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Articles 1 - 11 of 11
Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Hydrodynamics In A Shallow Seasonally Low-Inflow Estuary Following Eelgrass Collapse, Ryan K. Walter, Edwin J. Rainville, Jennifer K. O'Leary
Hydrodynamics In A Shallow Seasonally Low-Inflow Estuary Following Eelgrass Collapse, Ryan K. Walter, Edwin J. Rainville, Jennifer K. O'Leary
Physics
Hydrodynamics play a critical role in mediating biological and ecological processes and can have major impacts on the distribution of habitat-forming species. Low-inflow estuaries are widespread in arid regions and during the dry season in Mediterranean climates. There is a growing need to evaluate dynamics and exchange processes in these systems and the resultant ecological linkages. We investigate the role that hydrodynamics play in shaping environmental gradients in a short and seasonally low-inflow estuary located along the central California coast. Since 2007, eelgrass meadows in Morro Bay have declined by more than 90%, representing the collapse of the major …
Carbon Sequestration In A Pacific Northwest Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) Meadow, Katrina L. Poppe, John M. Rybczyk
Carbon Sequestration In A Pacific Northwest Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) Meadow, Katrina L. Poppe, John M. Rybczyk
Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications
Coastal wetlands are known to be efficient carbon sinks due to high rates of primary productivity, carbon burial by mineral sediments, and low rates of sediment organic matter decomposition. Of the three coastal wetland types: tidal marshes, tidal forests, and seagrass meadows, carbon burial by seagrasses is relatively under-studied, and reported rates range widely from 45 to 190 g C m-2 yr-1. Additionally, most of these seagrass rates are biased toward tropical and subtropical species, particularly Posidonia oceanica, with few focused on Zostera marina, the most widespread species in the northern hemisphere. We measured sediment …
Spatial And Temporal Trends In Diet For Pinfish (Lagodon Rhomboides) From Turtle Grass (Thalassia Testudinum) Beds With Contrasting Environmental Regimes In The Lower Laguna Madre, Texas, Maximiliano Barbosa
Spatial And Temporal Trends In Diet For Pinfish (Lagodon Rhomboides) From Turtle Grass (Thalassia Testudinum) Beds With Contrasting Environmental Regimes In The Lower Laguna Madre, Texas, Maximiliano Barbosa
Theses and Dissertations
Seagrass meadows in far South Texas are dominated by turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum), and juvenile pinfish (Lagodon rhomboides) are abundant grazers of seagrass epifauna. As they grow, pinfish exhibit an ontogenetic dietary shift and begin consuming increasing amounts of plant material. In this study, contrasting environmental regimes in two seagrass meadows were examined to identify how they might affect pinfish diets, diet shifts, and growth across the growing season. The eastern site was sheltered from prevailing southeasterly winds by a barrier island, while the western site was shallower and subjected to higher wind energy and turbidity. …
Prioritizing Seagrass Meadows For Biodiversity Conservation Based On Landscape Connectivity, John Cristiani, Mary O'Connor
Prioritizing Seagrass Meadows For Biodiversity Conservation Based On Landscape Connectivity, John Cristiani, Mary O'Connor
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
The spatial configuration of habitat and biological dispersal traits affect how organisms move across heterogenous landscapes, connecting populations and maintaining biodiversity. Quantifying this connectivity is critical to understanding and managing marine biodiversity. Despite its importance, for most regions, we lack estimates of connectivity and consideration of how habitat loss or restoration scenarios change connectivity and thereby affect diversity. We simulated dispersal and connectivity in several habitat change scenarios for seagrass habitats in the Salish Sea of British Columbia and Washington. We used a spatially explicit biophysical model to track passive larval dispersal in oceanographic currents for select life history traits. …
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) …
Examining Sources Of Sediment Carbon Stored In Seagrass Habitats Across The Skagit Delta And Padilla Bay, Erin Murray
Examining Sources Of Sediment Carbon Stored In Seagrass Habitats Across The Skagit Delta And Padilla Bay, Erin Murray
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
The potential for seagrass (Zostera marina) habitats to store carbon is a topic of interest to resource managers and ecosystem scientists as they strive to develop and evaluate climate change mitigation strategies. I investigated the sources of carbon and nitrogen stored in Zostera marina habitats within the Salish Sea. I compared two sites, the Skagit River delta (delta) and Padilla Bay (embayment), in order to compare carbon storage and the sources of stored carbon between these two shoreline types. Within each site, I collected sediment cores in Z. marina meadows and on unvegetated mudflat. I measured changes in carbon density …
North To South: Ecosystem Features Determine Seagrass Community Response To Sea Otter Foraging, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Erin U. Rechsteiner, Brent Hughes, M. Tim Tinker, Zachary L. Monteith, Angeleen M. Olson, Mathew Morgan Henderson, Jane C. Watson
North To South: Ecosystem Features Determine Seagrass Community Response To Sea Otter Foraging, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Erin U. Rechsteiner, Brent Hughes, M. Tim Tinker, Zachary L. Monteith, Angeleen M. Olson, Mathew Morgan Henderson, Jane C. Watson
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
We compared sea otter recovery in California (CA) and British Columbia (BC) to determine how key ecosystem properties shape top-down effects in seagrass communities. Potential ecosystem drivers of sea otter foraging in CA and BC seagrass beds that we examined include the role of coastline complexity and environmental stress on sea otter effects. In BC, we found greater species richness across seagrass trophic assemblages. Furthermore, Cancer spp. crabs, an important link in the seagrass trophic cascade observed in CA, was less common. Additionally, the more recent reintroduction of sea otters, more complex coastline, and reduced environmental stress in BC seagrass …
Does Eelgrass Act As An Ocean Acidification Refuge For Shellfish In The Salish Sea?, Bonnie Becker, Michelle Mccartha, Micah Horwith
Does Eelgrass Act As An Ocean Acidification Refuge For Shellfish In The Salish Sea?, Bonnie Becker, Michelle Mccartha, Micah Horwith
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Marine waters worldwide are becoming more acidic due to increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Changes in pH are heterogeneous in space and time and can be affected by physical and biological processes, including photosynthesis and respiration of plants and animals. Previous studies have shown that seagrass beds, which contain a large amount of plant biomass, can alter the carbonate chemistry in the immediate area, with higher pH during the day and lower pH at night. We explored the effects of this pattern on bivalve shellfish at four sites in Puget Sound and Willapa Bay. Pumped water samples were taken at …
Latitudinal Variation In Seagrass Wasting Disease From Puget Sound To Alaska, Olivia Graham, Corinne Klohmann, Emily Adamcyzk, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Angeleen Olson, Nick Tolimieri, Tiff Stephens, Colleen Amy Burge, Drew Harvell
Latitudinal Variation In Seagrass Wasting Disease From Puget Sound To Alaska, Olivia Graham, Corinne Klohmann, Emily Adamcyzk, Margot Hessing-Lewis, Angeleen Olson, Nick Tolimieri, Tiff Stephens, Colleen Amy Burge, Drew Harvell
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference
Widely regarded as critical marine habitat, seagrass provides ecologically and economically valuable services in coastal areas worldwide. Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is one of five seagrass species native to the Pacific Northwest and is threatened by outbreaks of the marine protist Labyrinthula zosterae, the causative agent of seagrass wasting disease. Infection from L. zosterae causes necrotic lesions, limiting growth and compromising the health of eelgrass beds. To determine levels of wasting disease in subtidal eelgrass beds across a broad latitudinal gradient, we measured and compared disease prevalence and severity in 5 subtidal eelgrass beds in Puget Sound, 5 in the San …
Expected Limits On The Ocean Acidification Buffering Potential Of A Temperate Seagrass Meadow, David A. Koweek, R. C. Zimmerman, Kathryn M. Hewett, Brian Gaylord, Sarah N. Giddings, Kerry J. Nickols, Jennifer L. Ruesink, John J. Stachowicz, Yuichiro Takeshita, Ken Caldeira
Expected Limits On The Ocean Acidification Buffering Potential Of A Temperate Seagrass Meadow, David A. Koweek, R. C. Zimmerman, Kathryn M. Hewett, Brian Gaylord, Sarah N. Giddings, Kerry J. Nickols, Jennifer L. Ruesink, John J. Stachowicz, Yuichiro Takeshita, Ken Caldeira
OES Faculty Publications
Ocean acidification threatens many marine organisms, especially marine calcifiers. The only global‐scale solution to ocean acidification remains rapid reduction in CO2 emissions. Nevertheless, interest in localized mitigation strategies has grown rapidly because of the recognized threat ocean acidification imposes on natural communities, including ones important to humans. Protection of seagrass meadows has been considered as a possible approach for localized mitigation of ocean acidification due to their large standing stocks of organic carbon and high productivity. Yet much work remains to constrain the magnitudes and timescales of potential buffering effects from seagrasses. We developed a biogeochemical box model to …
A Search For Blue Carbon In Central Salish Sea Eelgrass Meadows, Mira D. (Mira Diana) Lutz
A Search For Blue Carbon In Central Salish Sea Eelgrass Meadows, Mira D. (Mira Diana) Lutz
WWU Graduate School Collection
This study quantified eelgrass (Zostera marina) sediment organic carbon and carbon sequestration rates in Skagit County,Wa, in sites likely to support organic content and sediment accretion, the key components for carbon sequestration. These data may inform eelgrass-specific projects aimed at mitigating climate change through the protection and restoration of “blue carbon” ecosystems. Blue carbon is the carbon stored or emitted by coastal wetlands, which have the capacity to sequester more organic carbon (OC) than equivalent areas of mature forest. This study follows recent research from a single site within Padilla Bay, Wa. (Padilla transect), reporting OC stock approximately three times …