Kwiaht
@kwiaht.org
Your local laboratory in the San Juan Islands for the science to support good stewardship. Posts by @arbutocrat.bsky.social
Learn how our stellar lab technician Sophie Citro is organizing community moth science in the islands
Lopez moth hunt engages community in bat fungus research
Citizen science project provides clues for bat survival on the islands.
salish-current.org
February 13, 2026 at 4:10 AM
Learn how our stellar lab technician Sophie Citro is organizing community moth science in the islands
Come let Russel Barsh introduce you to the lesser known butterflies and moths of the San Juan archipelago. February 22nd at the Orcas Odd Fellows Hall from 2-3:30
The illustrated handbook Butterflies of the San Juan Islands (and some interesting moths) will be available.
The illustrated handbook Butterflies of the San Juan Islands (and some interesting moths) will be available.
February 10, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Come let Russel Barsh introduce you to the lesser known butterflies and moths of the San Juan archipelago. February 22nd at the Orcas Odd Fellows Hall from 2-3:30
The illustrated handbook Butterflies of the San Juan Islands (and some interesting moths) will be available.
The illustrated handbook Butterflies of the San Juan Islands (and some interesting moths) will be available.
Tick activity is starting in the islands. Send us any you find theorcasonian.com/its-time-for...
It’s time for ticks | A message from Kwiaht
||| FROM RUSSEL BARSH for KWIAHT |||
Tick season is here! In the San Juan Islands, ticks go “questing” for new hosts from January through June, usually peaking in March and April. While ticks are s...
theorcasonian.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:43 PM
Tick activity is starting in the islands. Send us any you find theorcasonian.com/its-time-for...
We are honored to co-host the Food Sovereignty and Thriving Indigenous Plant Communities session at the 2026 San Juan Islands Agricultural Summit, alongside Protecting Knowledge of Land and Sea (PKOLS) and the Indigenous Plants Forum on Saturday February 28th.
2026 San Juan Islands Agricultural Summit
extension.wsu.edu
January 27, 2026 at 1:22 AM
We are honored to co-host the Food Sovereignty and Thriving Indigenous Plant Communities session at the 2026 San Juan Islands Agricultural Summit, alongside Protecting Knowledge of Land and Sea (PKOLS) and the Indigenous Plants Forum on Saturday February 28th.
Some of what we're working on to support food security, cultural landscapes, and agricultural biodiversity in the islands.
Building the recognition of heritage apples to give value to the islands' ancient food forests
A taste of history in the making - Good Fruit Grower
Before irrigation systems were built in the state’s arid center, the San Juan Islands were Washington’s hub of apple production. Today, an environmental nonprofit is trying to put some of those herita...
goodfruit.com
January 23, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Some of what we're working on to support food security, cultural landscapes, and agricultural biodiversity in the islands.
Want to learn more about our research in the marine waters around the San Juan Islands? Kwiaht director Russel Barsh will tell you all about it at our Marine Matinee on Sunday January 25th at Lopez Center.
January 22, 2026 at 6:50 PM
Want to learn more about our research in the marine waters around the San Juan Islands? Kwiaht director Russel Barsh will tell you all about it at our Marine Matinee on Sunday January 25th at Lopez Center.
We have a new book out! A guide to the moths and butterflies of the San Juan Islands. Available at the Lopez Bookshop (and on its way to other local booksellers) or by donation to Kwiaht www.kwiaht.org/donate.htm
December 31, 2025 at 7:03 PM
We have a new book out! A guide to the moths and butterflies of the San Juan Islands. Available at the Lopez Bookshop (and on its way to other local booksellers) or by donation to Kwiaht www.kwiaht.org/donate.htm
You can support @arbutocrat.bsky.social's work on heritage and locally adapted seedling apples on Orcas through the Orcas Island Community Foundation.
oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
December 4, 2025 at 6:14 PM
You can support @arbutocrat.bsky.social's work on heritage and locally adapted seedling apples on Orcas through the Orcas Island Community Foundation.
oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
We are working with WDFW and the Washington State Department of Health to monitor avian influenza in wildlife in the San Juan Islands. If you find dead wild waterfowl, raptors, or scavengers, do not handle them, contact us [email protected].
A gull I sampled has tested positive for HPAI. These are the first positive tests in the islands since 2023 and seem to be part of a regional outbreak www.sanjuancountywa.gov/CivicAlerts....
Avian Influenza in Domestic Flock Confirmed in San Juan County
There are no reported human cases of avian influenza in San Juan County.
www.sanjuancountywa.gov
December 3, 2025 at 5:16 PM
We are working with WDFW and the Washington State Department of Health to monitor avian influenza in wildlife in the San Juan Islands. If you find dead wild waterfowl, raptors, or scavengers, do not handle them, contact us [email protected].
Old orchards have remarkable stories to go with their unique seedling varieties.
The stories told by an Orcas Island apple | Islands' Sounder
by Russel Barsh
www.islandssounder.com
November 29, 2025 at 6:36 PM
Old orchards have remarkable stories to go with their unique seedling varieties.
"[T]he photogenic foxes, brought to the island a century ago by fur farms, play a complex and as-yet poorly understood role in both changing and maintaining the landscape." www.islandssounder.com/life/life-an...
Life and death in the dunes, with foxes | Islands' Sounder
Life and death in the dunes, with foxes
www.islandssounder.com
November 24, 2025 at 9:49 PM
"[T]he photogenic foxes, brought to the island a century ago by fur farms, play a complex and as-yet poorly understood role in both changing and maintaining the landscape." www.islandssounder.com/life/life-an...
Tonight! Kwiaht ecologist Russel Barsh at the Lopez Library with Shining a Light on Local Moths starting at 6pm. And while you are there you can see local high school artist (and Kwiaht lab tech) Sophie Citro's moth art and buy a ticket (or many) for her moth sculpture raffle.
November 13, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Tonight! Kwiaht ecologist Russel Barsh at the Lopez Library with Shining a Light on Local Moths starting at 6pm. And while you are there you can see local high school artist (and Kwiaht lab tech) Sophie Citro's moth art and buy a ticket (or many) for her moth sculpture raffle.
Learn about the research on herring that we are doing with Long Live the Kings and the Nisqually Indian Tribe www.youtube.com/watch?v=khz1...
Recovering Herring in Puget Sound
YouTube video by Long Live the Kings
www.youtube.com
November 8, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Learn about the research on herring that we are doing with Long Live the Kings and the Nisqually Indian Tribe www.youtube.com/watch?v=khz1...
Residues of home and garden pesticides sold and used on Orcas Island have been found in local wildlife, with some of the highest concentrations in bats and hummingbirds.
www.sanjuanjournal.com/news/househo...
www.sanjuanjournal.com/news/househo...
Household pesticides found in local bats and other wildlife | The Journal of the San Juan Islands
Submitted by Russel Barsh, director of Kwiaht.
www.sanjuanjournal.com
October 30, 2025 at 9:35 PM
Residues of home and garden pesticides sold and used on Orcas Island have been found in local wildlife, with some of the highest concentrations in bats and hummingbirds.
www.sanjuanjournal.com/news/househo...
www.sanjuanjournal.com/news/househo...
Everyone is invited to our 7th annual camas festival!
‘Earthy and sweet’: Potluck-style Camas Festival to make its mainland debut
The festival, which is primarily a potluck paired with an educational presentation and a panel discussion, is coming to the mainland from noon to 3 p.m. this Saturday, at the
www.goskagit.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Everyone is invited to our 7th annual camas festival!
Join us for our 7th annual Camas Festival! A potluck featuring camas (Camassia leichtlinii) based dishes and presentations and discussion of camas cultivation. Saturday October 25th 12-3pm at the Stevens Center of the Padilla Bay National
Estuarine Research Reserve. www.kwiaht.org/calendar.htm
Estuarine Research Reserve. www.kwiaht.org/calendar.htm
October 7, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Join us for our 7th annual Camas Festival! A potluck featuring camas (Camassia leichtlinii) based dishes and presentations and discussion of camas cultivation. Saturday October 25th 12-3pm at the Stevens Center of the Padilla Bay National
Estuarine Research Reserve. www.kwiaht.org/calendar.htm
Estuarine Research Reserve. www.kwiaht.org/calendar.htm
"To recover the islands’ Julia Orangetips, could we simply plant more of their preferred host plant? Tower Mustard is native to the San Juan Islands, easy to grow and a part of meadow restoration projects being carried out elsewhere."
Have we lost the Orangetip butterfly? | The Journal of the San Juan Islands
By Sophie Citro
www.sanjuanjournal.com
October 5, 2025 at 5:07 PM
"To recover the islands’ Julia Orangetips, could we simply plant more of their preferred host plant? Tower Mustard is native to the San Juan Islands, easy to grow and a part of meadow restoration projects being carried out elsewhere."
Our Camas Festival is moving to Padilla Bay this year! Save the date: Saturday October 25th for a camas focused potluck including a presentation by Sam Barr of the Coast Salish Youth Coalition on the revitalization of camas culture by Coast Salish youth.
September 30, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Our Camas Festival is moving to Padilla Bay this year! Save the date: Saturday October 25th for a camas focused potluck including a presentation by Sam Barr of the Coast Salish Youth Coalition on the revitalization of camas culture by Coast Salish youth.
More heritage apple events coming up in October! Our third annual apple tasting with the Orcas Museum is Saturday October 4th (12:30-2:30), and on October 11th we're joining the San Juan County Land Bank, apple ID expert Lori Brakken, and master orchardist Marguerite Greening for Apple-Palooza
September 30, 2025 at 5:54 PM
More heritage apple events coming up in October! Our third annual apple tasting with the Orcas Museum is Saturday October 4th (12:30-2:30), and on October 11th we're joining the San Juan County Land Bank, apple ID expert Lori Brakken, and master orchardist Marguerite Greening for Apple-Palooza
The tasting scores for this year are in: Twenty Ounce was the favorite, followed by Esopus Spitzenburg and Glowing Coal. Our next tasting is Saturday October 4th at the Orcas Museum (12:30-2:30).
Some of the apples that will be at tomorrow's tasting with the Lopez Island History Museum:
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Third Annual Heritage Apple Day & Community Press – Lopez Island History Museum
Saturday, September 27, 1:00-3:00PM, Lopez Museum, 28 Washburn Pl Once known as the Fruit Basket of Washington, the San Juan Islands and Lopez have a long histo
lopezmuseum.org
September 30, 2025 at 5:47 PM
The tasting scores for this year are in: Twenty Ounce was the favorite, followed by Esopus Spitzenburg and Glowing Coal. Our next tasting is Saturday October 4th at the Orcas Museum (12:30-2:30).
Some of the apples that will be at tomorrow's tasting with the Lopez Island History Museum:
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Third Annual Heritage Apple Day & Community Press – Lopez Island History Museum
Saturday, September 27, 1:00-3:00PM, Lopez Museum, 28 Washburn Pl Once known as the Fruit Basket of Washington, the San Juan Islands and Lopez have a long histo
lopezmuseum.org
September 26, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Some of the apples that will be at tomorrow's tasting with the Lopez Island History Museum:
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River
Can rediscovering heritage apples and sharing unique local seedlings help change apple culture in a way that values island orchards?
Lost varieties, new opportunities | Orcas Island’s path back to apple glory | Islands' Sounder
by Darrell Kirk
www.islandssounder.com
September 4, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Can rediscovering heritage apples and sharing unique local seedlings help change apple culture in a way that values island orchards?
Western leafcutter bee (Megachile perihirta) taking off from a Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle) inflorescence near Cattle Point (San Juan Islands National Monument).
August 19, 2025 at 10:08 PM
Western leafcutter bee (Megachile perihirta) taking off from a Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle) inflorescence near Cattle Point (San Juan Islands National Monument).
Do you need more ways to enjoy this years abundant crop of t’áqa7? We have added recipes to the Food Security section of our website.
August 17, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Do you need more ways to enjoy this years abundant crop of t’áqa7? We have added recipes to the Food Security section of our website.
We're raising funds through the San Juan Island Community Foundation to fund more apple genetic fingerprinting. To see some of the apples that grow in the islands take a look at this thread by our botanist @arbutocrat.bsky.social
To donate to the project: sjicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
To donate to the project: sjicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
August 17, 2025 at 5:21 PM
We're raising funds through the San Juan Island Community Foundation to fund more apple genetic fingerprinting. To see some of the apples that grow in the islands take a look at this thread by our botanist @arbutocrat.bsky.social
To donate to the project: sjicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...
To donate to the project: sjicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...