South Slough Reserve, Oregon
State
Oregon
State Partner
Oregon Department of State Lands
Acres
4,771
Est. Date
1974
Oregon’s South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve is made up of 4,771 acres and provides habitats for salmon, great blue herons, bald eagles, migrating ducks, elk, sea otters, oysters, and crabs. The Reserve offers a diverse landscape of open waters, emergent islands, streams, salt marshes, and conifer-forested uplands. Through research, education, and stewardship programs, Reserve staff promote scientific and public knowledge of estuaries and how to manage them.
Explore the impact of South Slough Reserve in 2019, including their teacher training programs, forest restoration, and relationship with local tribal nations.
Did You Know…
South Slough was the first National Estuarine Research Reserve in our system.
Latest News from the South Slough Reserve
Preparing for the Worst and Hoping for the Best in Oregon
Although the recent West Coast fires haven’t touched the South Slough Reserve in Oregon, they and their community partners are preparing for a future that includes living with fire just in case—and making their forests more resilient, beautiful, and biodiverse in the process.
Talk NERRdy to Me: Deborah Rudd
This month, NERRA’s correspondent-at-large Nik Charov interviewed Deborah Rudd, public involvement coordinator at Oregon’s South Slough Reserve. They talked about a “slough” of things—from the birth of the first Reserve and Indigenous collaboration to the best way to spoil volunteers and keep vandals from spoiling the view.
Recipe Challenge: Salish Salmon
We asked for your best estuary-sourced recipes, and Dennis Parent—retired commercial fisherman and volunteer with the Padilla Bay Foundation—delivered. His recipe for grilled Chinook salmon had our mouths watering and our spirits thinking about a trip to Washington.