Senior Project Advisor
Anika Tilland-Stafford
Document Type
Project
Publication Date
Spring 2021
Keywords
Salmon, community, Indigeneity, settler colonialism, eco-systems
Abstract
Pacific salmon serve a unique role in their ecosystem as network connectors. From transferring nutrients from the aquatic environment to terrestrial habitats, to subverting trophic hierarchies by nourishing the roots of trees and the bellies of orcas, salmon manage to fulfill an interesting role in connecting networks of biological communities. This connecting nature of pacific salmon is mirrored in the role they play as human community connectors, as is reflected in their part in food and land justice issues in the Pacific Northwest. I will explore the role of salmon in preserving Indigenous people against the imposed hegemony of settler colonialism, and as a tool utilized by the settler nation-state in the forced removal of Indigenous people. I want to explore the mirrored qualities of salmon as network connectors in temperate ecosystems and in struggles for Indigenous land sovereignty. I will compile a collection of historical and modern examples, biological studies, and my own personal anecdotes into a sort of visual piece that demonstrates the connective properties of salmon as described in the project. A visual storytelling exhibit will portray the theme of connectivity by drawing connections between the different elements of the project via alternating visuals and text from the different aspects of the study.
Department
Biology
Recommended Citation
Mueller, Olivia, "Catcher and the Fry: Ecology, Power, and My Life with Salmon" (2021). WWU Honors College Senior Projects. 479.
https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwu_honors/479
Subjects - Topical (LCSH)
Pacific salmon--Ecology--Northwest, Pacific; Coast Salish Indians--Northwest, Pacific; Indigenous peoples--Northwest, Pacific; Colonies--America
Geographic Coverage
Northwest, Pacific
Genre/Form
essays
Type
Text
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.
Language
English
Format
application/pdf