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Salish Sea Facts

Salish Sea Facts
The Salish Sea is a network of waterways including the waters around British Columbia's Gulf Islands, Washington's San Juan Islands, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Puget Sound, and the Strait of Georgia. The Salish Sea's waters are partially separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Olympic Peninsula and Vancouver Island. The Salish Sea covers approximately 6,900 square miles.
Interesting Salish Sea Facts:
Bert Webber created the name the Salish Sea in 1988 to raise consciousness about caring for the regions waters. The name was recognized in both the United States and Canada since 2010.
Salishan people were first encountered in the region by American and European explorers in the late 1700s.There are 23 different languages in the Salish culture.
The Salish Sea ecosystem contains brackish waters and marine waters.
There are 253 different species of fish observed in the Salish Sea, including Pacific hagfish, Pacific lamprey, common thresher sharks, cat sharks, dogfish sharks, sturgeon, herring, carp, smelt, trout, salmon, lizardfish, toadfish, killfish, Pacific Ocean fish, sculpins, perch, snailfish, wolfish and many more.
Major cities with ports on the Salish Sea include Victoria, Vancouver, Seattle, Port Angeles, Bellingham, and Tacoma.
The coast of the Salish Sea stretches from West Vancouver in British Columbia, to Olympia in Washington, and is considered to be part of a megalopolis.
The Salish Sea waterways have been an important trade route for the Salish people and indigenous people today.
The orca population in the Salish Sea has decreased due to toxins and the decreased number of Chinook salmon.


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