Every summer, , ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ associate professor of biology, and members of her lab head to northern Botswana to study how large predators, such as lions and African wild dogs, are affected by climate change and other shifts in their environment.

The researchers are particularly interested in understanding how these predators are changing their behavior ā€” including where they go and when they reproduce ā€” as the days get hotter and as the animals are more likely to come into contact with people. One example is a project studying how interactions between lions and wild dogs, which don’t typically get along, might change during heatwaves and droughts.

Abrahms is returning to Botswana again this summer, along with two other researchers in her lab: , a UW research scientist in biology, and , a UW doctoral student in biology. , UW professor of environmental and forest sciences, will also be joining for parts of the season. UW News asked Rafiq and Poulin a few questions about their upcoming work for the occasional series ā€œIn the Field,ā€ which highlights UW field efforts.

Tell us about the trip. Where are you going?

Kasim Rafiq: Our team will be traveling to the fringes of the . We have a long-standing partnership with , which has been operating a long-term monitoring program there since the 1990s. As part of this program, Wild Entrust operates a remote bush camp that we work out of, which we affectionately call “Wild Dog Camp,” or “Dog Camp” for short. This is really just a collection of tents in the middle of the African bush, and everything is non-permanent, meaning it could be quickly taken apart.

The camp is located in an area managed by the local community for wildlife tourism, and it borders the . So, itā€™s a wild landscape with lots of wildlife and lush vegetation. Thereā€™s no fence around the camp, so itā€™s not uncommon for animals to wander through the camp day and night, including lions, elephants, leopards and various species of snakes.

Have you visited this site before?

KR: I first came to Dog Camp in 2013 as a research assistant and then I completed my masterā€™s and doctoral research there studying leopards. For my doctoral project, I stayed at the camp for two years because leopards are pretty tricky to study. I’ve been back to Dog Camp every year since I joined the Abrahms Lab as a research scientist in 2021.

I feel very privileged to have been able to work with the people in camp for such a long period of time. Itā€™s been special to see how the camp has developed over that period, and also to maintain relationships with the Botswana-based teams.

MP: I joined the Abrahms Lab in 2024 and spent time in the field that year to become familiar with the carnivores that we study. I returned in 2025 and I began to learn essential field skills, such as how to track and follow carnivores in the bush. Iā€™m excited for my third visit to the field site this year.

How do you study these creatures?

KR: We use a combination of techniques. We directly watch these predators and use new conservation technologies to monitor animals year-round and during periods when itā€™s just not possible to follow them, such as when it’s too wet.

One key technology we use is wildlife tracking collars that use GPS sensors to let us see where the animals are going and accelerometers and microphones to let us know what theyā€™re doing. We like to think of these collars as Fitbits for wildlife. Just like your fitness tracker helps you better understand your movement and your sleep, these collars allow us to get deep insights into an animalā€™s behavior.

Can you talk about some of the projects you’re working on?

MP: Iā€™m looking at how social structure in wild dogs may influence how they respond to environmental change. Wild dogs live in tight-knit packs, just like grey wolves in North America. In each pack, usually only one lead pair has pups, while the rest of the pack ā€” often aunts, uncles and older siblings ā€” all work together to babysit, feed and protect the pups.

In my research, I am investigating how a packā€™s “social profile,” such as its size, family ties and history, affects how the animals adjust their movement patterns during heatwaves and droughts. I’m also looking at how increasing temperatures affect the timing of these dogs’ reproduction.

Overall, Iā€™m interested in understanding if the benefits of living in a group, such as the higher hunting success, pup care, and reproductive success seen in larger packs, might help buffer the impacts of environmental change on animal populations.

What are your goals for this trip?

KR: This year, our plan is to deploy tracking collars on the long-term lion and African wild dog study populations across our field site. The data that we’ll get from these collars is crucial for helping us understand how behaviors change year after year as a result of environmental change.

A key part of this field season will also involve following animals with these sensors and collecting video recordings of them doing different behaviors, such as where and how they hunt and feed. We will use the video data to train AI models that allow us to better understand how climate change is affecting these behaviors.

Whatā€™s something you really enjoy about doing this field work ā€” especially something that might not occur to most people?

KR: Two of the things I enjoy most are the behind-the-scenes parts of the work that are critical to this type of fieldwork, but that people rarely think about or see.

First, I really enjoy tracking animals. Thereā€™s something quite meditative about following a wild animalā€™s footprints through the grass.

The second is vehicle mechanics. Around 80% of fieldwork is fixing your Land Rover when it breaks down for some unknown reason, and although that tinkering can be frustrating, itā€™s also fun. Some of my favorite memories in the bush come from sitting in the sand and taking apart the engine.

MP: I love tracking animals using radio telemetry. The tracking collars we put on animals send out radio signals that we can detect with an antenna and receiver. By listening for the “ping,” we can tell which direction the animal is in and roughly how far away it is. The carnivores we study roam across huge areas, so tracking them often means a lot of driving on rough roads and not always having successful searches. But, hearing that first ā€” often really faint ā€” “ping” is always super exciting, and finding the animals feels rewarding.

I also especially love being in the field around sunrise and sunset, when the landscape looks golden, feels peaceful and the animals are most active.

More generally, is there anything you find surprising about doing field work?

KR: Although fieldwork is intensive and often the busiest part of the year, itā€™s busy in a very different way from office work. Iā€™m often surprised that, despite the long hours, I feel more energized in the field than I do at my desk. I think part of that comes from being so close to the animals and the landscape youā€™re trying to understand.

Iā€™m also a big believer that, although technologies like GPS collars and audio recorders now allow us to collect huge amounts of data from the comfort of our offices, those data are only as useful as our ability to interpret them. To do that well, you really need to understand your study animal. There are many ways to build that understanding, from reading books to watching documentaries, but for me, nothing compares to spending time in the field. I always come back with a dozen new ideas that have appeared while simply sitting and watching the animals.

MP: Doing field work is really enlightening. Itā€™s extremely valuable because it gives us a better understanding of the animals and their environment. By observing where animals spend their time, how they interact with one another and with other species, and the challenges they face, we can develop more meaningful research questions. Spending time in the field also sparks creativity, because it allows us to see and notice unexpected behaviors and inspires new ideas for research.

For more information, contact Rafiq at rafiqk@uw.edu and Poulin at mpoulin1@uw.edu.

The ShakeAlert earthquake early warning system has been rapidly expanding since its launch in 2021. Now, researchers at ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ affiliated Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN) have finished all planned installations, bringing the two-state total to spread across Washington and Oregon.

ShakeAlert detects ground motion from earthquakes before it is felt, giving people precious time to drop, cover and hold on. An earthquake exceeding magnitude 5 will trigger an automated cell phone alert from the , or WEA, which also sends AMBER alerts. Millions of people benefit from the network as is, but the researchers are still exploring ways to improve it.

ā€œWhen we launched ShakeAlert, we felt confident that we had enough seismic stations to do a good job with early warning, but that wasnā€™t the optimal number. Now, with the buildout complete, we have coverage where it was lacking at launch,ā€ said , director of PNSN and a UW professor in Earth and space sciences.

However, expanding the network to include sensors on the ocean floor could help Pacific Northwest residents contend with the areaā€™s greatest hazard ā€” the Cascadia Subduction Zone.

The West Coast is a hotbed for seismic activity. Nestled in the , an array of volcanoes circling the Pacific Ocean where 90% of Earthā€™s quakes occur, the regionā€™s volatile geology clashes with its growing population. Early warning systems can give people seconds to minutes of time to prepare for shaking, and a sense of how strong it will be.

Just over a year ago, a midsized earthquake under Orcas Island offered ShakeAlert in Washington. Multiple seismometers in the area picked up the signal and ran it back to headquarters for verification. The earthquake wasnā€™t quite big enough to trigger a WEA automated alert, or cause major damage, but in the affected region it did notify peopleĢżwith early warning apps such as MyShake, as well as all Android mobile devices.

ā€œThe system detected the earthquake rapidly, accurately assessed its magnitude and automatically sent out a warning ā€” all in a handful of seconds,ā€ said Tobin. ā€œIt was the first event that met all the criteria in Washington and it worked really well.ā€

During a larger earthquake, warnings will be automatic no matter the app or operating system. Warnings will also trigger certain public safety measures: Schools can connect PA systems to ShakeAlert for rapid updates, public transit may slow trains to avoid derailment and fire station doors will go up to allow firetrucks out even if electricity is lost.

Right now, the system is most effective for land-based earthquakes because the sensors are on land. Expanding the sensor network to include offshore, ocean bottom seismometers could improve detection and warning time for offshore earthquakes, namely a much-anticipated megathrust earthquake at the Cascadia Subduction Zone.

ā€œThe fundamental problem we have is that our seismic network ā€” hundreds and hundreds of stations ā€” is on land, but the biggest earthquake hazard comes from off our coast,ā€ Tobin said. ā€œEarthquake detection works much better when the earthquake is in the area of your network, not off to one side.ā€

Seismometers can be placed on the ocean floor, but they must be connected to cables for early warning, which is expensive. Japan installed an impressive that cost $120 million following the devastating 2011 earthquake. The country now has more than 200 seismometers covering its subduction zones.

The Cascadia Subduction Zone has a handful of existing offshore sensors ā€” five near Vancouver Island and two off the coast of Oregon. A UW-led project this summer to the Oregon cable, which spans hundreds of seafloor miles, crossing the subduction zone twice. None of the offshore sensors are in the ShakeAlert network, but adding them could be impactful.

, a UW postdoctoral researcher in Earth and space science, recently at the Seismological Society of Americaā€™s annual meeting detailing the potential benefits of adding offshore seismic monitoring.

Krauss found with modeling that incorporating just a few ocean bottom sensors improved detection time for offshore earthquakes and warning time for millions of people. In hypothetical earthquake scenarios, the sensors picked up ground motion faster and improved magnitude estimates because they were closer to the fault.

ā€œShakeAlert is all about figuring out that an earthquake is happening as fast as possible, so having sensors nearby is essential,ā€ Krauss said. ā€œBut in these magnitude 8 or 9 scenarios, it’s not just about detecting it, but realizing how big it is, and fast.ā€

The researchers also explored incorporating telecommunications cables into the sensor network using a method called distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), which records ground motion based on cable stretch. Incorporating DAS could extend the reach of existing cables even further than sensors, translating to ā€œhuge warning time improvements,ā€ Krauss said.

Different combinations produced varying improvements in both detection and warning time, depending on where the hypothetical earthquake occurred. Regardless, having sensors always beat not having them. While there are several hurdles to clear before ocean bottom sensors can be brought into ShakeAlert, Krauss said none are insurmountable.

ā€œAlthough weā€™ve marked this milestone of completing our station buildout, that doesn’t mean weā€™re not continuously improving the ShakeAlert system,ā€ Tobin said. ā€œWeā€™re working to make it faster, better and more reliable.ā€

For more information, contact Tobin at htobin@uw.edu and Krauss at zkrauss@uw.edu.ĢżĢż

Fish that split their lives between fresh and salt water often face obstacles getting back and forth. Dams and roads fracture river networks and interfere with traditional migratory routes, sparking concerns about fish health and abundance, as well as biodiversity on a broader scale.

Efforts to restore fish passage are cropping up across the country, but these projects come with hefty price tags. In a new study, , ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ researchers explore whether this money is being well spent by examining the process that determines which projects are prioritized.

The current standard, called score and rank, involves evaluating barriers one by one and assigning a score based on potential gains, such as habitat expansion. Top-ranking projects become leading candidates for funding, but score and rank systems donā€™t always account for barriers in the full river context. High-scoring projects can yield stranded investments, where removing the barrier doesnā€™t have the desired outcome because of other barriers downstream or immediately upstream.

ā€œIdeally, barriers that are most downstream will score higher, because they need to come out before the fish can benefit from upstream restoration, but approaches to scoring vary, so this isnā€™t always the outcome,ā€ said lead author , a UW associate professor of marine and environmental affairs.

As an alternative to score and rank, this study presents a mathematical computer program called optimization. Optimization synthesizes many inputs to make the most of a budget. It can serve as a performance indicator for other systems and highlight opportunities for improving an underperforming system.

ā€œIt’s looking at a portfolio instead of going barrier by barrier. In doing so, you can explicitly account for watershed connectivity and evaluate the performance of score and rank,ā€ Jardine said.

As concerns about the health of rivers mounted in recent years, state and federal governments have allocated billions of dollars toward reconnecting them. Fragmentation is an established threat to biodiversity, and recent studies show that a vast majority of river length is not protected by conservation measures.

Washington state is in the midst of a court ordered multibillion dollar effort to remove barriers that block salmon and steelhead from swimming upstream to spawn. The combines score and rank with optimization in a hybrid approach. Similar projects elsewhere tend to use score and rank.

ā€œI think people see optimization as a black box because it’s not as obvious why a barrier rose to the top of the priority list,ā€ Jardine said. ā€œWith score and rank, they understand the scores and the process, but we donā€™t really know what the outcome will be.ā€

In this study, researchers use fish passage in Western Washington as a case study to compare score and rank to optimization. They show that score and rank performs decently well when the only goal is opening up as much habitat as possible, but adding other variables into the mix, such as habitat quality, compromises its performance.

While optimization has the capability to balance variables, it might not work for everyone. The program needs data to run and someone with a mathematical background to run it. Still, even small tweaks to the score and rank approach can produce results that rival optimization.

ā€œMajor change is hard, but minor changes may be enough,ā€ Jardine said.

Because these projects often represent the values of multiple stakeholders, itā€™s important to include safeguards against stranded investments.

ā€œYou need to work from downstream up to make sure the success of a project isnā€™t contingent upon other projects,ā€ Jardine said. ā€œWeā€™re spending a lot of money on this, but the total cost of restoring all barriers is much higher than the budget, so it’s really important that we make the most out of the financial resources that we have.ā€

Additional co-authors include , a UW postdoctoral researcher in environmental and marine affairs; , who completed this research as a UW masterā€™s student in environmental and marine Affairs;Ģż J Kahn, who completed this research as a UW masterā€™s student in quantitative ecology and resource management; Andrew Cooke, a UW research consultant in environmental and forest sciences, , a UW research scientist in environmental and forest sciences; , a UW associate professor of aquatic and fishery sciences and , , , and of NOAA.

This study was funded by Washington Sea Grant and the Rae S. and Bell M. Shimada Endowed Faculty Fellowship in Memory of Warren S. Wooster.

For more information, contact Jardine at jardine@uw.edu.Ģż ĢżĢż

Plants may not appear aggressive, but they can still defend themselves while under attack. When caterpillars chomp the leaves of bean plants, these plants release gases that lure predatory wasps. The wasps prey on the caterpillars, saving the plants from further destruction. In a paper , a UW-led team demonstrated that this defense strategy is run by a protein called INR, or inceptin receptor. The researchers grew bean plants with naturally occurring mutations in the INR gene alongside plants with functional INR in an experimental field in Oaxaca, Mexico. The knock-out plants didn’t emit gases and attracted far fewer wasps. This result helps explain a previous study by this team that first identified the biochemical pathway behind this defense mechanism. These results also showcase how the tiny actions of a single protein can affect the behavior of wasps and caterpillars, and in turn, protect the health of the plant. This could benefit nearby plants as well, the researchers said. Beans are often grown alongside “,” such as corn, with the idea that each plant provides a benefit for the others. Beans help make the soil richer for their companions, and, through the actions of INR, could also protect their neighbors from pests.

For more information, contact senior author , UW associate professor of biology, at astein10@uw.edu.ĢżĢż

The other UW co-authors are , , , and . A full list of co-authors and funding is included .

Decades of satellite data show Himalayan rivers migrating rapidly in response to climate change

The movement of rivers is often described in terms of flowing water, but the path a river takes can also change. Some migration is normal, but in the Himalayas, rivers seem to be scrambling faster than scientists anticipated. In a study , researchers show that rivers in the Tibetan Plateau moved twice as much from 2000 to 2020 as they did from 1980 to 2000. As glaciers melt and frozen ground thaws in response to rising temperatures, rivers are inundated with silty meltwater from surrounding glaciers. The water picks the path of least resistance through softening ground. The ā€œmovementā€ includes small lateral shifts, big swings that cut off entire sections of river and occasionally, . The international team attributes their observations to climate change, which is driving temperatures up faster here than many other places. More than 2 billion people rely on these rivers for fresh water and researchers are concerned about communities downstream, as well as the potential for similar patterns that may play out elsewhere.

For more information, contact co-author , UW professor of Earth and space sciences at bigdirt@uw.edu.ĢżĢż

A full list of co-authors and funding is .

Researchers shrink eye-catching structure down to the nano scaleĢż

made using a network of freestanding bars suspended by a web of thin, tense cables. The organization of the bars and cables allows the network of tension and compression forces to lock everything into place, creating a lightweight yet stiff structure. Tensegrities of different sizes are common in nature ā€” examples include and the that help living cells maintain their shape ā€” as well as in diverse manmade structures like , and . Now, a team of engineers at the UW have found a way to create tensegrities as small as five micrometers across ā€” roughly a tenth of the width of a human hair. in the aptly-named journal Small, researchers used a specialized and a resin compound to print bar-and-cable structures about 30 micrometers across. They then heated the materials to 900 degrees celsius, causing the structures to shrink by over 80%. As they shrank, the thinner cables constricted more than the bars, resulting in nanostructures with specific, locked-in levels of stress that were up to 250% stiffer than the starting structures. The team is now working on ways to build larger materials composed of tiny tensegrities, which could eventually usher in a new class of stiff, light and impact-resistant materials.

For more information, contact lead author , a UW doctoral student of mechanical engineering.

Other UW co-authors are , , Zainab S. Patel, , and . Funding information is included .Ģż

Scientists find a key water source for atmospheric rivers

In December 2025, brought a seemingly endless onslaught of precipitation to Washington that caused and washed away roads and homes. In published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, UW researchers help explain where all that water came from. They describe a link between the , a weather pattern that brings moisture east across the Pacific, and atmospheric rivers. Hypotheses about this connection have emerged from previous studies, but researchers couldnā€™t physically draw it until now. By tracking precipitation and wind patterns from 2000 to 2024, the UW researchers show that heavy rainfall and flooding are more likely when MJO is active, which happens several times a year. By identifying the MJO as a key moisture source for powerful atmospheric rivers, the researchers hope to improve forecast accuracy and give people more lead time to prepare for incoming storms.

For more information, contact co-author , UW professor of atmospheric and climate science at shuyic@uw.edu.

Other UW co-authors are and . Funding information is .

Over the past decade, cities around the world have increasingly turned to nature-based infrastructure to become more resilient in the face of a changing climate. Urban forests provide shade during heat waves and improve air quality; wetlands filter stormwater and reduce flooding; and restored oyster reefs filter water, create habitat and reduce wave energy along shorelines. When carefully designed and managed, these ā€œnature-based solutionsā€ can support climate adaptation, biodiversity and public health.

Thereā€™s a catch, however: Living things are not static building materials. They evolve and adapt in response to changing conditions, sometimes in unpredictable ways. As the climate shifts, the natural systems that humans depend on shift too.Ģż

, professor of urban design and planning at the ĢĒŠÄŌ­““, studies how cities and nature influence one another. in Science, Alberti and collaborators explore how evolutionary change can affect the long-term performance of nature-based solutions.

UW News spoke with Alberti about whatā€™s at stake and how city planners can work with evolution rather than simply reacting to it.

Why did you want to study evolution within nature-based solutions?

MA: Today, an increasing share of infrastructure investment is going to nature-based solutions because they can cost-effectively reduce climate-driven risks to cities while supporting biodiversity, public health and climate adaptation. However, their long-term performance depends on a fundamental biological process that is still rarely considered in design: evolution. These systems are not static infrastructure. They depend on living organisms ā€” plants, microbes, oysters, corals and others ā€” whose traits can shift over time as urban environments change. Cities expose these organisms to heat, drought, flooding, pollution, nutrient enrichment, disease, habitat fragmentation and new species interactions. Those pressures influence which organisms survive, reproduce and continue providing the ecological functions that cities rely on. Over time, ecological and evolutionary responses may alter the very processes that allow these systems to cool neighborhoods, filter water, stabilize shorelines or reduce wave energy.

So the central question is not simply whether a project works on day one. It is whether it can continue to perform as the organisms within it respond to climate stress, urban pressures and the intervention itself.

The problem is that implementation of nature-based solutions is outpacing the science needed to evaluate long-term performance. For these solutions to serve as resilient infrastructure, they must be designed as living, dynamic, evolving systems.

Did you find examples where evolutionary change can affect infrastructure performance?

MA: We found examples showing that evolutionary change can affect traits directly linked to the performance of nature-based solutions. Urban or climate pressures can favor traits that alter the processes these systems rely on, affecting their ability to deliver intended functions.

For example, coastal marsh plants such as are used to stabilize sediment, reduce erosion and help buffer waves. In marshes exposed to excess nutrients from sources such as fertilizer runoff, wastewater, stormwater and upstream land use, however, Spartina can shift biomass allocation toward shoots and away from roots. This shift can reduce the sediment-stabilization function that restoration projects depend on.

In another example, urban tree populations may evolve greater drought tolerance to help them survive hotter and drier periods. But evolutionary responses that improve survival do not necessarily preserve the desired functions for cities. Those trees may persist but grow more slowly or produce less canopy, which could in turn reduce shade, carbon uptake or pollutant removal.

When can evolution strengthen nature-based solutions?

MA: Evolution can strengthen nature-based solutions when populations have enough variation in traits to help them survive and retain their function under changing conditions. Coral reefs are a great example of this. Corals build reef structure, support biodiversity, store carbon and help reduce wave energy along shorelines. and functional decline. To increase their resilience, researchers are testing assisted-evolution approaches, . On the Great Barrier Reef, this includes selecting corals that maintain photosynthetic performance and stable symbiotic relationships under heat stress.

These approaches could help sustain reef-based coastal protection as oceans warm, but they also carry risks, including reduced genetic diversity, tradeoffs with other functions and uncertain responses to future conditions.

Oyster reefs show the same principle in another coastal system. filter water, create habitat, support fisheries and build reef structures that reduce wave energy. They face disease, warming, acidification, and low oxygen. Selective breeding and genomic tools can help identify oyster lines better suited to these conditions, but restoration efforts should avoid narrowing genetic diversity. Genetically diverse, site-appropriate stocks are more likely to maintain the functions that coastal communities value.

What were your biggest takeaways from reviewing the available research?

MA: The key lesson is that nature-based solutions are not static assets. Their performance depends on ecological and evolutionary processes that continue after design and deployment.

A second lesson is that context matters. In urban environments, environmental factors, such as temperature, pollution, hydrology and soil conditions, can vary across neighborhoods, blocks and shoreline segments. The same species or design may therefore perform differently in different parts of a city.

Third, variation is central to resilience. Genetic diversity, trait diversity and community diversity can increase the capacity of a system to respond to changing conditions.

Fourth, current adaptation does not guarantee future performance. Populations of organisms in long-urbanized environments may be adapted to present conditions, but those adaptations may not align with future climates.

Finally, a reminder and a caution: Evolution does not necessarily favor the traits that make species effective nature-based solutions. Traits that help organisms persist under urban stress may not be the same traits that support cooling, water filtration, shoreline protection or habitat formation. The challenge for planners is to design and manage these systems so that survival and function remain aligned over time.

What steps can urban designers and planners take?

MA: Planners should design for long-term performance. That means asking: Which organisms provide the desired function? Which traits matter for that function? What environmental pressures will those organisms face? Is there enough genetic, trait or species variation to support future adaptations?

In practice, this means using diverse, site-appropriate source material and considering both local adaptation and future climate conditions. It also means reducing pressures that can weaken performance, such as excess nutrients, contaminants and pollution, while maintaining the habitat conditions organisms need to persist and adapt over time.

It also means monitoring differently. Cities should track not only whether a project is working now, but also whether the organisms, traits and ecological processes that support its performance are changing over time.Ģż

Designing nature-based solutions for changing climate conditions requires sustaining genetic diversity, supporting ecological function and maintaining evolutionary potential.

UW co-authors include , a doctoral student of urban design and planning. A complete list of co-authors is .

This research was funded by the National Science Foundation.

For more information, contact Marina Alberti at malberti@uw.edu.

“”±ō²¹²õ°ģ²¹ā€™s was home to beluga whales in the late 1970s, but today the population hovers around 300. Despite almost two decades of recovery work, the whales arenā€™t bouncing back. The Cook Inlet belugas are likely struggling under multiple pressures, including increasing human noise. Researchers are working on deciphering whale-whale communication to better account for the impact of noise on this vulnerable population.

In a new study, ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ scientists eavesdropped on Cook Inlet belugas, recording more than 1,700 calls representing 21 different behavioral encounters. This work builds on a 2023 study showing that noise from commercial shipping, the primary industry in the region, masks common beluga calls. Although many marine mammals rely more on sound than sight, our understanding of acoustic communication among these animals is limited.

Beluga whales use vocalizations to socialize, stick together and avoid danger. The new study, , investigated the behavioral, social and environmental contexts in which the whales produce various calls.

ā€œWe knew that human-generated noise was masking their calls, but we didn’t know what those calls were used for,ā€ said, a UW doctoral student in aquatic and fishery sciences. ā€œThis study gave us important insights into the world of beluga communication and how it is disrupted by industry and development.ā€

They found that Cook Inlet belugas use a specific type of call ā€” a combined call ā€” when calves are present. Combined calls were one of the call types that got drowned out by shipping noise in the 2023 study, suggesting that shipping noise could be disrupting communication with calves. If mothers and calves canā€™t remain in contact, it could spell trouble for the young whales.

ā€œWe donā€™t have the data to directly connect noise and calf separation,ā€ Brewer said, ā€œbut if a mother whale canā€™t acoustically keep in contact with her calf, that could be a huge problem.ā€.

Researchers also found that calling between whales increased right before a behavioral change in the group, such as a transition from socializing to traveling, and when the tide was coming in. The call rate for individual whales decreased as group size increased, suggesting that individuals call less in a big group, perhaps to avoid talking over each other.

In Cook Inlet, where the whales live year round, silty glacial water gets churned up by powerful currents and dramatic tides. Beluga whales likely moved in after the last ice age, roughly 10,000 years ago. Vocal communication and echolocation, a navigational strategy used by bats and some whales, have allowed them to survive in this extreme environment, but human noise presents a newer challenge.

ā€œTheir main foraging hot spots for salmon are in the northern part of the inlet, near Anchorage, and in close proximity to the airport, the Port of Alaska, and the military base. I think there are ways to adapt but itā€™s tricky for them and noise pollution is far from the only threat,ā€ Brewer said.

Beluga whales in the St. Lawrence Estuary in Eastern Canada ā€” also very noisy ā€” have evolved to , perhaps in response to lower frequency anthropogenic noise. They also make their when it’s noisy, just like two people conversing at a party would.

In the Puget Sound region, where the endangered Southern Resident killer whales live, when whales are reported in the area. Smaller ships are legally required to keep their distance and slow down within half a mile of the whales. This program was introduced after researchers demonstrated that .

ā€œThe Port of Alaska could explore similar strategies to mitigate the impact of industry,ā€ Brewer said. ā€œWe canā€™t halt shipping, but weā€™re trying to understand what we can do to manage these critical habitats, especially when the animals are nearby.ā€

Co-authors include , a UW assistant professor of aquatic and fishery sciences;Ģż , a UW professor of aquatic and fishery sciences; , a UW assistant professor of aquatic and fishery sciences; , a research scientist in the UW Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, & Ecosystem Studies; of NOAA; Christopher Garner and Andrea Gilstad of the Air Force Conservation Department.

This study was funded by UW School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, the Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies under a NOAA Cooperative Agreement, and the H. Mason Keeler Endowed Professorship in Sports Fisheries Management.

For more information, contact Brewer at arialb@uw.edu.Ģż Ģż

In early April, a powerful typhoon formed over the northwestern Pacific Ocean, as it swirled toward the Mariana Islands, a 15-island archipelago east of the Philippines. By the time it on April 14, the wind was gusting 130 miles per hour, rain fell in sheets and huge waves pounded the shores.

This super typhoon, called Typhoon Sinlaku, was among the strongest early-season storms recorded in the past 75 years. It caused widespread damage on the islands ā€” home to approximately 50,000 people ā€” leaving most without power, tearing roofs off homes and destroying vital infrastructure.

The U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or CNMI, includes 14 of the islands in the archipelago and the remaining island, Guam, is a U.S. territory. The residents, a mix of Indigenous Chamorro people and settlers, are American citizens and U.S. institutions and agencies are well represented on the islands.

On Rota, ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ researchers have been working to stabilize the population of the endangered Mariana crow for decades after research signaled rapid decline. , a UW professor of environmental and forest sciences, and , a UW professor of environmental and forest sciences, oversee several projects on Tinian, a small forested island roughly 12 miles long and 6 miles wide.

The first project, launched in 2021, focused on a small, formerly endangered songbird called the . It has since expanded into broader study of native birds and plant restoration.

UW News spoke with Gardner, , a research scientist in Gardnerā€™s lab, and , a graduate student in Bakkerā€™s lab, about the impacts of the typhoon and how they plan to resume their work on the islands.

What first brought you to Tinian? What makes the island unique?

Beth Gardner: We were initially approached by a consulting firm with a contract to study the Tinian monarch, which led us to form a relationship with the U.S. Navy based on the island. They were impressed by our work and efforts to integrate into the community and funded our group to continue developing research on Tinian.

Kaeli Swift: Tinianā€™s unique ecological character reflects its complicated history. The island is about 60% forested but the forests are primarily composed of a mix of introduced species. Centuries of colonization ā€” by the Spanish, Germans, Japanese and now U.S. ā€” has resulted in immense habitat destruction. Tinian was heavily bombed during World War II and then became the U.S. point for the atomic bomb.

Fletcher Moore: By the end of the war, over 95% of the forest had been cleared, obviously to the extreme detriment of all the native plants and animals. Now, over two-thirds of the island is controlled in a lease agreement by the U.S. military. That land is largely undeveloped, but the U.S. military plans to invest in major new projects on Tinian in the next decade.

What does your work involve?

KS: We have been doing on Tinian for five years. Weā€™re trying to understand threats to native birds by studying offspring survival and predator populations ā€” primarily rats and cats. Our recent work involves acoustic monitoring, specifically looking at how birds are impacted by human-related noise associated with development on the island.

FM: We are working on a long-term native forest restoration project based on the observation that the lack of native plants was limiting wildlife populations on Tinian. We are supporting development of a native plant nursery by partnering with local entities to enhance the space, hire full time staff, and collect and propagate plants. We had about 2,000 native trees representing 20 different species in the nursery, and planted about 300 of those trees in the past six months.

How will it be impacted by Typhoon Sinlaku?

FM: The site where we planted the young trees is on an isolated corner of the island that is difficult to get to in the best of times. Right now, the road is totally inaccessible. Weā€™re not sure when we will be able to get out there to assess the damage and resume regular restoration work, like controlling invasive species and planting other species. The nursery also suffered a lot of damage; almost half of its plants were destroyed. So it’s going to require a pretty big reset.

KS: Our work involves venturing into the jungle to set up cameras and acoustic recording devices for monitoring birds. Our access to those sites will be limited until the roads are cleared and even then, the nature of the vegetative landscape will have changed. We canā€™t really compare data on birds from one year to the next when there have been major changes to vegetation on the island.

BG: That little songbird we study has probably gone quiet for now. As weā€™ve seen in the past, their populations will likely suffer from this type of devastation. The typhoon sat on top of Tinian and Saipan for somewhere around 50 hours. We donā€™t know the full extent of the damage yet, but I think things will be completely different when we get back out there.

What happens now?

FM: It is difficult to access resources on the Marianas and especially hard on Tinian. We had to transport everything we needed for these projects from elsewhere. Shipping can take weeks or months and building materials are often twice as expensive as they would be on the mainland U.S.

When it comes to our work, it’s really difficult to see the nursery destroyed and to see the materials we spent months and a lot of money gathering torn apart. But, it’s going to be especially hard for the people who live on the island and donā€™t have grants funding their rebuilding efforts. So there are just a lot of practical challenges to recovery out there that even folks affected by disasters in the mainland U.S. might not face to the same degree.

Some Alaska cruises are to this year after a landslide-generated tsunami barreled through the narrow channel during peak season last August. A new analysis of the event from researchers at the University of Calgary and the ĢĒŠÄŌ­““, , describes how glacial retreat caused by global warming primed the fjord for the colossal wave and what, if any, warning signs preceded it.

At 5:26 a.m. on Aug. 10, 2025, a piece of the mountainside one kilometer tall and 200 meters thick collapsed into the Tracy Arm Fjord, a scenic waterway south of Juneau. Rock crashed into the water, taking with it chunks of the South Sawyer glacier and producing a 481-meter high tsunami so powerful that it scraped surrounding hillsides bare.

The event would have been “unsurvivable for any ship of any size,ā€ said co-author a UW professor of Earth and space sciences, but fortunately the tsunami occurred too early for tours and no one was harmed.

Later that day, as many as 20 boats, including large cruise ships, may have visited the fjord. Tourist vessels often draw near the fjord wall to get the best vantage point for photographs of towering glaciers and mountains. The slope that failed was only recently exposed to the water below it due to glacial retreat.

ā€œIt was only in the last few years that the glacier retreated back past the bottom of where the hillside failed,ā€ Roe said.

Tracy Arm Fjord hosts two glaciers, the Sawyer and South Sawyer, which both stem from the , a frozen expanse spanning the Alaska-British Columbia border. The larger South Sawyer glacier terminates in the water, making it a tidewater glacier, while the Sawyer retreated onto land in 2023.

Satellite observations indicate that the ice has retreated nearly 10 kilometers since the beginning of the industrial era, with the pace accelerating after 2000.

Mapping the change in position and mass of a tidewater glacier can be difficult because they shrink in multiple directions. Exposed ice melts in the sun and chunks break off and fall into the water at the glacial front. Glaciers around the world have been retreating in response to global warming, but tidewater glaciers donā€™t always follow general trends.

To understand the link between global warming and the 2025 tsunami, researchers used a computational method developed by Roe and , a UW research scientist in Earth and space sciences. Their approach combines hundreds of simulations from various computer models to estimate how different certain climates would look without human influence.

ā€œWith these data, we can quantify how unusual the observations are compared to the expected natural variability in the climate had we not been burning fossil fuels,ā€ Berdahl said.

In the study, they conclude that 100% of the industrial-era warming in this region of Alaska is human-caused. As it gets warmer, less snow accumulates and the ice retreats.

ā€œSnowline elevations are rising, ice is thinning, and the ice cap is shrinking. Even though tidewater glaciers can be more complicated to study, we are fully confident that the retreat is primarily due to the changing environment, and we are the cause of the changing environment,ā€ Roe said.

It is possible that glacial retreat destabilized the slope that failed, but specific landslide triggers are notoriously difficult to discern. Either way, if the surface beneath the slope had been glacial ice, the slide wouldnā€™t have produced such a massive tsunami.

Although no one was harmed by the wave, those nearby raised the alarm. Kayakers awoke early in the morning to water flowing past their tents and carrying away some of their gear. A cruise ship anchored near the mouth of the fjord described large waves rolling through and shifting currents. These reports allowed researchers to triangulate the landslide, but the authors say there were very few advance warning signs.

ā€œNormally with these gigantic rock avalanches, they often give some sort of warning signs in the weeks, months or years prior when the slope is slowly moving down the mountain. Itā€™s sagging and then it catastrophically gives way in a rock avalanche,ā€ said lead author , associate professor of Earth, energy and environment at the University of Calgary. ā€œIn this case, that didnā€™t happen.ā€

The researchers did note an increase in low frequency seismic noise before the landslide.

ā€œThe long precursory phase of seismic activity before the landslide is fascinating, and to my knowledge, rarely observed,ā€ said , a UW professor of Earth and space sciences. ā€œGiven its duration and the relative ease of detection, this type of signal could conceivably provide advance warning of large slides if enough seismic monitoring can be deployed.ā€

Until that happens though, it will be difficult to predict the behavior of changing terrain.

The unexpected event presents challenges when it comes to disaster reduction in high-risk areas, Shugar said. Cruise ship companies, captains and other stakeholders should pay close attention, particularly in areas on the West Coast and in polar regions where glaciers are thinning due to the changing climate.

This study was funded by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Alberta Innovates, Canadian Space Agency, U.S. Geological Survey Landslide Hazards Program, the U.S. National Science Foundation, NERC, the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Foundation, and the Carlsberg Foundation.

This story was adapted from

For more information, contact Roe at groe@uw.edu.Ģż

Sunbirds may look similar to hummingbirds ā€” small, iridescent birds with thin bills ā€” but it turns out the two are only distantly related. Sunbirds live primarily in Africa, Asia and Australia, and have a unique way to slurp up nectar. Unlike hummingbirds, which use minute movements in their bills to sip nectar, sunbirds use their tongues as a straw. published in Current Biology, a team led by researchers at the ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ showed that these long-billed birds can change the pressure at the base of their tongues to create suction that moves nectar through their tongues and into their mouths, a novel mechanism never before seen in vertebrates. The researchers used multiple techniques ā€” including high-speed video of sunbirds drinking red-dyed nectar from transparent artificial flowers ā€” to demonstrate this phenomenon across multiple sunbird species as well as build a mathematical model that describes how it works. Sunbirds pollinate the flowers they drink from, and researchers are interested in understanding how different sunbird species’ plant preferences affect the plant-pollinator networks across continents.

For more information, contact lead author , who completed this research as a UW doctoral student in biology, at david_cuban@brown.edu.ĢżĢż

The other UW co-author is . A full list of co-authors and funding is included . Related stories in and .Ģż

Seattle Fault gets 5,000 more years of sleepĢż

Just over 1,100 years ago an on the Seattle fault rocked ā€” and reshaped ā€” the Puget Sound region. It lifted the sea floor and sent a powerful tsunami through the sound. Researchers have estimated that this fault, which runs east to west beneath the middle of the city, will produce a large earthquake every 5,000 years or so. However, , recently published in Geology, pushes that estimate back to 11,000 years. The researchers extended this window by scouring submerged shorelines for evidence of significant elevation changes. The geological record at these sites dates back 11,000 years, but they only found evidence of one major earthquake. This information could be useful to those making seismic hazard maps, which help people understand the risks associated with different regions. Although other regional faults and the imposing pose more imminent risks to residents, the main Seattle fault doesnā€™t appear to be ready for rupture anytime soon.

For more information, contact lead author , UW research scientist of Earth and space sciences, at edav@uw.edu.

The other UW co-author is . A full list of co-authors and funding is included in the paper. Related story in .

The PNW has many rivers, but no system for gauging landslide dam risk

Scientists have a new tool for estimating lesser known hazards in the Pacific Northwest: and outburst floods. Landslides along rivers can block the flow of water downstream, creating a lake just above the slide area. Most landslide dams fail within 10 days, releasing trapped water in an outburst flood, which can be devastating. Last fall, 20 people died after in Taiwan. published in Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, UW researchers debut a mathematical approach to mapping landslide dam hazards based on valley width and projected slide size. When they applied the tool to a mountain range in Oregon, they found that roughly one-third of rivers in the study area were susceptible to landslide dams, with risk increasing in mountainous areas. If a landslide dam does form, alleviating pressure by for water to escape can help prevent flooding. Identifying high risk areas can help guide emergency response efforts following storms, earthquakes and other events that increase landslide risk.

For more information, contact lead author , UW doctoral student of Earth and space sciences, at pmmorgan@uw.edu.

The other UW co-author is . A full list of co-authors and funding is .

Rubin observatory expected to spot many ā€˜imminent impactorā€™ asteroids

Small asteroids ā€” those 1 to 20 meters in diameter ā€”Ģż hit the Earth 35-40 times per year, though theyā€™re very rarely spotted by telescopes before impact. That could soon change: published in The Astrophysical Journal, UW astronomers calculate that the Simonyi Survey Telescope at the NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory could discover one to two Earth-impacting asteroids annually , roughly doubling the number currently logged. The researchers expect Rubin to discover these asteroids an average of 1.5 days before impact, which is more warning time than ever before. Advance notice is extremely valuable in the case of larger asteroids that could be a threat to people or infrastructure. Because the Rubin Observatory is located in the Southern Hemisphere, it will likely discover many Earth impactors that existing asteroid surveys ā€” concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere ā€” miss.

For more information, contact lead author Ian Chow, a UW graduate student of astronomy, at chowian@uw.edu.

Other UW co-authors are Mario Jurić, Joachim Moeyens, Aren N. Heinze and Jacob A. Kurlander. A full list of co-authors is included .

Many marine microbes share a genetic toolbox for fixing supper at sea

Researchers have now identified a set of genes that allow some bacteria to process a compound, called homarine, that is abundant in the ocean and appears to play a key role in nutrient cycling. Phytoplankton produce loads of homarine, but scientists werenā€™t sure what became of it until now. In a recent study published in Nature Microbiology, researchers found a set of genes present in common and far-flung bacteria that convert homarine into glutamic acid, an essential building block for life. This suggests that homarine may be a vital and overlooked resource and highlights the importance of bacteria in stabilizing marine ecosystems. Previous studies also found that homarine serves as and helps small crabs . The UW team will continue studying homarine to better understand how it fits into the broader ecological landscape.

For more information, contact senior author , a UW professor of oceanography, at aingalls@uw.edu.Ģż

The other UW co-authors are , , , , , and Ģż A full list of co-authors and funding is

The Ecological Society of America on Wednesday awards. , a ĢĒŠÄŌ­““ assistant professor of environmental and forest science, was named an Early Career Fellow, which recognizes scientists for contributions to advancing and applying ecological knowledge within eight years of completing a doctorate.

Willing studies how microbes respond, and help plants cope with, environmental change. focuses on fungi and other microbes living near plant roots. Much like the gut microbiome, these communities play a critical role in plant nutrition, immune function and overall forest health.

Willingā€™s lab focuses on understanding these communities and how they are shifting with climate change. Her research integrates methods from various scientific disciplines to gain insight into the ecosystem-wide impact of fungi.

ā€œI work across pretty diverse fields, from fungal ecology to plant and forest ecology,ā€ Willing said. ā€œIntegrating everything together is challenging, but I think it’s a critical intersection to study right now and this award is a nice acknowledgement of that.ā€

As a Faculty Fellow, Willing also collaborates with federal, state and tribal agencies to incorporate fungi into climate adaptation planning.

Many of her labā€™s projects examine responses to climate change. For example, one of Willingā€™s current grad students is studying fungi in post-fire ecosystems.

Some fungal groups are fire-adapted, meaning that they can withstand wildfire better than others. After wildfire, the soil often becomes hydrophobic, which causes water to run off the surface instead of soaking in. This increases the risk of erosion, among other consequences. Fungi help seedlings to establish and stabilize the soil by helping it retain water.

Early findings from her lab indicate that prolonged fire suppression, a stewardship strategy intended to minimize wildfire impacts, can limit microorganisms fire tolerance, which then exacerbates the damage caused by a fire.

ā€œThere are lots of different nuances that weā€™re really just starting to understand,ā€ Willing said.

She hopes this work can help inform future forest management practices. Although there are many mushroom enthusiasts in the Pacific Northwest, Willing is one of few scientists in the region studying how these organisms fold into broader ecosystems.

Most of the data on microbial communities was collected within the past 20 years or so, which makes it difficult to gauge how these organisms are responding to climate change. Another project in Willingā€™s lab involves conducting genetic analyses on preserved plant specimens to establish a baseline for fungal health.

ā€œOur understanding of what fungal and bacterial communities were like before the onset of rapid warming is really limited,ā€ Willing said.

Building this baseline will help researchers see how microbial communities are evolving and reveal management opportunities.

Without fungi, life on Earth couldnā€™t exist as we know it. Dead logs and fallen leaves would simply accumulate, with nothing to break them down and return their nutrients to the soil.

ā€œFungi are involved in everything,ā€ Willing said. ā€œIn the cycle of life, they are at the beginning, helping plants to take root across every ecosystem on Earth, and at the end, helping to create lush soils for future life to flourish.ā€

ESA will acknowledge and celebrate fellows during a ceremony on July 27 at the annual meeting in Salt Lake City. Early Career Fellows are elected for five years.

For more information about her work, contact Willing at willingc@uw.edu.