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Marine Reserves News: World Ocean Day 2026 & Spring Field Season Updates

ODFW sent this bulletin at 06/02/2026 02:36 PM PDT

Celebrating World Ocean Day 2026

World Ocean Day is coming up on June 8^th. This year’s action theme is Strong Marine Protected Areas for Our Blue Planet. Oregon’s five marine reserves and nine associated marine protected areas are part of a larger mosaic of coastal protections on the Oregon Coast and around the world. Guided by the three pillars of conservation, research, and community, Oregon’s marine reserves serve as living laboratories to help us understand our changing ocean and inform nearshore ocean management.

Check out our events calendar to join us at one of our upcoming World Ocean Day events on the central and north coast, June 6 - 8^th. With talks, trivia, hands-on activities inspired by sea star surveys, a sand labyrinth and scavenger hunt , and even more trivia, there’s something for everyone! Stay tuned to the @ODFWMarine Instagram and @ODFWMarineReserves YouTube accounts for a video highlighting these special places on the Oregon Coast to be released on June 8^th.

Photo: Snapshots from the Spring 2026 Field Season. Species identification practice during SCUBA training (top left), measuring a yelloweye rockfish on a Cape Perpetua hook-and-line survey (top right), mooring deployment at Redfish Rocks (bottom right), and a giant Pacific octopus on a Cascade Head hook-and-line survey (bottom left).

Reports From the Field - Spring 2026

The Spring Field Season began on April 15^th and will continue through June 15^th. Thank you to our captains, volunteers, and collaborators who are helping us complete this work!

Hook-and-Line: Hook-and-Line surveys are underway! We have completed three days of surveys aboard the F/V Sunrise at the Cascade Head Marine Reserve and comparison areas with the help of 35 volunteers. Highlights included recapturing two black rockfish in the marine reserve that our team tagged in 2024, a record day of 467 fish caught in the reserve, and a giant Pacific octopus!

We also completed two survey days at Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve aboard the F/V Misty with the help of 24 volunteers. Highlights include catching many brown rockfish (a species we see almost exclusively in this area), recapturing a copper rockfish we tagged in 2024 on the same patch of reef, and a large 26.8-inch-long yelloweye rockfish!

Working with partners at Oregon Coast Aquarium and Oregon State University, we completed a two-day training for 12 divers on ODFW Marine Reserves SCUBA methods and got them in the water for some Oregon coast diving experience. We completed one survey day at the Cape Falcon Marine Reserve with the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Despite some challenging weather shifts, we surveyed invertebrates, kelp, and habitat structure along eight permanent transects.

With the support of Oregon State University and the Oregon Coast Aquarium, we installed eight moorings across the Otter Rock Marine Reserve and Cape Foulweather Comparison Area. These moorings contain a SMURF device to collect juvenile fish and oceanographic sensors to measure temperature and oxygen levels. Additional moorings will be set up at Redfish Rocks Marine Reserve this month.

To complement the oceanographic sensors on the SMURF moorings, we deployed additional moorings with temperature and oxygen sensors in Cape Falcon, Redfish Rocks, and Cascade Head Marine Reserves and comparison areas. We will install another mooring at Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve and comparison area this month.

Volunteer biological assistant Laura Jost with Ryan Fields and Dylan Gomes

Volunteer biological assistant Laura Jost with Ryan Fields (Ecological Research Assistant) and Dylan Gomes (Quantitative Marine Ecologist) on the Cascade Head Marine Reserve Hook-and-Line Survey.

Volunteer Spotlight: Laura Jost Finds Artistic
Fin-spiration on Cascade Head Hook-and-Line Survey

Blue lingcod watercolor painting and yelloweye rockfish watercolor painting

Blue lingcod and yelloweye rockfish watercolor paintings by Laura Jost. See more of her art on Instagram @laurasartandcritters.

After a full day on the water documenting data on a Cascade Head hook-and-line survey, you might expect volunteer biological assistant Laura Jost to take it easy for the rest of the day. Instead, Laura pulled out her brushes and watercolors. Inspired by the vibrant blue lingcod and long-lived yelloweye rockfish, she got right to work painting some of the fish she helped record earlier in the day.

Photo: Volunteer angler Roy Lowe and deckhand Grant Howard proudly show off Roy's impressive lingcod catch on a Cascade Head Marine Reserve hook-and-line survey.

Call for Volunteers - Fish for Science!

Spend a day on the water with us and use your fishing skills for science in the Cascade Head and Cape Perpetua Marine Reserves this year! As a volunteer angler, you’ll help us catch fish that are measured and released as part of our hook-and-line survey to collect information on the relative abundance, size, and species composition of fish in the marine reserves and nearby comparison areas. To get involved and start receiving emails about upcoming trips, please fill out the online ODFW Volunteer Form and select B) Marine Reserves Angler Volunteer-Hook-and-Line Standard Non-Driver Volunteer. ODFW staff will send out an email ~1 week prior to a trip to schedule volunteers. Spring trips run until mid-June, and Fall trips run from mid-August to mid-October. Check out the most recent hook-and-line newsletter to learn more.

Understanding Oregon's Blue Economy

Since starting her new role as Marine Resource Economist in January, Dr. Ashley Lowe Mackenzie has focused on two priorities: reviewing existing research on Oregon's marine economy and assessing where we stand today. A key area of her current work is analyzing the commercial fisheries sector's economic contribution to Oregon's economy in 2025, alongside the challenges this fleet and fishing community face in the years ahead. She is also developing collaborative partnerships with Oregon State University and Portland State University that will create opportunities for agencies and individuals to engage with research on Oregon's marine economy. Stay tuned for updates as this important work continues!

Staff Updates

Photo: Marine Reserves Ecological Research Assistant Sarah Sampson holding a black rockfish on a hook-and-line survey.

Welcome Back Sarah Sampson!

We are thrilled to welcome Sarah Sampson back to the Marine Reserves team! As an Ecological Research Assistant, Sarah supports the Marine Reserves’ ecological monitoring and research. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Cruz, where she focused on scientific scuba diving and marine ecology. When she’s not in the field, Sarah enjoys hiking in the forest, painting in her art studio, and tending to homestead chores.

In Case You Missed It:
Nearshore Ecology Program Annual Meeting

The Nearshore Ecology Program welcomed over 90 virtual and in-person attendees to its inaugural annual meeting on March 16^th. Participants learned about the new ODFW Nearshore Ecology Program, work of the Marine Reserves & Marine Habitat Teams, and research and conservation efforts in Oregon’s marine reserves & nearshore environments. View the meeting agenda here, access the recording here, and read the 2025 Nearshore Ecology Program Year in Review here.