Qwuloolt Birds

The Qwuloolt Estuary restoration site is a former estuarine wetland in the Snohomish River Basin that has been diked and levied for the past 100 years. The Snohomish River Basin holds the second largest salmon population in the Puget Sound but contains less than 17% of its historic tidal marsh, a vital component of the watershed. In 2015, the dikes were breached to restore natural tidal wetlands, which are among the most biologically diverse ecosystems in the world and provide important ecological function and habitat quality for birds and fish. Our goal is to assess the abundance, distribution, and habitat quality of bird communities within and around the restoration site to add to regional and national bird databases, address conservation needs in the Snohomish River Basin, and measure restoration success.