Nearshore areas within Hood Canal and the Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca support multiple species and stocks of salmon that originate here as well as from outside the area. The nearshore, and estuaries in particular, have been termed the life support system for juvenile salmon feeding, rearing and migrating (Healey 1982, Simenstad et al. 1982). Most juvenile anadromous salmon are recognized as being fundamentally dependent on nearshore ecosystems, in particular Summer Chum and Chinook Salmon. Those systems also directly support the feeding and in-migration of adults. Currently, the nearshore is increasingly understood as a critical, year-round habitat for salmon, not just as an in and out migration environment as was thought in the past. Additionally, nearshore areas in Hood Canal support forage fish such as surf smelt and herring, fish that are critical prey for salmon.

The nearshore can roughly be described as the area beginning at 200 feet upland of ordinary high water and extending seaward to a depth of 65 feet below mean low water. Nearshore habitats can include: eelgrass meadows, kelp forests, sand and mudflats, tidal marshes, river mouths and deltas, sand spits, beach and backshore areas, banks and bluffs, and marine riparian areas (Dethier 1990.) Juvenile salmonids may use eelgrass for feeding and rearing; herring use eelgrass as a spawning substrate. Bull kelp provides refuge and feeding habitat for fishes, spawning substrate for herring, and buffering of wave and current energy. Sand and mudflats provide a number of functions including prey production for juvenile salmon. Large woody debris that accumulates in backshore areas and beaches at extreme high tides can provide foraging, refuge, and spawning substrate for fishes. Juvenile salmon have been shown to reside in both tidal marshes and channels. Banks and bluffs (cliffs) comprised of sediments of varying grain sizes, as well as rocks and boulders are important for sediment recruitment to the marine environment.

Many opportunities exist for active restoration work such as the removal of shoreline armoring and fill materials, re-establishing native plants and controlling noxious weeds in the riparian areas, and controlling stormwater run-off to return those areas to as much natural function and as near original physical structure as possible.

For all references and an expanded version of this description see the Hood Canal Coordinating Council’s Habitat Recovery Strategy for the Hood Canal and Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca, version 09-2005