The sunflower star, Pycnopodia heliantoides.

I thought these big multi-armed beasts were pretty neat, but, then I watched one engulf a softball-sized red urchin (and that’s softball before the big spiky spines), and a day or so later, spit out all of the hard parts. Not sated, it then ate all of the purple urchin in the tank. Basically, it was a remorseless eating machine.

Couple this with a few old-marine-biologist’s tales of giant man-sized Pycnos and tales of their wandering off into the deep, with no ability to track them, and you can see why it took me a bit to conquer my fear of them for my usual profile picture.

Now, shows me that, um, I might have been right.

Sure, we know that they can hoover up reefs of tiny sea cucumbers, or affect smaller purple urchin barrens, but Burt et al. show that Pycnos have an impact that is even stronger than otters! Even cooler, they discovered this due to two simultaneous natural experiments – otters moving back into a historic part of their range (which they’d been hunted out of, so, natural?) combined with sea star wasting disease wiping out Pycnos a few years after. I’ll let their video explain even better.

For me, this work was deeply personal. My own early work tried to think about how a post-otter California was able to avoid the devestating consequences of their loss seen in the Aleutians. I always viewed Pycnos and the other predators as mere redundant species, with many of those predators being necessary to equal the raw force of otters. Burt et al. are really breaking the paradigm here, showing that while otters are absolutely key, that diversity still matters. Because the real urchin horf-master of the deep is Pycnopodia. All hail!

Also, as an added reward from the dive team, everybody dance now!

References

Burt, J.M., Tinker, M.T., Okamoto, D.K., Demes, K.W., Holmes, K., Salomon, A.K., 2018. Sudden collapse of a mesopredator reveals its complementary role in mediating rocky reef regime shifts. P Roy Soc Lond B Bio. 285, 20180553. doi:10.1098/rspb.2018.0553

Byrnes, J., Stachowicz, J.J., Hultgren, K.M., Randall Hughes, A., Olyarnik, S.V., Thornber, C.S., 2006. Predator diversity strengthens trophic cascades in kelp forests by modifying herbivore behaviour. Ecol. Lett. 9, 61–71. doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2005.00842.x (aw, my first dissertation chapter! wudda!)

The post Sunflower Stars: Rulers of the Reef first appeared on Deep Sea News.

OK, folks, time for some more KEEEELP FROOOOM SPAAAAAACE!!! And an opportunity for you to do some science of your very own!

As you know, I’m super into kelp. Just a wee bit. And one of my great passions is trying to understand how kelp around the planet has changed over time. With things like climate change, fishing-related urchin outbreaks, and the strangeness of sea cucumbers (long story), there are a lot of things that can impact this badass brown group of algae (Laiminariales!!!). To learn what’s going on, divers can only do so much. I mean, how much kelp can you count on one tank of air? And how many times can you go back to the same place over and over again. Ever few weeks. For decades. Yeah, it’s a problem.

But Giant Kelp and Citizen Science is the answer.

For the past three years, I’ve helped to steer an awesome citizen science project called Floating Forests. It’s part of a collaboration between some kickass scientists like Kyle Cavanaugh, Alison Haupt, Tom Bell, and others along with Zooniverse, an amazing online citizen science organization. Way back, they built us an amazing citizen science platform that lets citizen scientists take a gander at a photo sliced up from the Landsat series of satellites, and ask people to circle any kelp they saw.

The project thus far has been a rousing success, with almost 700K images classified Given that we show each image to 15 people if any of the first 4 note kelp, this means almost 3 million classifications!

But now it’s time for a new dawn. Zooniverse has grown and reformed it’s platform into the Voltron of Citizen Science – a modular platform anyone can use – and so we’ve moved our project on over. More than that, we’ve taken all of the collective feedback of our users and completely redesigned how we process images.

We’re starting off asking y’all to take a gander at the lush forests of the Falkland Islands, somewhere that scant little has been done. We’re also launching mini-challenges along the way, such as asking folk to tag images that are #sokelpy with the month they were photographed so we can build a qualitative understanding of kelp seasonality in these remote islands. We’ve also begun to release data for those who want to get really into it and play around with it – and talk about what you see in the forums!

So, deeplings, if you want to become an armchair kelp forest scientist, the time is now!

(And n.b. I might post here about this more in the future – but also feel free to see our blog)

The post Kelp, Spacecraft, and You first appeared on Deep Sea News.

With lyrics like

Cries of trout in your sleep
That you lure there with krill
There’s a taste in your mouth
of shrimp cocktail swilled

I know you will enjoy!

h/t Laura Brueckner

The post Koi Division first appeared on Deep Sea News.

This summer, I was lucky to catch a number of tweets by Genoa Sullaway (@genoa_sully), a student in Matt Edwards lab, on a research trip up in the Aleutian Islands. The images she posted were arresting – particularly for a kelper like me, so I asked her if she could throw some together in a picture post of Aleutian kelp forests. Below is what she sent me, and it’s a voyage I hope you’re as excited about as I am! Enjoy! -JEKB

It all started with the sea otters, beginning in the 1980’s, sea otters throughout the Aleutian Islands began to disappear. It is hypothesized that orcas (aka killer whales) depleted their populations because they were hungry; international whaling in the North Pacific had taken away a lot of the food they normally eat (Estes et al. 1998). When the otters started to decrease, the populations of their favorite food, sea urchins, began to explode. This shift in the food chain, what ecologists know as a trophic cascade, resulted in large scale changes to the underwater landscape of the Aleutians. Sea urchin numbers became so great that they began to essentially ‘lawn mow’ the surrounding kelp forests and associated algae, leaving behind urchin barren grounds (areas devoid of most seaweeds) that contain extremely dense populations of sea urchins (hundreds per square meter). Over the course of five to ten years, sea urchins consumed thousands of kilometers of kelp forests across the archipelago. The goal of our research is to understand how this immense loss of kelp across the archipelago affects the species and communities that depend on kelp to live. This work is funded by the National Science Foundation and is a collaborative effort between scientists at San Diego State University, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Kunsan University, South Korea.

Over the course of two research cruises, we sampled 14 representative islands across the chain (seven in 2016, seven in 2017). This year we started in Adak Island, and headed west to Attu to sample the Western Islands. Last year, we started on Adak and set course for Dutch Harbor to focus on sampling the Islands in the East half of the chain.

How ’bout that ride in? Volcanic Mt. Moffett peaks through the clouds as our plane lands in 40mph winds on Adak Island. This is where we met up with the R/V Oceanus (R/V = Research Vessel), to begin the research cruise. Photo: Genoa Sullaway, San Diego State University

Chuginadak, Say that five times fast! Our floating home, the R/V Oceanus is 175ft long and holds 11 scientists and 12 crew members. Here, she is anchored in the Bay of Four Mountains (i.e., we were surrounded by FOUR glorious volcanoes) at Chuginadak Island in front of a very active volcano. Photo: Genoa Sullaway, San Diego State University

An Aleutian Kelp Forest in all its glory. Dragon kelp, Eularia fistulosa, is the dominant canopy forming species across the Aleutian archipelago. These algae are considered ‘ecosystem engineers,’ because they provide habitat and structure that supports a diverse array of marine life. Dragon kelp, along with associated algae, oxygenate the water via photosynthesis, and provide the base of the food chain for hundreds of species ranging from mammals such as sea otters and stellar sea lions, to invertebrates such as sea stars and sponges. Fun Fact: The clumps of blades at the base of each kelp are reproductive kelp blades, or sporophylls, and when they move back and forth in the ocean currents they knock encroaching urchins off the rocks, acting as a built-in urchin defense! Photo: Genoa Sullaway, San Diego State University

Urchin barrens look strikingly different from the darker dense kelp forests. The pink ‘encrusting’ algae that the urchins are on coats the rocks and provides some habitat for small invertebrates, but the habitat is mostly dominated by sea urchins, often there will be hundreds of sea urchins within one square meter! Photo: Sarah Traiger, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Does nearshore biodiversity differ between kelp forests and urchin barrens? To answer this question, divers surveyed the organisms living in urchin barrens and kelp forests. Surveys are done by collecting all organisms within a quadrat (our fancy PVC pipe squares used to standardize sampling area) and bringing them back to the R/V Oceanus so they can be counted and weighted. After a full day of diving we would often be up until the wee hours of the morning sorting and weighing! Photo: Sarah Traiger, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Does nearshore primary production (how much oxygen is produced by a habitat) differ between kelp forests and urchin barrens? To answer this question, we used underwater tents to estimate how much oxygen is being produced in these different underwater habitats. Here, a tent is deployed in a ‘transition zone’, a habitat where urchins have begun to mow down kelp, especially the dense understory kelp, but some dragon kelp remains, thus it is not quite an urchin barren. These tents are left for 24 hours underwater. Inside a tent, sensors recording oxygen, temperature, and light record data that will help us estimate and compare photosynthesis among habitats! Photo: Scott Gabara, San Diego State University

How does offshore biodiversity differ across the Aleutian archipelago? Do nearshore kelp forests support life in the deeper ocean? To answer this, we used trawl net surveys to sample the communities at around 90m offshore of the islands we visited. Rocks are a trawl nets worst enemy, unfortunately on our cruise we managed to bend three trawl bars and accidentally hauled up a 400lb lava rock…Oops! Nevertheless, we got the data. Photo: left-Tristin Mchugh, San Diego State University, right- Melissa Goode, Alaska SeaGrant.

San Diego State Dive team prepares for a day out on the Bering Sea! Boats are craned over the side of the R/V Oceanus to get them in the water and then loaded up with divers and dive gear! Photo: Ju-Hyoung Kim, Kunsan University

A glowing kelp forest on Kiska Island! Photo: Melissa Goode, Alaska SeaGrant.

After three weeks of clouds, the sun decided to show off and highlight the unique geology of Yunaska Island! Photo: Genoa Sullaway, San Diego State University

Kiska Island is reminiscent of human activity and war; adjacent to our boat is a pier that was constructed during WWII, but has since been abandoned, shipwrecks and a Japanese submarine have sunk into the beaches. Our dive sites were littered with ammunition shells. Here the Battle of the Aleutians was fought in 1943 and unexploded landmines are still buried among the island’s rolling green hills. We got a few hours to explore the beaches and looked for washed up treasure, and by treasure, I mean buoys and shells. Photo: Scott Gabara, San Diego State University

The topside weather was often cloudy and grey, but when the winds are not blowing, the calm seas bring out the bright colors of the subtidal world. Here, two anemones that appear to be fused together show off their bright colors! Photo: Melissa Goode, Alaska SeaGrant.

A mesmerizing jellyfish ripples through the water column. Video: Melissa Goode, Alaska SeaGrant.

A black rockfish, unfazed by the loud, bubbling object swimming towards it (a SCUBA diver, trying to get the perfect shot) lazily swims through an urchin barren. Photo: Melissa Goode, Alaska SeaGrant.

References:
Estes, J. A., Tinker, M. T., Williams, T. M., & Doak, D. F. (1998). Killer whale predation on sea otters linking oceanic and nearshore ecosystems. Science, 282(5388), 473-476.

The post Dragons, Sea Urchins, and Sea Otters? Oh my! first appeared on Deep Sea News.

The post Party Underwater like it’s 1956! first appeared on Deep Sea News.

(And let’s hope giant squid, isopods or, even kelp are next!)

COI Disclaimer: I went to college with one of the kick-butt ladies who founded Princess Awesome, which makes me even more of a fan of what they’re trying to do. I might also shamelessly send her pictures of my daughter in their outfits. Just sayin’.

The post Sharks for the Wee Lady Deeplings first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Pam DiBona is an environmental scientist who has worked in the nonprofit, for-profit, and public sectors on marine issues.

I am Sea Grant

Well… I’m not, really – I’ve never been an official employee or fellow or intern – but I think of Sea Grant as a best friend.

Best friends help when you’re trying to figure out how to share the Ocean Literacy Principles, or develop a logic model to evaluate an educational program (thanks, CT Sea Grant!); or understand the intricacies of maritime law (thanks, RI Sea Grant!), or team up on a homeowners’ guide about coastal hazards (thanks, Woods Hole Sea Grant!); or find someone to explain the connection between eelgrass and Blue Carbon to a group of strangers over a pint (thanks, MIT Sea Grant!); or inspire hundreds of volunteers to get muddy (thanks, NH Sea Grant!); or need the latest word on shellfish aquaculture in the Northeast (thanks, Maine Sea Grant!).

In other words, Sea Grant is always there, ready to inspire, educate, investigate, and just plain get things done on the coast. Let’s keep it that way.

The post Pam DiBona: #IAmSeaGrant first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Josh Good is a concerned citizen who has more than a fair bit of knowledge about Sea Grant programs. He recently shared with me a letter he sent to his senators and representatives regarding the prospect of eliminating Sea Grant.

I am writing today in reference to the proposed cuts to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), specifically regarding the National Sea Grant Program.

I am a 5th grade teacher and my wife is an Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program Agent here in remote port community of Unalaska/Dutch Harbor.

You may know that Unalaska/Dutch Harbor is indisputably one of the most prolific fishing ports in the United States, and even the world. Being consistently ranked in the top three fishing ports nationally in terms of fishing related income, being among the top 30 ports worldwide when considering volume of fish, and supporting a community of nearly 5,000 residents (not to mention the thousands of fishers who work through the port), Unalaska/Dutch Harbor is completely dependent upon the health of the fisheries based in the surrounding waters. The services of NOAA, including accurate and timely weather forecasts, scientific monitoring and surveys, and fisheries research and regulation, all among many other things, help to provide safety, profitability, and sustainability within the industry upon which our community and many others like it depend.

The mission of Sea Grant focuses on the health of the ocean and the sustainability of ocean based practice, and that mission impacts everyone in our community along with countless other communities across the country and world- coastal or not. Sea Grant programs play a huge part in everything from my 5th grade classroom’s (super awesome) science curriculum; to support of the science, management, and even international and domestic sales of the fish and fisheries that our community entirely relies upon; to the monitoring of endangered, protected, and/or commercially and subsistence harvested species across our state and country.

Sea Grant as an organization, the research and programs they organize, and the agents they employ, each play an integral part in the connections between science, industry, and members of the public. Without these connections that are made and fostered by Sea Grant programs, each stakeholder in marine related industries would be more isolated, less efficient, and far less profitable. Putting profitability into perspective, consider the economic value of the fisheries in Alaska alone, all of which are somewhat to wholly dependent upon services provided by NOAA and Alaska Sea Grant, a value that is far reaching and impossible to ignore. The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute reports that the fishing industry in Alaska supports nearly 60,000 workers annually, and well over 110,000 full time equivalent jobs throughout the United States. The industry is responsible for over $5.8 billion in annual labor income, and more than $14.6 billion in nationwide economic output.

With that small amount of information, please consider the following:
– If employment or job creation and sustainability are a concern, do not allow NOAA and Sea Grant Funding to be cut.
– If Economic output and economic value are a concern, do not allow NOAA and Sea Grant Funding to be cut.
– If the people of the community of Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, along with every other coastal, Great Lake, and watershed based community in the United States is of concern to you, do not allow NOAA and Sea Grant Funding to be cut.

The post Josh Good: #IAmSeaGrant first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Ben Wetherill is a recent UMB grad (go Beacons!) who has been developing coastal technologies for a variety of marine industries around Boston.

I recently graduated from UMass Boston with a Masters Degree in Marine Science and Technology. My graduate research was mostly funded by MIT SeaGrant. I studied several different aspects of marine monitoring technology. A co-researcher from Boston University and I developed a simple low-cost camera technology for monitoring remote coastal conditions. We tested it in Boston Harbor, and since then I have installed the same design under contract for researchers at several locations around Massachusetts. I also worked on improving technology for modeling bacterial water quality in beaches and rivers. I developed models based on real-time weather and water conditions, and one of my sensor installations was purchased by the Charles River Watershed Association. I am currently working under contract to study water quality and sensor data in Lynn and Swampscott. As a result of the funding I received from MIT SeaGrant, I was able to start a consulting company providing water sensor and monitoring services (www.coastalsensors.com). I have even done one job with MIT SeaGrant as a client. And, support from MIT SeaGrant also gave me the opportunity to teach students about water quality monitoring at the Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research.

I am SeaGrant.

The post Ben Wetherill: #IAmSeaGrant first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Christy Bowles is faculty at Cal State Sacramento and American River College.

As I heard that the president’s budget would eliminate the Sea Grant program, I reflected on how Sea Grant started my career and has allowed me to give back to society.

I was a California Sea Grant State fellow. Funded by Sea Grant and the state of California, I spent a year learning how to use my science background to benefit natural habitats, wildlife, and coastal communities. Because #IamSeaGrant, I was a critical part of teams to address climate change adaptation and management of our precious coast. The money I earned went back into my local community, including my child’s preschool.

Four years later, my time as a Sea Grant Fellow shapes my daily life. I am now faculty at a community college and a state university, where I teach science and applied science classes. I just returned from a morning class, planting vegetation to stabilize a creek bank. Because of Sea Grant, my students are learning about critical environmental problems inside and outside of the classroom. Because of Sea Grant, my students are active in studying and restoring natural areas. Because #IamSeaGrant, I can better equip my students, including many first generation college students, with the knowledge and skills they need to become our future scientists and policy-makers.

The post Christy Bowles: #IAmSeaGrant first appeared on Deep Sea News.