July 28th, 7:00 PM - Summer Lecture Series: How are Sea Stars Faring in our Salish Sea Menagerie? The Whale Museum & YouTube
Hundred-year-old giant clams, coral kingdoms that rival human cities, jellyfish that glow in the dark, and sea stars with super strength: ocean invertebrates are among the oldest and most diverse organisms on earth, In The Ocean’s Menagerie: How Earth’s Strangest Creatures Reshape the Rules of Life, leading marine ecologist Dr. Drew Harvell passionately explores how these spineless creatures have turned 600 million years of adaptation into a stockpile of evolutionary “superpowers” to thrive in aquatic landscapes around the world. This event is free and open to the public. You can watch it in-person at TWM or to livestream, join our YouTube Channel
August 4, 7:00 PM - Summer Lecture Series: Center for Whale Research Update
Dr. Michael Weiss from the Center for Whale Research will discuss conserving animal societies! There is a growing understanding that many animal species form intricate, complex societies with unique relationships, roles, and cultures. In this talk, Dr. Weiss will discuss how we might integrate our understanding of and appreciation for animal societies into conservation theory and practice through the lens of research on southern resident killer whales, ultimately asking how our strategies might change if we treat animal societies as having their own intrinsic value. Join us in person at The Whale Museum or streaming on YouTube.
August 6, 2:00 to 3:00 PM - Kids Fun Fest, The Whale Museum
The Whale Museum is hosting a Kids Fun Fest on August 6 from 2:00 to 3:00! There will be whale activities and games, arts and crafts, story reading, and more!
This event is included in the price of regular admission, and admission to the museum will be free for San Juan Island locals!
August 11, 7:00 PM - Summer Lecture Series: Updates on Enhancing Cetacean and Habitat Observation (ECHO) Program
Join us for an update on the ECHO Program! This is a virtual talk that will happen via Zoom.
August 20, 2:00 to 3:00 PM - Kids Fun Fest, The Whale Museum
The Whale Museum is hosting a Kids Fun Fest on August 20 from 2:00 to 3:00! There will be whale activities and games, arts and crafts, story reading, and more!
This event is included in the price of regular admission, and admission to the museum will be free for San Juan Island locals!
August 25, 6:00 PM - Summer Lecture Series: Right whales in the North Pacific: Two Decades of Discovery
Did you know that right whales live in the North Pacific? Once thought to be nearly extinct, these elusive whales remain among the rarest mammals on Earth. Join us to discover how scientists are uncovering the secrets of North Pacific right whales—from their history and identification to the remarkable discoveries of the past two decades that are reshaping what we know about this mysterious species. This is a virtual lecture that will be hosted on Zoom.
Summer Lecture Archives:
Missed the lecture? Archived talks are available on our YouTube channel:
Nora Nickum and Cindy Hansen: Our Local Gray Whales: Children’s Book & Science Chat. Watch a recording of the lecture here!
Haley Welsh & Emma Giesbrecht, Government of Canada: Government of Canada’s Efforts to Protect Southern Resident killer whales from vessel-related disturbance. Watch a recording of the lecture here!
Mike Rosekrans and Sage Enright, Youth Conservation Corp: Eelgrass Restoration Through Youth Conservation. Watch a recording of the lecture here!
From 2025 Summer Lecture Series:
Dr. Shawn Larson, The Seattle Aquarium: Sea Otter Conservation and Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration. Watch a recording of Dr. Larson's talk here.
Dr. Rob Williams, Oceans Initiative: Bright Extinction and a Vision of Hope: Signs of an accelerating decline in Southern Resident killer whales, and what we can do now to start turning it around. Catch a recording of it on this YouTube Link.
Dr. Mike Kuperberg, The Whale Museum: A Tale of Two Cities (Tallahassee to Washington DC to Friday Harbor). You can catch a recording of this talk here.
Note: all times are listed in Pacific Time.