Tuolumne WatershedAt — CSU Stanislaus - Geography and Environmental Resources

Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW) are a population of Orcas that live off the Pacific Northwest coast and are largely associated with Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia, and mostly rely on Chinook salmon as their primary food source. Recently, the SRKW population has been decreasing due, in part, to a dwindling food resource. Recent evidence has shown that the range of the SRKW actually extends into northern California, having been spotted as far south as Monterey. This project will investigate connections between the SRKW and the Chinook salmon range into California – focusing especially on current and historic spawning habitat of the Chinook salmon, and how this habitat supports the SRKW. Through the College Corps program, Student Fellows will work with Dr. Alison McNally (Geography and Environmental Resources) and Dr. Deborah Giles (Research Director with the non-profit organization Wild Orca) to gain experience with research, GIS mapping, and community outreach.