Learn about the disappearance of Sea otters along Oregon's coast and what the Elakha Alliance is doing to bring them back. Written for Ridgeline Magazine by Kyle Motley of the Elakha Alliance.

A Life Shaped by the Rhythm of the Oregon Coast

Living on the coast doesn’t mean simply existing beside the ocean. When you live and work on the Oregon Coast, of course your life is dictated by drastic weather patterns, both season to season, week to week, moment by moment and in all reality, just town to town (so many microclimates!). But for me, more than the weather, it’s the tides that set the pace of my life.

One of my least favorite misconceptions! As we enter the seasons when ocean conditions make it a bit harder to find freshly caught seafood in markets, I thought this was a timely topic, especially for those of us who love Oregon seafood or freshly foraged shellfish.

From camp sites to luxury hotels - Whether it’s falling asleep to the sound of crashing waves at a remote campground or soaking in a clawfoot tub with harbor views from a boutique inn, I’ve come to appreciate that the best travel experiences aren’t about one kind of stay. Some trips take me to remote campgrounds where I fall asleep to the sound of the ocean, and others land me in quiet, well-designed hotels with real beds and hot meals I didn’t have to make. Both have their place.

It’s said that 90% of animals on the planet are invertebrates so what are they and how do they all fit together? We’re going to look at this from a marine viewpoint, and use Oregon’s tide-pools as our environmental focus.

When most people think of ocean life, they may typically think of vertebrates, the large animals with backbones, like fish, dolphins, whales, seals, which often steal the show. But if you’ve ever spent time in tidepools along the Oregon Coast, beneath the waves or the tide line lie an even more diverse and fascinating world of creatures—marine invertebrates, or animals that don’t have a backbone. Anemones, sea stars, hermit crabs, mussels, clams, and so much more. These animals, which lack a backbone, make up the vast majority of life in the sea. From the tide pools to the deep sea, marine invertebrates are essential to healthy ocean ecosystems.

On land, invertebrates are animals like insects, spiders (arachnids), worms (annelids), snails (mollusks). In the sea, there are similar creatures plus some additional ones that are exclusive to marine habitats like star fish, sea urchins, etc.

In this post, we’ll explore some of the most common marine invertebrate phylums (major biological groupings), what makes them unique, and where you might encounter them. We’ll organize these marine invertebrate phyla from simplest to most complex, which is typically based on body structure, level of organization (e.g., presence of tissues, organs, symmetry), and nervous system development. This is one of my favorite topics in marine biology, and once you see how animals are similar despite their very different physical appearances, it can really help you understand how they all play a role in our diverse ecosystems!

Each year, after buying whole Albacore Tuna off the fishing docks in Oregon, I store it in the freezer and make Oregon Albacore Poke throughout the year whenever I need a little taste of summer.

With Albacore Tuna reaching docks in Oregon, I wanted to do a feature on this incredible fish. Whether you are just fascinated with the highly migratory life of these species, or interested in what makes them a sustainable seafood option, this one is for you!

The intertidal, or the area along the seashore between the highest and lowest tides, is an area seemingly so small compared to its terrestrial and oceanic neighbors. Yet it’s an area with nooks and crevices and life of unimaginable numbers and characteristics. The abundance and diversity can be so different between habitats just miles apart. Around every little headland or every little corner of the coastline lays a new and exciting intertidal experience.  

With the start of the seaweed foraging season just about here, I figured it was time to share a little about best practices and seaweed harvesting regulations in Oregon! Learn about the regulations behind seaweed foraging, best practices, and how I like to go about collecting seaweeds for the year. Here’s a little nit and gritty on seaweed harvesting in Oregon, before I get into my personal practices. 

Oregon seafood - it’s diverse, abundant, fresh, sustainable, and it’s delicious. Yet most of the seafood served on our beautiful coastline is not from our waters, and most don’t even know it.

In honor of the Oregon Truffle Fest returning to Astoria, OR in February 2025, I’ve been thinking deep about topics inspired by Merlin Sheldrake's “Entangled Life”.

Did you know that the Dungeness crab fishery is considered the most valuable single-species fishery in all of Oregon? In fact, Newport, Oregon is trademarked as the Dungeness Crab Capital of the World, landing more Dungeness crab each year than anywhere else on the planet! In recent years, I have learned A LOT about this industry, met many crab fisherman, and gained a much deeper appreciation for this species and all those involved in this industry. I think it’s something all Oregonians should have some knowledge about and something worth being very proud of! Let's explore a little bit about Dungeness crabs as a species, commercial crabbing regulations, sustainability, and the major significance this industry has to our coastal communities.

With our last set of King Tides having just passed, I wanted to share what I've learned about the tides, and specifically king tides, in recent years! King Tides in Oregon are a spectacle many want to see. Find out how to experience king tides safely, and contribute to a citizen science project!

Pacific Northwest rocky shore intertidal ecosystems provide a range of opportunities. For me it’s been the base of my life in environmental education, coastal exploration, foraging, and overall outdoor recreation in Oregon. I am in love with the complexities of the oceans, the complexities of the intertidal. Our tidepools in Oregon are, by record, some of the most diverse and abundant in the world. Our tidepools in Oregon are, in my opinion, some of the best in the world.

Oregon Albacore season feels so special. Learn how to buy fish directly from the fisherman as well as what makes Oregon Albacore so special!

In Oregon, our seaweed foraging season is relatively short for live seaweeds (seaweeds still attached to the rocks). Therefore, it’s important to know how to process and store these seaweeds for future use. Unless I want a fresh kelp salad right off the beach, most of the seaweeds that I forage during the Oregon seaweed foraging season - learn my favorite processing techniques for Oregon Seaweeds!

It’s been a whirlwind of shellfish safety regulations for the past couple weeks, and a large closure of shellfish harvesting along the Oregon Coast due to shellfish poisoning! I thought I’d share what I’ve learned from Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

There’s a number of things to keep in mind and stay up to date on when foraging for shellfish on the Oregon Coast. Here’s some helpful information to get you started.

Pickling bull kelp once you have the kelp itself is relatively straight forward. The stipe is hollow and round, making kelp pickles aesthetically pleasing, crunchy, and delicious!

One of my favorite seaweeds, or kelps, to harvest and pickle is bull kelp! Keep reading to learn how to salvage seaweed in Oregon and how to make bull kelp pickles. Seaweeds span our coast range and cover our intertidal ecosystems. In fact, the Pacific Northwest is home to more kelp species than anywhere else on the planet. Learn to salvage fresh seaweeds right off the beach!