Marine Biology Commons^™

Evaluating Habitat Use By Nekton In Widgeon Grass (Ruppia Maritima), Shoal Grass (Halodule Wrightii), And Unvegetated Bottom Habitats In The Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Jessica Woodall

Master's Theses

Seagrass beds support high biodiversity and animal abundance, serve as feeding grounds for a variety of animals, offer shelter from predation, and act as a nursery habitat for juveniles. The species composition of seagrass beds can impact their use as habitat by animals. Two common species of seagrass in the Gulf of Mexico are Ruppia maritima (widgeon grass) and Halodule wrightii (shoal grass). The shallow coastal waters of the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) support both species, but the use of each seagrass as habitat by nekton is poorly understood, which can limit management decision-making. Nekton communities were …

Developing A Miniature Smart Boat For Marine Research, Michael Isaac Eirinberg

Computer Engineering

This project examines the development of a smart boat which could serve as a possible marine research apparatus. The smart boat consists of a miniature vessel containing a low-cost microcontroller to live stream a camera feed, GPS telemetry, and compass data through its own WiFi access point. The smart boat also has the potential for autonomous navigation. My project captivated the interest of several members of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo’s (Cal Poly SLO) Marine Science Department faculty, who proposed a variety of fascinating and valuable smart boat applications.

It Takes A Muscle: Wholes, Holes, And Other Voids, Saar Shemesh

Theses and Dissertations

IT TAKES A MUSCLE¹

In the BELLY of the BEAST, the HUMAN

in the deep end of a SWIMMING POOL

in a GRAVE, looking up/out from within

at the base of a CRATER, ABYSS, PIT

the room as a CRADLE, INCUBATOR

architecture as MOTHER MOULD.²

____________________________

¹ Title is borrowed and abbreviated: Spectral Display, “It Takes A Muscle To Fall In Love,” 1982.

² For what American-English delineates as ‘mold,’ British-English uses ‘mould’ and is more specific in its technicality. The former doesn’t distinguish in spelling between mold (fungus) and mold (mould). I’m not particularly a fan of …

Cultivating Cooperatives: Benefits And Challenges Of Co-Ops And Recommendations For Maine’S Emerging Aquaculture Industries, Phoebe Walsh

All Theses And Dissertations

Two emerging Maine industries, kelp (Saccharina latissimi and Saccharina angustissima) and Atlantic sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) aquaculture, have enormous market, environmental, and social potential but are faced with challenges of small scale and limited operations, inadequate infrastructure, market visibility, and limited expertise. Because many industries, particularly the dairy industry, have benefited from the use of cooperatives (co-ops) to aggregate an extremely perishable product, quickly process and effectively market and distribute, this research explores the cooperative model as a potential tool for the nascent scallop and kelp industries. Aquaculture co-ops are new in Maine. The first, the …

Bull Kelp (Nereocystic Lutkeana) Restoration And Management In Northern California, Olivia Johnson

Master's Projects and Capstones

Northern California’s coastal marine ecosystems support one of the most productive and biodiverse habitats on the planet. Bull kelp forests (Nereocystic lutkeana) form habitats for an abundance of marine mammals, sea bird, fish, and invertebrates. In recent years, compounding ecological and climatic factors have disrupted the balance of the bull kelp forests and led to an unprecedented loss of bull kelp biomass and canopy cover. These areas that are typically teeming with marine life have shifted into a stable state of sea urchin barrens due to over grazing of bull kelp by purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus pupuratus). These sea urchin …

Vegetative Community And Health Assessment Of A Constructed Juncus-Dominated Salt Marsh In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Nickolas R. Murphy

Master's Theses

Deer Island is a coastal habitat which provides a buffer from storm and flood damage as well as shore-line stabilization to the mainland of Biloxi, Mississippi. A third of the land has been lost since 1850, largely driven by tropical storm and hurricane impacts as well as sea level rise. The United States Army Corps of Engineers and Mississippi Department of Marine Resources have targeted the shores of the island as sites for restoration using beneficial use dredged material, and two sites of differing age have since been planted with Spartina alterniflora, Juncus roemerianus, Uniola paniculata, S. patens, and Panicum …

The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary: An Exploration Of Changing The Discourse On Conservation, Arielle Ben-Hur

Pitzer Senior Theses

In 2015, the Northern Chumash Tribal Council submitted a National Marine Sanctuary Nomination to establish the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary– a means by which to ensure the protection of one of the most culturally and biologically diverse coastlines in the world. On October 5, 2015, John Armor of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) responded to the nomination, adding it to the inventory of areas NOAA may consider in the future for national marine sanctuary designation.

In my thesis, I explore how the nomination of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary acts as a platform from which Traditional …

Island Invasion: The Silent Crisis In Hawaii, Sophia Janssen

Pomona Senior Theses

Keeping out invasive species may, upon first review, seem like a trivial environmental cry from ecologists and deep environmentalists; a belated wish to return to an undeveloped world where nature was pristine. However invasive species create problems that impact all of us and can have far more severe consequences than changing a stunning landscape. These problems are heightened in islands like Hawaii, where the fragile ecosystems have developed over centuries of evolution and adaptation. The introduction of a disease-carrying mosquito can put the people of Hawaii at risk to many vector-born illnesses and create an epidemic, taking human life. The …

Seaweed Community Structure Along Environmental Gradients In An Ocean-Dominated Estuary, Saskia A. Raether

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Macrophyte community structure in estuaries that have been modified by the addition of hard substrata are poorly documented, especially in relation to the physical and environmental gradients that shape them. Therefore, this study describes the summer macrophyte flora that occurs on hard and soft substrata throughout Humboldt Bay, CA and tests how the macrophyte communities correlate to measures of horizontal and vertical environmental gradients. The percent cover of macroalgae, vascular plants, cyanobacteria, lichens, diatom film, sessile invertebrates, and substratum types were quantified during the summers of 2017 and 2018 at eleven intertidal locations in the bay and outer coast. Horizontal …

Can The Marsh Migrate? Factors Influencing The Growth Of Spartina Patens In Upland Soil, Tessa M. Dowling

All Theses And Dissertations

Although high elevation salt marsh plants, such as Spartina patens (salt hay) can cope with accelerated sea level rise by migrating inland, it is not well known whether environmental factors, such as soil, plant litter, and salinity, will influence the ability of S. patens to colonize upland forest areas. For one growing season, I tested how S. patens vegetative growth (the final number of stems, aboveground stem biomass, and belowground rhizome biomass) and reproduction (presence of flowers) responded to upland or marsh soil, the presence or absence of plant litter, and 4.5ppt or 14.5ppt salinity levels. In order to determine …

Establishing Relationships Among Environmental Stressors, Host Immune Status, And Wasting Disease Susceptibility In The Dominant Seagrass Species Thalassia Testudinum, Paige Joy Duffin

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of evidence supports the observation that marine disease outbreaks, especially those caused by opportunistic pathogens, are increasing in frequency and severity. One genus of such pathogens, Labyrinthula, has been identified as the causative agent of seagrass wasting disease, an epidemic that has historically plagued seagrass beds around the world. It is suspected that pathogenicity is intimately linked to the ability of the host to initiate defense responses, but a lack of compelling evidence prevents any meaningful application of preliminary observations. This body of work investigated the roles of host genotype, host immune status, and environmental stressors …

Historical Change Of Seagrasses In The Mississippi And Chandeleur Sounds, Linh Thuy Pham

Dissertations

Seagrasses are important coastal resources facing numerous stressors, and losses have been documented from local to global assessments. Under the broad theme of habitat loss and fragmentation, a study of historical change in total area and landscape configuration of seagrasses in the Mississippi and Chandeleur Sounds was conducted. Mapping data was collated from a multitude of previous projects from 1940 to 2011.

Comparisons of seagrass area among various studies that used different mapping methods can result in overestimation of area change and misleading conclusions of change over time. The vegetated seagrass area (VSA) data were generalized to a common resolution …

The Population Genetics Of Morro Bay Eelgrass (Zostera Marina), Julia Gardner Harencar

Master's Theses

Seagrass populations are in decline worldwide. Zostera marina (eelgrass), one of California’s native seagrasses, is no exception to this trend. In the last 8 years, Morro Bay, California has lost 95% of its eelgrass. Eelgrass is an ecosystem engineer, providing important ecosystem services such as sediment stabilization, nutrient cycling, and nursery habitats for fish. The failure of recent restoration efforts necessitates a better understanding of the causes of eelgrass decline in this estuary. Previous research on eelgrass in California has demonstrated a link between population genetic diversity and eelgrass bed health, ecosystem functioning, and resilience to disturbance and extreme climatic …

Advancing Development Of Porphyra Umbilicalis As A Red Algal Model System And Aquaculture Crop, Charlotte Royer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The marine red alga Porphyra umbilicalis (Rhodophyta, Bangiaceae) has ideal traits to allow it to become a model organism, including its economic value, reproduction in the northwestern Atlantic through asexual neutral spores (NS), and availability of fully-sequenced nuclear and organelle genomes. Research on the bacterial component of the Porphyra microbiome is ongoing. To advance model organism development and support microbial studies, data on natural reproductive trends and early embryonic development are needed, along with a system for genetic transformation, and ways of visualizing the attached microbial community. To meet these needs, two years of phenological data were analyzed, revealing seasonal …

Dna Barcoding Reveals A New Morphotype Of The Sugar Kelp, Saccharina Latissima, Dallin Brimley, Zakery Ford, Travis Gould, Brandon Guerra, Emily Haggett, Ian Jones, Elyse Johnson, Ken Peterson, Matthew Prout

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Phytoplankton blooms follow predictable annual cycles in the Gulf of Maine, characterized by a large spring bloom and a smaller bloom in the fall. Marine phytoplankton form the foundation of primary production in Gulf of Maine waters, and thus community changes in composition, and abundance could have cascading effects on our coastal ecosystems.

We set out to monitor the community composition, diversity, and abundance of the spring micro-phytoplankton bloom, at a Friends of Casco Bay water quality monitoring site, in South Portland, Maine. The Gulf of Maine is experiencing accelerated warming rates, and this type of monitoring can aid in …

"Patterns In The Abundance Of Benthic Algae In Streams", Courtney Wright

Honors Theses

Benthic, microscopic algae are the main drivers of primary productivity in streams. The relationship between the abundance and productivity of benthic algae in streams and lakes and the availability of limiting nutrients, especially soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), has been extensively studied (reviewed in Allan and Castillo 2007, Larned 2010). However, nearly all of this research has been conducted on the periphyton assemblage found on hard substrates (e.g., stones, wood), while very little work has addressed the factors affecting the abundance of epipelic algae (i.e., the algae associated with depositional (soft) sediments such as sands and silts). One of the few …

Determining Factors That Influence Smooth Cordgrass (Spartina Alterniflora Loisel) Transplant Success In Community-Based Living Shoreline Projects, Steven A. Carrion

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Efforts to mitigate shoreline erosion through living shoreline methods along the USA Atlantic seaboard have often incorporated the cultivation and transplantation of smooth cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora. Assessments of these transplants at several sites in the Indian River Lagoon have shown that survival is variable after a year (survival: 10-93%). Lower survival has been attributed to environmental variables such as dislodgement by wave energy, and transplant shock due to salinity changes from cultivation to estuarine conditions. To improve living shoreline projects, we examined the effects of cultivation salinity (0 ppt, 15ppt) on transplantation success, and the success of anchoring plants …

Rare Occurrences Of Free-Living Bacteria Belonging To Sedimenticola From Subtidal Seagrass Beds Associated With The Lucinid Clam, Stewartia Floridana, Aaron M. Goemann

Masters Theses

Lucinid clams and their sulfur-oxidizing endosymbionts comprise two compartments of a three-stage, biogeochemical relationship among the clams, seagrasses, and microbial communities in marine sediments. A population of the lucinid clam, Stewartia floridana, was sampled from a subtidal seagrass bed at Bokeelia Island Seaport in Florida to test the hypotheses: (1) S. floridana, like other lucinids, are more abundant in seagrass beds than bare sediments; (2) S. floridana gill microbiomes are dominated by one bacterial operational taxonomic unit (OTU) at a sequence similarity threshold level of 97% (a common cutoff for species level taxonomy) from 16S rRNA genes; …

Transport Regimes And Spread Of The Common Reed, Phramites Australis, In The Saco River, Me, Usa, Michelle A. Slater

All Theses And Dissertations

Allee effects are important to species invasions because population growth may be limited by low outcrossing potential in newly founded populations leading to depressed levels of fitness. Non-native Phragmites australis (common reed) has been present in the United States for over 200 years, but has been slow to reach some areas, possibly owing to the Allee phenomenon, whereby young or isolated Phragmites patches with initially low genotypic richness are slow to recruit viable seedlings due to inbreeding, which limits the rate of patch expansion. In order to explore the importance of the Allee effect in a recently invaded system, the …

Size-Fractionated Relationships Between Phytoplankton Production And Biomass, Luke Auman Bassett

Senior Theses

Phytoplankton are the autotrophic foundation of almost all marine ecosystems.

The flow of energy through an ecosystem is largely dependent how productivity moves through organisms of various sizes. For this reason, numerous studies have set out to quantify the respective contributions of these size-fractions to biomass and rates of primary production. This is done through field measurements of production or through mathematic models that infer production contributions from the easier field measured contributions to biomass. However, the accuracy of this method has been called into question. Can contributions to biomass really be used to accurately interpret contributions to production?

The …

The Influence Of Environmental Factors And Resource Availability On Zostera Marina Flowering Intensity, Andrew J. Johnson

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Sexual reproduction and the production of seeds are important for the resilience of all angiosperm species. For clonal species, such as the seagrass Zostera marina, resource allocation is complicated because these species reproduce both asexually and sexually, and the factors contributing to allocation to these two processes remains unknown. The goal of this study was, therefore, to investigate the importance of critical light, nutrient, and rhizome resources on Z.

marina sexual reproduction and flowering intensity. To evaluate the importance of sediment nutrients on Z. marina flowering intensity two distinct field manipulative experiments and one field survey were initiated: 1. Sediments …

The Effects Of Ocean Acidification And Eutrophication On The Growth, Lipid Composition And Toxicity Of The Marine Raphidophyte Heterosigma Akashiwo., Julia Rose Matheson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Anthropogenic forcing, such as ocean acidification caused by rising carbon dioxide emissions, and eutrophication due to increased nutrient loadings in run-off, are causing major changes to the biogeochemistry of the oceans. As a consequence, coastal phytoplankton are susceptible to altered biogeochemical environments. This study examined the effect of a lower pH and increased levels of nutrients on the common coastal harmful alga, Heterosigma akashiwo. Growth rates, maximal cell yields, neutral lipid accumulation and toxicity of cells grown under various pH and nutrients regimes were measured. H. akashiwo growth was near maximal when grown at lower pH levels. There was …

Growth Of The Marine Fish-Killing Phytoflagellate, Heterosigma Akashiwo Under Emerging Coastal Regimes: Temperature, Eutrophication And Ocean Acidification, Cayla M. Bronicheski

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Coastal oceans are fundamental to human economies, nutrition and recreation. Anthropogenic stressors have led to the acceleration of the nitrogen cycle, the accumulation of inorganic carbon in the earth’s atmosphere, the loss of UV-scavenging upper atmospheric ozone and the overall accumulation of deep elements from the earth’s crust to surface exposure. These changes have caused ocean acidification and eutrophication events in coastal waters and the impacts of these events on primary production and ocean biodiversity are not yet fully understood.

This study examined the effects of predicted future ocean conditions (salinity, temperature, reduced seawater pH and modified nitrogen supplies), on …

The Roles Of Dispersal And Predation In Determining The Seedling Recruitment Patterns Of A Zostera Marina System, Stephen R. Manley

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Seed dispersal and seed predation are two important processes in the early life history of plants. The interaction between these two processes influences the population recruitment from a parent plant. These mechanisms have been studied extensively in terrestrial plants and have resulted in various models to describe plant recruitment (e.g. Janzen-Connell, Hubbell, McCanny). However, seed dispersal and predation may also influence the population recruitment of marine angiosperms, such as Zostera marina (eelgrass). The objectives of this study were to determine: 1.) the patterns of seed dispersal as a function of distance from the seed source, 2.) the predation pressure on …

Multiple Approaches For Assessing Mangrove Biophysical And Biochemical Variables Using In Situ And Remote Sensing Techniques, Francisco Javier Flores De Santiago

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Mangrove forests are important ecosystems and play a key role in maintaining the equilibrium in coastal lagoons and estuaries. However, in recent years, there has been a considerable loss of mangrove extension due to anthropogenic activities. Recent studies suggest that multiple in situ and remote sensing approaches must be carried out to understand the dynamics in these complex ecosystems. Therefore, the objective for this PhD dissertation is to develop multiple techniques for monitoring the seasonal biophysical and biochemical conditions of the mangrove forests. Particular objectives will include: i. Test the feasibility of using a Chlorophyll Content Index from a …

Environmental And Physiological Influences On Productivity And Carbon Isotope Discrimination In Eelgrass (Zostera Marina L.), Meredith Leigh Mcpherson

OES Theses and Dissertations

A short-term longitudinal study was used to examine the relations of achievement motivation, general motivation, interest, and self-regulatory predictors to cognitive strategy use and academic performance. A total of 102 college undergraduates enrolled in their first college-level introductory psychology course completed an Achieving Tendency Scale of achievement motivation, the Motivated Strategies For Learning Questionnaire, and an Interest Profile in psychology during the first two weeks of the semester. At midterm they completed the Study Activity Survey of cognitive strategy use. At the end of the semester exam grades, total points earned in the course, and grade point average were obtained. …

The Effects Of Salinity Pulses Of Varying Duration And Intensity On Three Freshwater Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Species, Rebecca Wright

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Seagrass Species And Trophic Interactions In Experimental Seagrass Communities, Althea F. P. Moore

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Remote Sensing Of Harmful Algal Blooms In The Mississippi Sound And Mobile Bay: Modelling And Algorithm Formation, Dan Martin Holiday

Dissertations

The incidence and severity of harmful algal blooms have increased in recent decades, as have the economic effects of their occurrence./The diatom Pseudo-nitzschia spp. caused fisheries closures in Mobile Bay during 2005 due to elevated levels of domoic acid. In the previous 4 years Karenia brevis counts of >5,000 cells L"1 have occurred in Mobile Bay and the Mississippi Sound. Population levels of this magnitude had previously been recorded only in 1996. Increases in human populations, urban sprawl, development of shoreline properties, sewage effluent and resultant changes in NP ratios of discharge waters, and decline in forest and marsh lands, …

Evaluating Vascular Plant Composition And Species Richness On Horn Island, Mississippi, Using Passive And Active Remote Sensing In Conjunction With Ground Based Measurements, Kelly Lynn Lucas

Dissertations

Barrier island vegetation is subjected to chronic abiotic stressors combined with periodic storm events that favor species adapted to harsh environments. These islands are the first landforms to be affected by changes in coastal subsidence and sea-level rise. Evaluating changes in vegetation is important for understanding the impact of global climate change on coastal environments.

This study assesses vegetation composition and plant species richness on Horn Island, Mississippi using ground data in conjunction with remotely sensed spectral and LIDAR data. The goals of this research are to: 1) classify and map vegetation composition on Horn Island using hyperspectral and LIDAR …