Squaxin Island Tribe's Natural Resources

Geoduck tubes were removed from small test-plots on Squaxin Island in early January.  These tubes were put in prior to planting to help protect the baby geoduck from predation.  Generally tubes are removed after approximately 1 year as the clams have dug deep enough to avoid most predators.  Many individuals from Squaxin Island Natural Resources were [...]

[Read more →]

Figure 1. Oakland Bay With Hammersley Inlet Private Tidelands Area Shown By Red Arrow

During the summer of 2008 Squaxin Island Natural Resources Shellfish employees conducted shellfish population surveys on several privately owned tidelands in Hammersley Inlet (Figure 1).  This area had previously been closed to harvesting due to some form of pollution (see http://www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/sf/default.htm for [...]

[Read more →]

On November 20th the tribe had our first harvest on a piece of Tide land located in Oakland Bay leased from The Washington State Department of Natural Resources.  25 tribal members were given the opportunity to dig 180Ibs of manila clams using a hand held fork.  The limit for this dig was increased in order [...]

[Read more →]

Early morning on November 20th the Squaxin Island Tribe’s commercial Dungeness crab fishery will open in south Puget Sound. This includes all of the marine waters south of the Tacoma Narrows except for the Nisqually Reach and Balch and Drayton passages. The fishery will be open seven days a week from one hour before sunrise [...]

[Read more →]

On October 23, 2008 the Shellfish Enhancement program finished distribution of some 9 million clam seed on Squaxin Island and in Case Inlet.  Seeded beaches include S21 A & B, the north and south shores in Palela Bay, S16 A and Gills cove.

[Read more →]

Shellfish enhancement began on Squaxin Island on August 28th, with Manila clam seed being spread on one of our island beaches.  With the recent addition of a new position to lead the enhancement portion of the Shellfish Department, this seeding event  was a successful start for new beach manager Daniel Kuntz.  This enhancement program is [...]

[Read more →]

The Squaxin Island Tribe’s Shellfish Department conducted shellfish population surveys on 20 parcels in Hammersley Inlet from June 20th to July 20th 2008.   The surveys focused on naturally occurring beds of Manila clams found in an area that was recently upgraded to “Approved” status for the harvest of commercial shellfish by the Washington State Department of Health.  Once that [...]

[Read more →]