Corvallis Gazette Times - Venture

Corvallis Gazette Times - Venture: "Here in the Pacific Northwest, the presence and numbers of fish in the ocean are dependent on a variety of factors. Two of the most important are also the most basic: the rotation of the earth and our ever-present coastal winds. Our coastal winds, which generally come from a southwest direction during the fall and winter, shift to a northwest approach in the spring, and stay there, with brief interludes, until fall. The combination of the earth’s rotation and the northwest wind cause a spring/summer near-ocean process scientists call upwelling. Upwelling roils up millions of tons of gooey material from the bottom of the ocean and sends it upward near the coastline. Much of this goo is alive, just inactive in the cold, dark depths. Once the mucky brew gets higher in the water column and is lit by sunlight, all that living material gets real active real fast. The little plants (phytoplankton) start doing their photosynthesis thing, bloom and spread all over the place. The little critters (zooplankton) start moving around and bumping into each other, which always leads to breeding (this is why your mother never wanted you to dance close) and reproduction (which is what your mother was afraid of)."