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Western Washington University

Eelgrass

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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Vignette 14: Eelgrass Wasting Disease, Olivia Graham, Morgan Eisenlord, Drew Harvell May 2021

Vignette 14: Eelgrass Wasting Disease, Olivia Graham, Morgan Eisenlord, Drew Harvell

Institute Publications

Rising seawater temperatures can increase the risk of disease outbreaks in many taxa. Pathogens are potentially the ultimate keystone species in that their small biomass can have massive impacts that ripple through ecosystems. Disease outbreaks can be particularly damaging when they affect ecosystem engineers, such as seagrasses. Outbreaks of wasting disease in seagrasses are one of a myriad of stressors associated with declining temperate and tropical seagrass meadows around the globe. Levels of eelgrass wasting disease are high in the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound. These increasing levels of disease are a threat to sustainability of eelgrass meadows, our …


Vignette 15: Eelgrass Variations Ties To Sea Level Variations, Ronald Thom May 2021

Vignette 15: Eelgrass Variations Ties To Sea Level Variations, Ronald Thom

Institute Publications

This vignette shares an overview of the process and results of a long-term eelgrass monitoring effort at the mouth of Sequim Bay. Coupling these local long-term findings with research and monitoring across the Salish Sea and the globe will help better understand the longer-term effects of global warming and perhaps other human and natural-derived pressures on coastal ecosystems, and provide clues on how to make these systems more resilient to pressures.


Organic Content And Silt To Sand Ratio In Correlation With Porewater Sulfide Concentrations Found In Eel Grass (Zostera Marina) Beds, Clarissa Felling May 2015

Organic Content And Silt To Sand Ratio In Correlation With Porewater Sulfide Concentrations Found In Eel Grass (Zostera Marina) Beds, Clarissa Felling

Scholars Week

Eel grass, Zostera marina, beds are a vital habitat for both economically valuable species and nutrient cycling. Populations of Z. marina in Washington State have either stayed consistent or dwindled slightly. To increase the distribution of eel grass in Washington State knowing the organic content and silt to sand ratio is important for these plants survival. If this data correlates to sulfide concentrations, which can inhibit the abundance of eelgrass, department officials can locate viable places for new beds. Sediment samples were taken from four different eelgrass sites around Skagit County. Each sample was divided in two; one heated at …


Inhibition Of Microbial Growth By Eelgrass Extracts, Emily E. (Emily Elizabeth) Lambert Apr 1999

Inhibition Of Microbial Growth By Eelgrass Extracts, Emily E. (Emily Elizabeth) Lambert

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Eelgrass extracts from Zostera marina and Zostera japonica were tested against bacterial isolates for antibacterial activity. Bacterial isolates that exhibited sensitivity to the eelgrass extracts were also tested against nine pure phenolics, and one complete mixture, for inhibition. Isolated marine bacteria and one marine lab culture were sensitive to both eelgrass extracts. Antibacterial activity was also found with the samples of nine pure phenolic acids, and one mix of these nine, known to be produced in Zostera. It is likely the phenolic acids in eelgrass extracts have antibacterial effects.