After a dry and sunny summer extending well into October, air temperatures are cooler than normal and precipitation has increased allowing rivers to regain strength. Despite a dry summer, Puget Sound is fresher this year than the past 17 years. As of September, warmer temperatures remained in South Sound. In October, surface water in the Straits however began to cool and the influence of rivers can be seen in our ferry data. Leaves drift on the water in South Sound and smaller blooms are confined to inlets as the productive season winds down. Meet our new intern and discover if Puget Sound really has sea spiders.

1. Surface Conditions Report, October 31, 2017
Eyes Over Puget Sound
Publication No. 17-03-073
Up-to-date observations of water quality conditions in Puget Sound and coastal bays
Start here
Critter of the month:
The Sea Spiders
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info

2. Personalstories p. 3
Meet our new WashingtonConservationCorps intern,Juhi
LaFuente
Climate& Streams p. 6
During October air temperatures are cooler andprecipitation
higher thannormal,while sunshine remainedabundant.
As a result tributaries throughout Puget Sound and the Olympic
Mountains are generally flowingnormal after below normal
flows over the late summer particularly in the north Sound
region.
Marine waters p. 10
Puget Sound is fresher thanit’s ever been the past 17 years.
Warmer temperatures remaininSouth Sound in September. In
October surface water temperature inthe Straits begin to cool
and rivers discolor surface waters.
Aerialphotography p. 12
Blooms are small andconfinedto inlets. Jellyfishpatches are
practically absent. Leaves beginto drift onthe water withsome
orange debris lookinglike a dying bloomof Noctiluca.
LONG-TERMMARINEMONITORINGUNIT
Editorial assistanceprovided by: Julianne Ruffner, Suzan Pool, CarolMaloy
Summary conditions at a glance
Dr. Christopher
Krembs (Editor)
Skip Albertson
Suzan Pool
Julia Bos
Tyler Burks
Jim Shedd
Juhi LaFuente
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info

3. Meet our new Washington Conservation Corps intern
Personal Field ImpressionPersonal stories and field impressions
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Juhi joined our marine
team to conductwater and
sediment surveys, work in our
laboratory, and supportboth
the Toxic Studies and BEACH program.
We are really happy to have her in the program for
the next year!
Juhi Brings Experience
Juhi graduated fromWestern Washington University
with a BS in EnvironmentalScience. She studied
Tropical Marine Biology and Ecology in La Paz,
Mexico, followed by an AmeriCorps position at the
PortTownsend Marine Science Center. There she
worked on aquaria, husbandry for the invertebrates
and fish, and public communication and outreach.
It is getting cold out there!
Juhi’s first marine survey on
our research vessel Skookum.
Juhi LaFuente

4. This isa newfeature,andwearesolicitingfeedback (salb461@ecy.wa.gov).
Eventuallywewill featurethemostrecentdata.
Visibility
What was the visibility in the water for divers?
Find number
Find depths with high and low visibility
• Best visibility was nearly 50 feet south of
Three Tree Point toward Browns Pointand
Commencement Bay.
• Poor vibility occurred in many places in
South PugetSound, but also in Bellingham
Bay and near Bremerton/Silverdale.
• We usetransmissometer readings fromour
CTD packageand convertthem into
horizontalvisibility. See our recent
publication for details: Underwater visibility
Maps – a Tool for Scuba Divers.
September
Best Divingibility in survey
Visibility (ft)/depth(ft)
good poor
How well can you see underwater?
Read poster
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Best/Depth,Least/Depth

5. Critter of the Month – The Sea Spiders
Dany Burgess & Angela Eagleston
Marine Sediment Monitoring Team
Personal Field ImpressionWhat can you find under water?
Fun Sea SpiderFacts
• Species frompolar oceans
can grow to the sizeof a
dinner plate.
• Their blood is pumped by the
gut, not the heart.
• The male sea spider cares for
the eggs, holding them with a
special pair of legs.
Learn moreabout Sea Spiders and other critters on Ecology’s EcoConnectblog here
The Pycnogonids
BOO!If you’rescared of spiders, this
month’s creepy Critter might give
you a fright. Find out why the Sea
Spider is not actually a spider at all,
and why its amazing legs do many
spooktacular things!
Photo courtesy of Dave
Cowles,wallawalla.edu
Photo courtesy of Dave
Cowles,wallawalla.edu
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info

6. How much water flows into coastal marine waters?
Tyler Burks,Jim Shedd
After warmand very dry summer conditions in the Puget Sound, conditions returned to
mostly normal in October. Temperatures and precipitation wereclose to averagethroughout
the region. As a result, tributaries throughoutPugetSound and the Olympic Mountains are
generally flowing normally after below normalflows over the late summer, particularly in
the north Sound region.
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Streamflows returned to
normal in October after much
of the basin experienced below
and much below normalflows
in the month of September.
October saw the return of much needed precipitation after below average
and even record breaking dry periods in parts of the Olympics and north
Cascades. LastOctober (2016) saw record breaking precipitation in much of
the Puget Sound region. Interestingly, Olympia had 28 rainy days in October
2016 in contrastto only 11 days this year. Yet October 2017 still saw normal
to abovenormal precipitation.
Washington Streamflows
October,2017
Washington - Precipitation
July – September 2017Percentile
WestWide Drought Tracker, U Idaho/WRCC Data
Source: PRISM (Prelim), created 16 OCT 2017
Percent ofAveragePrecipitation (%)
Oct,6, 2017 –Nov,4,2017
Generated 11/5/2017 at WRCC using proDivingional data.
NOAA Regional Climate Centers

7. How much water flows into coastal marine waters?
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Climatologists predict wetter and cooler conditions this winter and early spring due to an expected La Niña.
Could this mean a good supply of cool water flowing to Puget Sound in the spring and summer?
Very early snow water
equivalence (SWE) in the
mountains is off to a good start.
The past two years SWEwas
generally higher than normal.
Will we see the same in 2018?
The graphics on the left shows
currentsnow accumulation.
Dec-Jan-Feb 2017 Jan-Feb-Mar 2018 Feb-Mar-Apr 2018 Dec-Jan-Feb 2017 Jan-Feb-Mar 2018 Feb-Mar-Apr 2018
The map on the upper left shows higher than usual probability of above normalprecipitation. The map on
the right show a higher chance of cooler temperatures. Click here

8. Climateinfluences:HowwellisPugetSoundexchangingitswater?
The Fraser River is the major driver of
estuarine circulationandwater
exchange withthe ocean.
Fraser River flows werehigher than
normal in July. Then flows gotweaker.
Lower Fraser River and weaker
upwelling along the coastfavored a
reduced inflow of low-oxygen water
fromthe coastand positively influence
oxygen conditions.
Historically, peaks of coastal upwelling and the freshet are in sync.
Higher than normal
Lower than normal
Expected
Fraser River
NPGO(x10)
PDO/UpwellingIndex
How do ocean boundary conditions
affect the quality of water we
exchange withthe ocean.
Pastyears warmwater is fading (PDO),
upwelling of low oxygen and high
nutrient ocean water are low
(Upwelling Indexanomaly), and
surfaceproductivity along the coastis
near normal (NPGO).
Pacific DecadalOscillation Index(PDO, temperature, explanation). Upwelling Index(anomalies) (Upwelling, low
oxygen, explanation). North Pacific Gyre Oscillation Index(NPGO, productivity, explanation).
Three-year running averageof PDO, Upwelling, and NPGO indices
-25
-15
-5
5
15
25
-1.5
-1
-0.5
0
0.5
1
1.5
1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info

9. What’s the story of influences affecting water quality?
higher No datalowerexpected
*UpwellingAnomalies (PFEL)
PDO = PacificDecadal Oscillation
NPGO = North Pacific GyreOscillation
ENSO = El Niño Southern Oscillation
Climate and naturalinfluences include weather,river flows,andthe adjacent oceanconditions
that affect our marine waters. This graphic provides context for interpretingPuget Soundmarine
conditions. All data frompublic sources: weather fromUWGrayskies;river flows fromUSGS and
Environment Canada; indices fromNOAA,UW (PDO),and E. Di Lorenzo (NPGO).
Summary:
Air temperatures fell below
normal during October after being
mostly above normalsince May.
Precipitationlevels had been low,
but are now above normal.
Sunshine levels havebeen
consistently abovenormal since
May.
River flows areincreasing back to
normal after low flows through
the summer.
We expect downwelling in fall,
but it’s currently weaker. ENSO is
trending cooler, towards La Niña.
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
2017201615Anomalies

10. How did water quality respond to recent conditions?
As of Sept 2017, warmer temperaturepersists in South Sound. Very low salinity persists inHood
Canal, Central and SouthSound. Significantly fresher conditions in Puget Sound occurred since
November, 2016. In September higher dissolved oxygen values continue in Hood Canal while
dissolved oxygen is lower in Central Sound.
= higher than expected (>*IQR) = expected (=*IQR) = lower than expected (<*IQR)
= higher than previous measurements = no data = lower than previous measurements
* IQR = Interquartile Range (25th – 75th percentiles); n = 17
Ecology’s monthlysamples monitoring
stationnetwork.Surface to full depth
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Ecology’s monthlymonitoringstation
network.Surface to full depth.
Year
Month 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Ecology's long-term marine monitoring station network 2017Temperature
Salinity
2015 20152016
Whidbey Basin
Hood Canal
Central Sound
South Sound
20172017
DissolvedOxygen
2015
Grays Harbor
Willapa Bay
North Sound
San Juan
20162016
Temperature Salinity Dissolved Oxygen

11. Summary of Victoria Clipper IVferry data:
Surface water temperature cooledinthe Strait of Juande Fuca. Moderate chlorophyll
concentrations inPuget Sound occurredinearly October followedby clearinginmid-
month. Turbidity andCDOMwere noisy until late October whenriver outflows
contributedto anincrease near the Triple Junction. Gaps in the data are explainedby the
vessel remaining in port.
What are conditions at the surface?
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
The Victoria
Clipper IV carries
sensorsin its sea
chest. The
sensorsallow us
to plot overtime
transects of:
A. Temperature
B. Chlorophyll
C. Turbidity
D. CDOM
Over time,we
see the dynamic
of these
variablesin
surface water
betweenSeattle
and Victoria,BC.

12. What are conditions at the surface?
Start here
BloomDebrisFrontPlume
Narrow HammersleyInletconnectingOakland Bay
Seattle enjoyingthe lastsunny daysof fall
Mixing and Fronts:
Fronts along Deschutes River plume. Otherwise uneventful.
Debris:
Leaves drifting at the surfacein Inlets of South Sound. Ribbons
of orangein Case Inlet accumulating along fronts. Potentially
being Noctiluca?
Visible blooms:
Red-brown: Dyes, Sinclair, Eld, Budd and Henderson Inlets.
Jellyfish:
Jellyfish patches rare, seen only in Budd Inlet.
Suspendedsediment:
Uneventful
The productive seasonis comingto anend, blooms are gettingsmaller, mainly in the color of red-
brown. Jellyfishpatches are practically absent.Leaves beginto drift onthe water withsome orange
debris in Case Inlet lookinglike a fadingbloomof the dinoflagellate Noctiluca.
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info

13. Strait of
Juan de Fuca
San Juan Islands
Padilla Bay
Main Basin
Hood Canal
Whidbey Basin
Sunny,Divingibilityslightlyhazy.
Flight Information:
Aerial photography
and navigation guide
Flight route
6 Observation Maps:
Central Sound
South Sound
12
7
14
3
9
8
10
13
15
4
5
11
South Sound
Tide data(Seattle):
Time Height (ft) High/Low
02:31 AM 8.35 H
08:22 AM 2.77 L
2:57 PM 11.18 H
9:32 PM 2.92 L
2
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
1

14. Lower altitude.Red-brown bloom. Front of the Deschutes River with organic material debris.
Location: Budd Inlet (South Sound),2:47 PM.
1 Aerial photography 10-31-2017 Navigate
Priest Point
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Bloom
Debris
Debris

15. Higher altitude.Red-brown bloom. Front of the Deschutes River with organic material debris.
Location: Budd Inlet (South Sound),2:49 PM.
2 Navigate
Debris
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
boat
wood
Bloom
boat
Debris

16. 3 Navigate
Red-brown bloom and orange surface debris.
Location: Eld Inlet (South Sound),2:52 PM.
Bloom
boat
Debris
Flapjack
Point
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Debris
Debris

17. 4 Navigate
Intense red-brown bloom confined to westernside of the bay.
Location: Eld Inlet (South Sound),2:52 PM.
White Point
Bloom
boat
Debris
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017

18. 5 Navigate
Tidal eddy.
Location: Totten Inlet (South Sound),2:54 PM.
rafts
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
eddy
Cougar Point

19. Orange surface debris.
Location: Big Cove,Totten Inlet (South Sound),2:55 PM.
6 Navigate
boat
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Debris
Debris
Debris
Cougar Point

20. Orange surface debris along front.
Location: Herron Island,Case Inlet (South Sound),3:00 PM.
7 Navigate
Debris
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Herron Island

21. Orange surface debris along front.
Location: Across Stretch Island,Case Inlet (South Sound),3:02 PM.
8 Navigate
Stretch Island
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Debris
Debris

22. Some surface debris.
Location: BurleyLagoon,Carr Inlet (South Sound),3:06 PM.
9 Navigate
boat
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Debris
raft

23. 10 Navigate
Red-brown bloom.
Location: Sinclair Inlet (Central Sound),3:11PM.
Bloom
Bloom
barge
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Ross Point

24. Navigate
Red-brown bloom and some surface debris.
Location: Ostrich Bay,Dyes Inlet (Central Sound),3:13 PM.
11
Debris
Debris
boat
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Bloom
Rocky Point
Madrona Point

25. Navigate
Organic material accumulating at tidal front next to red-brown bloom.
Location: Entrance to Ostrich Bay,Dyes Inlet (Central Sound),3:13 PM.
12
Debris
Debris
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
boat
Rocky Point
Madrona Point

26. Navigate
Organic material accumulating at tidal front next to red-brown bloom.
Location: LibertyBay (Central Sound),3:17 PM.
13
Debris
Debris
Bloom
boat
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
Keyport

27. Navigate
Red-brown bloom.
Location: LibertyBay (Central Sound),3:17 PM.
14
Bloom
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017
boat
boat boatBloom

28. Navigate
Jay, our new pilot at the helm of the Kenmore Beaver floatplane.
Location: Gettingreadyfor the approach to Kenmore Base (Seattle),3:22 PM.
15
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Aerial photography 10-31-2017

29. Hood Canal Central Sound
Numbers on map refer to picture numbers for spatial reference
Date: 10-31-2017
Qualitative aerial observer map Navigate
Numbers on map refer to picture numbers for spatial reference
n.a.
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
15
14
12
11
13
10

30. Date: 10-31-2017
Numbers on map refer to picture numbers for spatial reference
South Sound
8
7
6
9
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
Qualitative aerial observer map Navigate
1
2
3
5
4

31. Discontinued
mooring network
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/pr
ograms/eap/mar_wat/dat
a.html
- : Suzan.Pool@ecy.wa.gov
Get data from Ecology’s Marine MonitoringPrograms
Long–Term
MonitoringNetwork
Accesscore
monitoringdata:
https://fortress.wa.gov/ec
y/eap/marinewq/mwdata
set.asp
Christopher.Krembs@ecy.w
a.gov
Ecology’s long-termmarine
monitoring stations
Continuous track
Riverand Stream WaterQuality
Monitoring
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/eap/fw
_riv/index.html
Discontinued (fundingcuts)
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info
En route ferry
monitoring

32. You may subscribe or unsubscribe to the Eyes Over Puget Sound email listservby going to:
http://listserv.wa.gov/cgi-bin/wa?A0=ECOLOGY-EYES-OVER-PUGET-SOUND
Many thanks to our business partners: Clipper Navigation,SwantownMarina,andKenmore Air.
Contact:
Dr. ChristopherKrembs, ckre461@ecy.wa.gov
Marine Monitoring Unit
Environmental AssessmentProgram
WA Departmentof Ecology
Recommended Citation: Washington State Department of Ecology. 2017. EyesOver
PugetSound, Surface ConditionsReport, August28, 2017. Ecology PublicationNo.
17-03-072. https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/documents/1703072.pdf
Summary Stories Diving & Critters Climate & streams Combinedfactors Marine water Aerial photos Info