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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Effects Of Warm Ocean Temperatures On Bull Kelp Forests In The Salish Sea, Braeden Schiltroth, Sherryl Bisgrove, Bill Heath
Effects Of Warm Ocean Temperatures On Bull Kelp Forests In The Salish Sea, Braeden Schiltroth, Sherryl Bisgrove, Bill Heath
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Kelp beds are marine sanctuaries, providing some of the most productive ecosystems on the planet and serving as critical habitat and refuge for many species, including juvenile salmon. Rising ocean temperature associated with climate change is a major stressor contributing to declines of kelp forests worldwide. In the Salish Sea, we identified bull kelp (Nereocystis leutkeana) populations growing under two different temperature regimes. Since 2011, kelp growing in the central Strait of Georgia has been exposed to sea surface temperatures (SSTs) of 15-21 °C in the summer months, which is 5-6 °C warmer than temperatures in the Strait of Juan …
Kelp Forest Dynamics: Links To Climate And Long Term Trends, Helen Berry, Cathy Pfister, Tom Mumford
Kelp Forest Dynamics: Links To Climate And Long Term Trends, Helen Berry, Cathy Pfister, Tom Mumford
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Kelp forests are foundation species in the Salish Sea, and their dynamics are key to the fate of many other species. Research in other regions has shown that kelp abundance is driven in part by climate and can be impacted by human activities (for example, pollution and altered competition among species). While downward trends in kelp abundance have been of concern globally, trends are often locally distinct. We combined long term monitoring datasets and historical records to explore whether bull kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) and giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) dynamics in the Salish Sea region: 1) correlate with climate conditions, and …
Comparison Of Bull Kelp Coverage Survey Methods Over Time In The San Juan Archipelago, Todd Woodard, Casey Palmer-Mcgee
Comparison Of Bull Kelp Coverage Survey Methods Over Time In The San Juan Archipelago, Todd Woodard, Casey Palmer-Mcgee
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Bull Kelp forests are an important habitat in the Salish Sea. They provide critical habitat for a wide variety of species including newly listed rockfish. Yet little data currently exists to determine overall canopy coverage or trends in kelp coverage. In 2017, the Samish Indian Nation initiated a project to compare baseline kelp coverage with Traditional Ecological Knowledge from Tribal Fishermen and a 2006 remote sensing survey conducted by Friends of the San Juans. Using a combination of aerial photography analysis, boat based surveys and NASA satellite imagery, this project seeks to gain a unique perspective on kelp forest trends …
Blue Carbon: Port Of Seattle’S Kelp, Eelgrass And Shellfish Enhancement Pilot Project, Jon Sloan
Blue Carbon: Port Of Seattle’S Kelp, Eelgrass And Shellfish Enhancement Pilot Project, Jon Sloan
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
The Port of Seattle is working to become carbon neutral by 2050. In addition to reducing emissions, the Port’s strategy includes enhancing carbon sequestration through habitat restoration. To that end, the Port completed a study in 2017 to quantify sequestration benefits associated with different land cover and habitat types found in the Duwamish River estuary and Elliott Bay, including riparian forest, marsh, mudflat, eelgrass and kelp beds. The review determined that kelp and eelgrass – so called “blue carbon” – provide highly significant sequestration benefits. In fact, they sequester more carbon than almost any other habitat type in the world. …
Seagrass Nursery Function Enhanced By Habitat Connectivity, Angeleen Olson, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Francis Juanes
Seagrass Nursery Function Enhanced By Habitat Connectivity, Angeleen Olson, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Francis Juanes
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Seascape connectivity is an emerging feature influencing marine ecosystem function. Connectivity, via the interplay of habitat configuration, its physical structure, and associated food webs, may alter the provision of nursery habitat, influencing the success of fish populations and harvests thereof. We quantified the effects of adjacent habitat type on seagrass nurseries for rockfish. We compared seagrass sites with contrasting structure and productivity in adjacent habitats: kelp forest and sand. To elucidate the spatially-dependent flow of material in the seagrass meadow, we estimated the proportion of basal contributions (producers) to the food web using an isotopic mixing model on YOY (young-of-the-year) …
Ecological Effects Of Overwater Structures On Subtidal Kelp, Northern Puget Sound, Washington, E. Jhanek Szypulski, Anthony Gabriel, Cinde Donoghue
Ecological Effects Of Overwater Structures On Subtidal Kelp, Northern Puget Sound, Washington, E. Jhanek Szypulski, Anthony Gabriel, Cinde Donoghue
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Subtidal kelp, over 20 species in total, are abundant in the Puget Sound but no data exists on how they are impacted by the multitude of overwater structures found there. There are currently over 9,000 overwater structures creating 9 km2 of shade in the Sound. This research quantifies various overwater structures’ impacts on the productivity and distribution of subtidal kelp beds. Three sets of floating docks ranging in size from 35 to 66 m2, located at Deception Pass and Camano Island State Parks, were sampled twice during the summer of 2017. Georeferenced underwater video surveys were conducted by paddling a …