The Future of Oceans Lecture Series - Josh Bouma, Recovering Pinto Abalone

"Recovering Pinto Abalone: use of conservation aquaculture to give the Salish Sea’s largest rocky-reef cleaning marine snail a population boost" On January 22, 2023, the Port Townsend Marine Science Center welcomed Josh Bouma, Abalone Program Director, Puget Sound Restoration Fund. Pinto abalone in Washington waters have undergone long-term declines, are currently at an extreme low abundance and are facing potential population collapse. In 2019, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (WDFW) listed this ecologically important rocky-reef grazer as a state endangered species. Puget Sound Restoration Fund leads a collaboration of recovery partners aiming to rebuild stocks to self-sustaining levels. A primary restoration strategy is the introduction of cultured juveniles into the wild; partners including WDFW, NOAA, the PTMSC, Seattle Aquarium, the University of Washington, Western Washington University and others have developed and implemented a conservation aquaculture program responsibly producing abalone progeny for outplanting. Over the past decade, partners have carefully released 45,000 genetically diverse, healthy Pinto abalone to 28 restoration sites in the San Juan Archipelago, setting the stage for scaled up recovery efforts to save this iconic species. Puget Sound Restoration Fund (PSRF), https://restorationfund.org/ PSRF - Pinto Abalone Recovery, https://restorationfund.org/programs/... Encyclopedia of Puget Sound's pinto abalone webpage, https://www.eopugetsound.org/science-... Josh Bouma is a shellfish biologist, scientific diver and Abalone Recovery Program Director at Puget Sound Restoration Fund. He leads pinto abalone conservation aquaculture efforts, research and field programs aimed at recovery of this charismatic and unique, but severely threatened native mollusk. Josh also manages the Port Madison Community Shellfish Farm for PSRF. He earned an MS in Aquatic & Fishery Sciences from the University of Washington. Josh enjoys diving, eating seafood, growing things to eat and drink on his small hobby farm and spending time with family. The Port Townsend Marine Science Center's Future of Oceans lecture series draws on the commitment of professional researchers and educators across all academic spectrums to help define and inspire the health of our oceans. The Port Townsend Marine Science Center is grateful to the the Darrow family for their ongoing support of the lecture series. View the complete 2022-2023 Future of Oceans Lecture Series here: https://ptmsc.org/lecture-series If you'd like to learn more about the Port Townsend Marine Science Center and our mission of inspiring conservation of the Salish Sea, visit us at our website or on Facebook and Instagram. https://ptmsc.org/   / porttownsendmarinesciencecenter     / ptmarinescictr