Author Talk & Book Signing: Sea Otter Conservation

Wednesday, July 13, 6:30 p.m., Whale Museum

— from Jenny L. Atkinson, Executive Director, The Whale Museum —

The Whale Museum is pleased to welcome our new Research Curator Shawn Larson as part of the 2016 Summer Lecture Series on Wednesday, July 13th at 6:30 p.m. Shawn will present her book Sea Otter Conservation, discussing the sea otters unique biology and ecology and highlight its fascinating history with people. Sea otters and people share the same nearshore Pacific ecosystem with documented interactions between the two dating back thousands of years starting with important relationships with native people, followed by the widespread serial extinctions during the fur trade, and culminating in over 100 years of conservation actions to ensure the survival of this iconic species.

Shawn has a PhD from the school of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington. She is the Research Curator at The Whale Museum on a part-time basis. Shawn is also the Curator of Research at the Seattle Aquarium where she conducts conservation research on sea otters, sixgill sharks, Giant Pacific Octopus, rockfish and Hawaii fish. When she’s not at work or commuting to San Juan Island, she enjoys sharing her small farm in Hansville with her 2 horses, 9 chickens, 1 dog, 2 cats, 2 kids and 1 husband.

The July 13th lecture event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (360) 378-4710 ext. 30.

The Whale Museum is located in Friday Harbor at 62 First St. N.  Founded in 1976, The Whale Museum’s mission is to promote stewardship of whales and the Salish Sea ecosystem through education and research.  In addition to providing exhibits, the Museum also provides programs including the Marine Naturalist Training, Orca Adoption Program, Soundwatch Boater Education, San Juan Islands Marine Mammal Stranding Network, and the Whale Hotline.  The Whale Museum can be found on-line at www.whalemuseum.org.