost year round. During the winter migration, gray whales make the journey south, leaving the waters of Alaska in favor of the warmer water in northern Mexico.

Migrations

This migration usually occurs in late December to February. During the spring migration that begins in March, whales head back up north to Alaska.

While these two migrations are the ideal times in which to see whales, it is almost certain you can see a whale in Depoe Bay any time of the year. This certainty is largely due to the group of gray whales that comprise the Pacific Coast Feeding Group.

Summer Feeding

Instead of making the journey all the way back to Alaska, this group of gray whales spend their summer feeding around the reefs in Depoe Bay. Around 18,000 gray whales pass through Depoe Bay over the course of the winter and spring migrations.

Grey Whale spout – photo taken by Rowland Willis

The most common whale seen off Oregon’s coast is the gray whale. Around 18,000 gray whales pass through Depoe Bay over the course of the winter and spring migrations.

Blue whales and humpback whales can also be spotted but in much deeper waters (usually no closer than 10 miles off the coast). If you’re really lucky, you might even be able to spot a pod of orca whales (also called killer whales). These beautiful predators are most likely spotted during mid-April when they come to intercept baby gray whales.

Charters

Charters like Tradewind Charters, Dockside Charters, Whale’s Tail Charters LLC, and Whale Research EcoExcursions LLC will accommodate any experienced or novice whaler’s needs with an up to two hour long tour, depending on the season.

Information for this post was sourced here.