Webinar on Offshore Islands

Bandon sea stacks.\Photo by Bruce Swenson.

Rocky habitats off Oregon’s shore are gaining attention at present, as we go through the state’s process for developing a new Rocky Habitat Management Strategy, the first revision of Oregon’s policies protecting both intertidal and offshore areas.  Bandon’s Shoreline Education for Awareness (SEA) is drawing attention to the offshore component of rocky habitat by hosting a webinar featuring Roy Lowe, entitled “On the Rocks:  Oregon’s Marine National Wildlife Refuges.”  The event, free and open to the public, takes place on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 6:30 p.m.

In addition to their rugged beauty, the rocks and islands off Oregon’s coast provide essential nesting habitat for more than 1 million seabirds and resting and pupping sites for thousands of seals and sea lions. On the north coast, Three Arch Rocks National Wildlife Refuge includes seven rocks and was the second National Wildlife Refuge established in the country. Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge spans 320 miles of the Oregon coast and protects 1,853 rocks, reefs, and islands and three headlands.

Roy Lowe is retired from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service where he spent more than 29 years working on the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex, first as a biologist and later as the project leader. Roy will talk about the unique wildlife of these refuges from his perspective as a biologist, refuge manager, and photographer having conducted more than 100 aerial surveys along our coast and countless surveys at sea in small boats.

To register for the webinar, go here.