Marine Biology Commons^™

A High-Tech, Low-Cost, Internet Of Things Surfboard Fin For Coastal Citizen Science, Outreach, And Education, Philip J. Bresnahan, Tyler Cyronak, Robert J. W. Brewin, Andreas J. Andersson, Taylor Wirth, Todd R. Martz, Travis Courtney, Nathan Hui, Ryan Kastner, Andrew Stern, Todd Mcgrain, Danica Reinicke, Jon Richard, Katherine Hammond, Shannon Waters

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Coastal populations and hazards are escalating simultaneously, leading to an increased importance of coastal ocean observations. Many well-established observational techniques are expensive, require complex technical training, and offer little to no public engagement. Smartfin, an oceanographic sensor–equipped surfboard fin and citizen science program, was designed to alleviate these issues. Smartfins are typically used by surfers and paddlers in surf zone and nearshore regions where they can help fill gaps between other observational assets. Smartfin user groups can provide data-rich time-series in confined regions. Smartfin comprises temperature, motion, and wet/dry sensing, GPS location, and cellular data transmission capabilities for the near-real-time …

Fisheries Management Paper No. 276: Western Australian Silverlip Pearl Oyster (Pinctada Maxima) Resource Harvest Strategy 2022 - 2026, Version 2.0, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Fisheries Management Papers

Harvest strategies for aquatic resources in Western Australia (WA) are formal documents that support decision making processes which are consistent with the principles of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD; Fletcher 2002) and Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM; Fletcher et al. 2012). The objectives of ESD are reflected in the Fish Resources Management Act 1994 (FRMA), Section 3, and the Aquatic Resources Management Act 2016 (ARMA), Section 9, which will replace the FRMA once enacted.

This Harvest Strategy aligns with DPIRD’s Harvest Strategy Policy for Aquatic Resources (Department of Fisheries 2015) and is consistent with national Harvest Strategy policies and guidelines (Sloan …

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.

A Review Of Current Sea Cucumber And Apostichopus Californicus Knowledge And A Proposal For Future Research And Fishery Management, Lily Haug

University Honors Theses

The sea cucumber species Apostichopus californicus is fished in the Pacific Northwest region of North America and has the potential to be an economically beneficial fisheries species. An understanding of their population levels must be present to sustainably regulate their harvest. Current fisheries in North America vary in their methodology and level of regulation. The current regulations are presented and their strengths and shortfalls are described. This review gathers research done on tropical sea cucumber species and presents that knowledge alongside that regarding Apostichopus californicus to suggest future research and fishery management strategies. A. californicus takes four years to sexually …

Biomass Estimation Of Marine Biofilms On Plastic Surfaces, Kian Banihashemi, Fernando Javier Gil

Biological Sciences

Plastics have become a major source of marine pollution, which threatens food safety and quality, human health, and marine ecosystems. Due to the drastic negative effects of plastics in a marine environment, alternative biodegradable plastics are being generated that are more eco-friendly and have less environmental impact. Though some of these plastics are known to biodegrade, the process of degradation for bioplastics has not been heavily studied in a marine environment. This pilot project sought to both quantify the process of biodegradation and compare across different methods for effectiveness of biomass estimation, which serves as an indicator of biodegradation. Plastics …

The Estuarine Ecological Knowledge Network Makes Progress: International Project Sites And Potential Ways Forward, Grant S. Mccall, Anthony Akpan, Doru Banaduc, Diego F. Figueroa, Nelson Fontoura, Robert Hitchcock, Sherman Horn, Devashish Kar, Thong Tran

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

The Estuarine Ecological Knowledge Network (EEKN) brings together scientists and coastal fishing communities in seeking new ways forward for Earth's major river deltas and estuaries, including the Mississippi (United States), Rio Grande (United States), Danube (Romania/Ukraine), Ganges (India/Bangladesh), Niger (Nigeria), and Mekong (Vietnam) river deltas, and the Patos Lagoon (Brazil). Such environments are universally understood as crucial for the biological productivity of oceans and they are home to hundreds of millions of human inhabitants, many of whom directly depend on that marine richness in terms of the operation of their socioeconomic systems. As human-induced climate change and its consequences for …

Distribution Patterns Of The Invasive Mussel Arcuatula Senhousia In Mission Bay, San Diego, California: Effects Of Sediment Grain Size And Byssus Thread Production On Predation, Samantha Ahlman

Theses

The ability of bivalves to avoid predation by using defensive behaviors such as burrowing and byssus production may vary depending on the sediment characteristics of a given habitat. The varying sediment characteristics that change with water velocity within estuaries may influence the distribution of bivalves and limit them to areas that optimize their ability to defend against predators. We examined the distribution patterns of the invasive Asian date mussel Arcuatula senhousia relative to the sediment grain size distribution in Mission Bay, an urban estuary located in San Diego, California, USA. Mussels and sediment were collected using an Ekman grab at …

Adaptive Evolution Of Learning And Memory In A Model Lineage, William G. Wright

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Books and Book Chapters

Although reductionistic studies of mechanisms of learning in a broad range of model species have advanced our understanding of neural mechanisms, our integrated understanding of mechanisms, behavior, ecology, and evolution of learning remains patchy. A more wholistic research approach in a model lineage of species related to the sea hare, Aplysia californica, has revealed a complete loss of mechanisms of sensitization in one sea-hare genus, Dolabrifera, with concomitant changes in its behavior and ecology. A partial loss of sensitization via different mechanisms in a sister genus, Phyllaplysia, provides further information for our evolving understanding of the evolution of learning …

An Analysis Of Mesophotic Macroalgal Species Richness And Abundance In Puget Sound, Mathea Kurtz-Shaw

Honors Projects

Mesophotic ecosystems are important, light-dependent communities that act as an area of transition for shallow and deep-water organisms. Macroalgae are prominent members of these communities whose growth is influenced primarily by depth and light levels. Even though they are important community members and habitat-builders in these mesophotic ecosystems, macroalgae are highly understudied, especially in temperate environments. To examine these understudied communities, macroalgal coverage, richness, and light intensity at 3 different depth levels across 4 sites in Puget Sound, USA were compared using videos collected during SCUBA diving. All but three of the transects were within the surface irradiance limits classified …

Impacts Of Nitrogen Enrichment On Corals – A Remote Sensing Approach, David E. Carrasco

Master's Projects and Capstones

Anthropogenic activities have resulted in ever-increasing threats to coral reefs globally, wherein the rate of environmental changes have exceeded the historical capacity of corals to adapt. This has threatened the persistence of coral ecosystems and their associated ecosystem services, which billions of people rely on for their livelihoods. The most prevalent stressor is nitrogen enrichment, which while present naturally, is exacerbated by the anthropogenic input of nutrients via the discharge of agricultural and urban waste waters. The focus is to answer the central research question of how nitrogen enrichment impacts corals, and how it interacts with other stressors with particular …

In Situ Observations Of Fish Attraction To Light-Emitting Diodes On An Undersea Observation Deck, Makoto Tomiyasu, Yoko Tanouchi, Yasuzumi Fujimori, Minato Kaji, Takuma Hayashi, Naoto Matsubara, Hiroki Yasuma, Susumu Shimizu, Seiji Katakura

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Many fisheries employ fishing lights to manipulate the behaviors of target fish and to attract them toward the light; however, relatively few long-time observations of fish attraction have been performed in the field. Here, an underwater observation deck was used to examine the differences in the fish-attracting effect of light-emitting diode (LED) lights on the number of attracted fish and on their behavior in the field, using white-edged rockfish as the target species. A total of 604 ± 324, 307 ± 203 and 171 ± 106 white-edged rockfish individuals were attracted to the observation window when it was illuminated with …

Inter-Annual Variability In Growth And Maturation Of The Swordtip Squid Uroteuthis Edulis In Yilan Bay Off Northeastern Taiwan, Jing-Yu Chen, Tzu-Yun Ching, Chih-Shin Chen

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

The swordtip squid Uroteuthis edulis, distributed in the temperate and tropical neritic waters in the Indo-Pacific region, is a crucial component of marine ecosystems and is a target species of fisheries in the Northwest Pacific. Although studies have elucidated the growth and maturation of the squid in the southern East China Sea (ECS) shelf, few have assessed the population biology of the squid in waters in the vicinity of the southern ECS. We collected samples of swordtip squid from a trawler in Yilan Bay (YLB) between January 2011 and December 2012 to examine the growth and maturation of the squid …

Study On The Improved Radiation Boundary Conditions Based On The Quadratic B-Spline Rankine Panel Method, Ming-Chung Fang, Chun-Hsien Wu

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

This study presents a higher-order Rankine source method that is based on a biquadratic B-spline scheme with an improved radiation boundary condition. This method solves flow problems under all conditions, where , including the undercritical condition ( < 0.25); this condition is present when a ship undergoes slow translational motion. The proposed method is thus more flexible than the many Rankine-source models in the literature that are applicable only to the overcritical condition ( > 0.25). Specifically, the improved radiation boundary condition is derived from upstream Seto radiation boundary conditions and by incorporating the Rayleigh damping distribution over a free surface; the improved condition is explicit and efficient for solving flow problems. In evaluations, the proposed method yields accurate solutions for unsteady flows, which are produced by an oscillating, translationally moving submerged singularity. The method is also compared …

Sensitive Analysis Of The Static Response Of Compliant Vertical Access Risers, Fuheng Li, Haiyan Guo, Xiaomin Li, Honglu Gu

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Compliant vertical access risers (CVARs) are considered as efficient and robust alternative options to achieve cost efficiency and safety. Design uncertainties emerge owing to the limited understanding of the effects of various parameters related to the structural properties and marine loads. In this paper, a reasonable three-dimensional (3D) numerical model of CVAR with internal flow is presented based on the slender rod theory. Accordingly, the finite element method combined with a Newton-Raphson scheme is employed to discretize and solve the equations. A sensitivity analysis is performed to investigate the influence of the structural and external load parameters on the static …

Influence Of Boundary Conditions And Internal Fluid Types On Dynamic Characteristics Of A Deepwater Riser, Lei Guo, Zong-Ming Zhu, Zhong-Jian Pan, Zhi-Ming Guo

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Deepwater Steel Catenary Riser (DSCR) is the key structure of oil and gas production system in the ocean. To design an optimized DSCR system, the dynamic characteristics of the DSCR are analyzed by setting some different boundary condi-tions and internal fluid types. The main vibration mode of the DSCR is found orthogonal to both mass and stiffness according to the normalization condition of the main mode, and then the regular mode function and the jth order principal stiffness Kpj are obtained. Under different initial conditions, the transverse responses of DSCR represented by regular coordinates under arbitrary excitation are obtained. Then, …

Variance Of Td-Mosaic Dual-Vortex Interactions Between In-Fa And Cempaka (2021) In The North Pacific, Tsorng-Lin Chia, Guang-Yang Pan, Ji-Chyun Liu

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

A study of the different types of dual-vortex interactions or “Fujiwara effects” between two storms is crucial for considerably improving weather forecasts. This study combined remote sensing images, empirical formulas based on the possibility of storm interaction (Liou–Liu formula), and vector addition techniques to accurately analyze In-Fa and Cempaka typhoons and the surrounding weather patterns during the 2021 typhoon season in the North Pacific. Although the distance separating the typhoons In-Fa and Cempaka was 1,800–2,040 km, the influence of middle air flow and a tropical depression (TD) caused a "vector superposition TD-mosaic double-vortex" interaction between the two typhoons. Therefore, this …

Optimal Deployment Of Flood Emergency Response Materials Under Stochastic Demands, Shangyao Yan, Jenn-Rong Lin, Chia-Fu Ku

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

This study aims to develop a planning model for the deployment of flood emergency response materials under stochastic demands. For ease of modeling, a deterministic demand model is first proposed, from which the stochastic model is further extended. These models are used to determine the allocation of materials the transport truck routes and distribution of the stockpiled materials to emergency sites. The models are formulated as multiple integer network flow problems with special side constraints which are characterized as NP-hard in terms of optimization. To solve the complicated stochastic model efficiently, we also develop a solution algorithm based on a …

Comparative Analysis Of Three Bait Types In Deep-Set Pelagic Longline Gear In The Equatorial Atlantic Ocean, Tiago Hilário Pedrosa Campello, Lucas Eduardo Comassetto, Humberto Gomes Hazin, Jose Carlos Pacheco Dos Santos, Dave Kerstetter, Fábio Hissa Vieira Hazin

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

The choice of bait is one of the fisheries tactics used to increase selectivity for particular target species. The performance of three bait types (mackerel, sardine, squid) was evaluated with a commercial vessel operating in the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean using the deep-set pelagic longline deployment method to target large yellowfin and bigeye tunas. The effect of different factors and covariates on the Capture per Effort Unit - CPUE was evaluated through Generalized Linear Models (GLM). In 121 experimental sets using three bait types, 2385 individuals of the two target species were captured, 1166 yellowfin tuna and 1219 bigeye tuna. The …

The Impacts Of Ph On Biodiversity In Marine Environments, Matthew Rock

Biology Student Scholarship

Climate change continues to impact each and every environment on Earth due to rising levels of greenhouse gasses. CO2 is the most pervasive of these gasses, and when mixed with seawater it creates carbonic acid increasing the pH of water. Ocean acidification has led to large-scale die-offs of more sensitive marine species like coral; therefore, this project serves to evaluate the interaction between pH and the biodiversity of coastal marine environments. BIO 340 final project

Impacts Of Human Development And Salt Marsh Characteristics On Variation In The Growth And Reproduction Of Spartina Alterniflora, Alora Lovely

Honors Theses

This study focused on how human development may impact salt marshes using the common native species Spartina alterniflora as an indicator. Salt marshes are vital coastal ecosystems that help protect against major flooding and can filter pollutants from the water. Like many environments, salt marshes have been impacted by human development in many ways, from construction of cities and roadways to pollution from industrial facilities and equipment. The salt marshes that once dominated many coastlines along the North American Atlantic coast have been destroyed or reduced in size dramatically with the extensive development that has occurred along these shores. Three …

Effects Of Exercise On Fear Behavior In Zebrafish, Tyler Kuni

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The experiment focuses on the behaviors of zebrafish when they are exposed to an environment that causes anxiety or fear behavior and how controlled amounts of exercise will affect the behaviors of the fish. Fearful behavior was measured by the activity level and area of the swimming during the fear conditioning process. We investigated whether the changes in activity level, areas of swimming in the tank, and depth of swimming in the tank were significant as well as if there was an interaction effect between the fear conditioning and our dependent variables. Zebrafish were randomly assigned to three groups: the …

Induced Spawning Of Captive Tripletail Lobotes Surinamensis, Nicholas Adams

Master's Theses

The Tripletail, Lobotes surinamensis, is an emerging candidate species for U.S. marine aquaculture. This work aimed to address two bottlenecks for hatchery production of the species by developing a hormonal induction protocol to obtain fertile spawns from captive brooders and a method for sex identification of candidate brooders.

Single pairs selected among a captive-held broodstock conditioned under a natural photothermal cycle were induced with one of five treatments (n = 5 or 6 replicates per treatment). Control (no hormone) and hCG (1,100 IU.kg^-1 for females, 550 IU.kg^-1 for males) pairs did not spawn. Pairs treated with GnRHa …

An Analysis Of Suspended Microplastics In Sewage Outfalls, Inlets, And Coastal Waters Of Broward County, Florida, Katrina A. Smith

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

The widespread use of plastics has led to a surplus of plastic waste in landfills and the ocean. The degradation of these plastics produces microplastics, which are detrimental to the environment. Microplastics can be introduced into the ocean in several ways, including runoff and sewage outfalls; both pathways can concentrate microplastics and promote adsorption of environmental contaminants to the plastic's surface. South Florida has six sewage outfalls, and nine inlets, whose proximity to the Florida Reef Tract increases the potential exposure of microplastics to sensitive environments, such as the coral reef. A quantitative assessment of microplastics introduced into the ocean …

Toxicological Assessment Of Zinc Oxide And Titanium Dioxide On Staghorn Coral, Acropora Cervicornis, Katherine E. Meurer

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Coral reefs are one of the most diverse and biologically significant ecosystems on the planet. However, anthropogenic impacts have led to a global decline in overall reef health in recent years. To address concerns that organic ultraviolet filters in sunscreen may contribute to reduced coral health, the mineral UV filters, zinc oxide (ZnO) and titanium dioxide (TiO₂), have become more common in sunscreen formulas as they are often considered “reef safe” despite limited information on the toxicological effects of these compounds in corals. This study evaluated the effects of exposure to unmodified forms of zinc oxide or titanium …

Striped Blenny (Chasmodes Bosquianus) Behavior And Shelter Use In A Southeastern Salt Marsh Tidal Creek, Brooklyn Johnson, Juliana Harding

Honors Theses

Temperate estuaries are important habitats for resident species and maturing juvenile transient fishes. The North Inlet estuary, SC resident fish fauna includes the Striped Blenny (Chasmodes bosquianus) and Crested Blenny (Hypleurochilus geminatus). Individual blenny males occupy habitat shelters year-round. During breeding season, blenny males attract mates to nest and protect developing embryos within the nest. Salinity requirements establish blenny spatial distribution in the estuary. Seasonal spawning activity by these temperate blenny species is related to water temperature and seasonal productivity patterns. Blenny nest site occupancy patterns relative to the lunar cycle, water depth, and salinity were …

The Open-Ocean Gulf Of Mexico After Deepwater Horizon: Synthesis Of A Decade Of Research, Tracey Sutton, Rosanna J. Milligan, Kendra Daly, Kevin M. Boswell, April B. Cook, Maëlle Cornic, Tamara Frank, Kaitlin Frasier, Daniel Hahn, Frank Hernandez, John Hildebrand, Chuanmin Hu, Matthew Johnston, Samantha B. Joye, Heather Judkins, Jon A. Moore, Steven A. Murawski, Nina Pruzinsky, John A. Quinlan, Andrew Remsen, Kelly L. Robinson, Isabel C. Romero, Jay R. Rooker, Michael Vecchione, R. J. David Wells

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutant amount, countermeasure scope, and of most relevance to this Research Topic issue, range of ecotypes affected. These ecotypes include coastal/nearshore, continental shelf, deep benthic, and open-ocean domains, the last of which is the subject of this synthesis. The open-ocean ecotype comprises ~90% of the volume of the Gulf of Mexico. The exact percentage of this ecotype contaminated with toxins is unknown due to its three-dimensional nature and dynamics, but estimates suggest that the footprint encompassed most of its eastern half. Further, interactions between the water column …

Length-Based Risk Analysis Of Management Options For The Southern Florida Usa Multispecies Coral Reef Fish Fishery, Jerald Ault, Steven G. Smith, Matthew W. Johnson, Laura Jay W. Grove, James A. Bohnsack, Gerard T. Dinardo, Caroline Mclaughlin, Nelson M. Ehrhardt, Vanessa Mcdonough, Michael P. Seki, Steven Miller, Jiangang Luo, Jeremiah Blondeau, Michael P. Crosby, Glenn Simpson, Mark E. Monaco, Clayton G. Pollock, Michael W. Feeley, Alejandro Acosta

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Exploitation impacts and management options for 15 coral reef fish species central to the commercial and recreational fisheries of the southern Florida USA coral reef ecosystem were evaluated using a length-based risk analysis (LBRA) framework. Population abundance-at-length composition data were obtained from several regional federal-state sampling programs. These and updated life history demographic data were integrated into a length-based numerical cohort model to generate LBRA fishery sustainability metrics from a probabilistic perspective. Three of five groupers, eight of eight snappers, and two of two grunts were below the 40% spawning potential ratio (SPR) stock sustainability minimum; ten of these …

Ecological Risk Assessment For The Marine Aquarium Fish Resource, Kimberley Smith, Amelia Bissell, Carly Bruce

Fisheries Research Reports

In November 2021, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development convened an Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) of the Western Australian fisheries that access the Marine Aquarium Fish Resource. ERAs are conducted by the Department as part of its Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management framework. Outputs of this ERA will inform future versions of the Harvest Strategy for the Resource. Additionally, this ERA is a requirement of the Wildlife Trade Operation approval for the Marine Aquarium Fish Managed Fishery (MAFMF).

Ecological impacts of the MAFMF, which is the only commercial fishery that targets the Resource, and other extractive sectors that access the …

Ballasting System For An Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, Noura Rayes, Bahram Nassersharif, Zach Champney, Kyle Alessandro, Jason Mirandou

Senior Honors Projects

NOURA RAYES (Mechanical Engineering); Ballasting System for an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Sponsor: Bahram Nassersharif (Mechanical Engineering)

Over the last year, our Mechanical Engineering Capstone team, Nautilus, has been working to design a ballasting system for various Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) sponsored by Raytheon Technologies. Common AUV systems are used for a wide range of applications from environmental monitoring, oceanic exploration, to data collection. AUVs also have many technical advantages that make underwater tasks more efficient, cost-effective, and generally safer. Raytheon Technology, specifically, is looking to improve their existing ballasting mechanism for their AUVs to use for military defense. For this …

Feeding Preference Of The Sea Urchin Arbacia Punctulata For Algal Turf Over Kelp In A Degraded Kelp Forest Ecosystem, Kenneth J. Hamel

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Increasingly severe ocean warming and marine heatwave events are driving declines in habitat-forming kelps worldwide. Direct mortality from extreme temperatures, coupled with destabilization of kelp forest communities, commonly trigger ecological community shifts from dominant kelp forests to an algal turf dominated state. Opportunistic algal turf species are more resilient to warming and lack the fundamental structure of kelp forests, and thus reduce ecosystem services and biodiversity. Once in place, algal turf communities contain ecological feedback mechanisms, diminishing kelp recruitment, and potential recovery. The various feedback mechanisms and ecological thresholds that maintain or drive community shifts between kelp forest and algal …