Biodiversity
Vashon Island is home to an unbelievably biodiverse ecosystem. Thanks to Vashon Nature Center’s hundreds of scientists and volunteers, we have documented almost 3,000 different species on the islands.
The more diverse an ecosystem is, the more resilient it is to threats like climate change and disease. We need a baseline to track biodiversity as it changes, but many species remain unknown to science and most funding is tied to a few iconic or highly endangered species. We value witnessing, understanding, celebrating, and documenting the whole wondrous spectrum of life.
Featured Projects
BioBlitz: VNC launched in 2012 with a joyful community event centered on biodiversity—a BioBlitz. Studying and championing biodiversity is still at the heart of all we do. BioBlitzes are 24-hour species marathons where scientists and volunteers record as many species as possible in one full day within a defined location. We have hosted seven BioBlitzes since 2012, and our volunteers have recorded nearly 3,000 island species, significantly increasing our knowledge of those who share our islands and adding information about biodiversity patterns across the Salish Sea.
Wildcam Vashon: Vashon Nature Center scientists use wildlife cameras for a variety of projects, including better understanding our coyote population, tracking the movements of cougars and bears when they come to the islands, and glimpsing wild animals in moments that give us insights into their behavior and private lives. We use cameras on our streams to track predation of spawning fish and on our beaches to monitor wildlife use of restoration sites. In 2022, we created an islandwide grid with a camera located within every square mile to survey patterns of wildlife habitat use (see the results in our Vashon Science Archive). In 2023, we used cameras to document the decomposition of a beached gray whale. View highlights from these programs on our Vashon Nature Center YouTube channel.
eDNA: Environmental DNA is a non-invasive way of sampling biodiversity through a water sample. By pushing the water through a filter, we catch floating particles such as fish scales on the filter. They are then tested against known DNA barcodes that denote species. Two of our projects use this new technology. The first is a collaboration with Hakai Institute to measure fish diversity throughout the Salish Sea. And the second is in collaboration with University of Washington eDNA Lab and King County to survey juvenile chinook salmon and lamprey in island creeks.
Our Fantastic Partners
We thank our many partners and supporters in our biodiversity work including: Hakai Institute, UW eDNA collaborative, IMERSS, CREOi, King County, Vashon-Maury Island Land Trust, Vashon Parks District, private landowners.