Marine Biology at the University of Washington

Screen shot of an open ocean transect line showing the deployment of drones, AUVs and gliders in Monterey Bay.

Screen shot of different technologies such as drones and AUVs being deployed from a ship.

It was great hearing about how our drones are being integrated with AUVs, gliders and eDNA samplers to improve our understanding of Monterey Bay in a collaborative project known as Synchro. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwenvironment.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social

@uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social @uwatmossci.bsky.social @uwenvironment.bsky.social

☀️🔬Summer at UW Friday Harbor Laboratories is alive with energy, and that's because they invest in undergraduate research.

Check out the new story by FHL featuring @uofwa.bsky.social #marinebiology #undergrads 👇

fhl.uw.edu/about/news-a...

The University of Washington husky mascot, DUBS, sits on an office chair with a computer screen behind him reading "Get Ready to ShakeOut." A banner at the top encourages viewers to join the Great ShakeOut, and three graphics at the bottom explain how to Drop, Cover, and Hold On.

Who’s ready to #ShakeOut!? @DubsUW sure is! The Great @ShakeOut earthquake drill is just 2 weeks away, on October 16. Every year, millions across the globe participate. When the ground starts shaking, the best way to protect yourself is simple: DAWG (Drop), COVER, and HOLD ON!

Trawling through fishery data during 2025 Hollings Scholarship internship Running for six decades is the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s (NEFSC) bottom trawl survey, one of the longest running of its kind in the world. The data collected from the trawl when it ope...

🎣📈Trawling through fishery data during 2025 Hollings Scholarship internship.

Find out how Hannah Tucker, @uofwa.bsky.social Marine Biology major & @noaa.gov #HollingsScholar, spent her summer 👇
marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/09/29/t...

The Curious Case of 'Old Thom,' an Orca Traveling Alone in the North Atlantic Sightings of the marine mammal captivate the public and baffle scientists

🐋"I don’t think I’ve ever heard of one that’s all alone...for that long,” says Deborah Giles, a killer whale scientist at the SeaDoc Society and resident scientist at the @uofwa.bsky.social's Friday Harbor Laboratories.

Story in @smithsonianmag.bsky.social ⤵️
www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...

We welcome Andrea Burton to @uofwa.bsky.social Marine Biology and @uwsafs.bsky.social, our newest faculty member. Andrea starts this month as an Assistant Teaching Professor, a specialist in climate change biology, using molecular and ecological approaches.

marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/09/15/w...

@uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social

New findings call into question one of the core assumptions about teeth. Adult male spotted ratfish have rows of teeth on top of their heads, in addition to those in their jaws. They use these teeth to grip females while mating. @karlycohen.bsky.social

More: www.washington.edu/news/2025/09...

Aerial view of sea lions on a beach.

Aerial view of sea lions on a beach.

Aerial view of sea lions on a beach.

Aerial view of sea lions on a beach.

Our drone team recently returned from a survey trip where they captured this large sea lion haul out on San Carlos Beach; a popular dive spot in Monterey. The beach was the scene of a similar large haul out at the same time last year. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social #drones

Quiet Sound just published a new study exploring what motivates container ship operators to participate in voluntary slowdowns. Reducing underwater noise and protecting endangered orcas in Puget Sound.

When researchers put a camera tag on a whale, they never expected to see this | Discover Wildlife When NOAA researchers used suction-cup tags to study cetaceans, they caught the incredible moment a whale breached.

When researchers put a camera tag on a whale, they never expected to see this | Discover Wildlife

Next stop, Croatia. A study abroad to research the Adriatic’s marine mammals and sea turtles About to embark on a study abroad adventure is Ellie Thomas, a Marine Biology undergraduate heading into her third year of study at the University of Washington. On 1 September, Ellie will be flying (...

🇭🇷 Next stop, Croatia. A study abroad to research the Adriatic’s marine mammals and sea turtles 🐢🐬

Find out more about @uofwa.bsky.social undergrad Ellie's upcoming study abroad trip with @thesfs.bsky.social starting next week!

marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/08/26/c...

A screenshot of the UW homepage featuring an IBIS story, with a photo of a turtle underwater

👏 Amazing to see the IBIS program featured on the @uofwa.bsky.social homepage! This fantastic mentoring program helps students see themselves as scientists.

Read the recent feature by @uwenvironment.bsky.social at environment.uw.edu/news/2025/06...

Salmon eggs

Nick Nordloh holds a large fish inside a hatchery

Outdoor fish pens at a hatchery in Alaska

Incubators holding orange fish eggs in a hatchery

🐟 A summer working at a remote salmon hatchery on 📍Esther Island, Alaska. For Nick Nordloh, this is his first time in Alaska and he was looking for a hands-on, outdoor job that would give him a unique perspective on the fishing industry and salmon hatchery operations.

marinebiology.uw.edu

How Scientists Are Using Drones to Study Sperm Whales

Learn more about how scientists are using drones to study sperm whales. @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social @uwsafs.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/s...

Bridging the disciplinary divide: Six reasons why we should integrate science and art In his famous words, Oscar Wilde proposed that life imitates art, meaning that art can shape our understanding of life and inspire us to act in certain ways. So why not science too? Marjorie Wonham, A...

🔬🎨 Bridging the disciplinary divide: Six reasons why we should integrate science and art.

🆕Read about a new paper published by @uofwa.bsky.social Associate Teaching Professor, Marjorie Wonham, plus insights on a recent Marine Sciences, Ocean Arts workshop👇

marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/08/14/b...

Graduate student catching a drone while on a boat. Photo: 2025 @MBARI Alexandra Boutros.

Student unpacking a drone on a boat. Photo: 2025 @MBARI Alexandra Boutros.

Scientist deploying an eDNA sampler into the water. Photo: 2025 @MBARI Alexandra Boutros.

Scientist deploying an aerial eDNA sampler at the top of a boat. Photo: 2025 @MBARI Alexandra Boutros.

Our drone team recently completed offshore drone surveys with colleagues from @mbarinews.bsky.social Conducted as part of the Synchro program the team is testing how emerging marine technologies can be used to study pelagic systems. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social

Armor for defense or mobility? Recent graduate investigates poacher fish armor at FHL Bryan Lemus, a recent Marine Biology graduate from the University of Washington, worked with a team at Friday Harbor Labs (FHL) studying armored fishes. They study poacher fishes, which are small, bot...

🛡️Armor for defense or mobility? Recent @uofwa.bsky.social Marine Biology graduate, Bryan Lemus, investigates poacher fish armor at FHL.

🐟 Small, bottom-dwelling, cold-water marine fishes, poachers are covered from head to tail in dense armor.

Full story 👉 marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/08/11/a...

The docks at Friday Harbor Labs.

A student holding a drone while standing on a boat at sea.

Screenshot of an automated flight plan on the screen of a drone remote control.

Aerial shot of the rocky intertidal.

This week our team is @ Friday Harbor Labs conducting drone surveys of intertidal habitat for colleagues from @ucscscience.bsky.social as part of an @waseagrant.bsky.social project. Our team wraps up work tomorrow. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social @uwenvironment.bsky.social

Out with @wadnr.bsky.social today to film one of our alumni, Aidan Cox, who's a Natural Resource Scientist undertaking kelp monitoring.

📍 Lowman Beach, West Seattle

Interning at the New England Aquarium In our latest student takeover, we were joined by UW Marine Biology student, Charly Cooper, who is interning during the summer of 2025 at the New England Aquarium in Boston. Find out more about her su...

🐙 In our latest student takeover, we were joined by Charly Cooper who is interning at the @newenglandaquarium.bsky.social in Boston.

🐠 Find out more about her summer internship which involves tank maintenance, life support tasks, fun feeds, & intern events.

🪸 marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/08/06/i...

🫵Are you a first-generation undergrad enrolled in @uwenvironment.bsky.social?

🔜 Coming this Fall is a new near-peer mentoring program called Valiant, where you can get support as you navigate your academic and professional journey in the environmental field.

environment.uw.edu/about/inclus...

🐠 Life for fish on coral reefs is very chaotic. It’s almost like Times Square: lots of bright colors, flashy lights, and countless different organisms swimming every which way.

Read more in FHL's latest Tide Bites ⤵️

fhl.uw.edu/about/news-a...

3D model of rocky intertidal habitat.

3D model of rocky intertidal habitat.

3D model of rocky intertidal habitat.

3D model of rocky intertidal habitat.

Now that drone flights are complete our team is processing their intertidal imagery from B.C. into 3D models of their sites. These models will help the team understand how 3D complexity in the intertidal affects species distribution & abundance. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social

Public Science Engagement Using Social Media — Center for Wildlife Studies

I’ve partnered with the Center for Wildlife Studies to make an online take-at-your-own-pace version of my “public science engagement using social media” professional development workshop.

You can take it for graduate course credit, CPE credit, or just to learn a useful new skill.

Valiant Near-Peer Mentoring Program A program for first-generation undergraduate students in the College of the Environment Program purpose The Valiant Mentoring Program is a near-peer mentoring program that supports first generation* u...

Thrilled to announce the new Valiant Near-Peer Mentoring Program. Sponsored by the Valiant Endowment Fund, the program supports first gen undergrads enrolled in an @uwenvironment.bsky.social degree program. Details below. @uwess.bsky.social @uwsafs.bsky.social environment.uw.edu/about/inclus...

Map of the Farallon Island refuge.

Zoom in of Farallon Island with birds and sea lions visible.

Zoom in of island showing sea bird colonies.

Aerial view of people standing next to a drone landing pad.

Today’s update from the field. Members of our drone team recently returned from the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge where they worked with @pointblue.bsky.social to test using drones for wildlife surveys. @uwsafs.bsky.social @uwmarinebiology.bsky.social @uwenvironment.bsky.social

Eye spy with my little drone: What did the MLEL lab spot along the Canadian coast? It’s not only invertebrates that are seen along the rocky intertidal. Bella Andre, an undergraduate majoring in ESRM with a minor in Marine Biology, spent almost two weeks this summer with the Marine ...

👀 Eye spy with my little drone: What did the @uwmlel.bsky.social spot along the Canadian coast?

🐻 🦌 🐋 Hint, it’s not only invertebrates! Bella Andre, an ESRM & Marine Biology undergrad, saw bears, whales, deer & more during her research experience with MLEL.

👉 marinebiology.uw.edu/2025/07/15/w...