currenttidings2023-3
Current Tidings
Shannon Point Marine Center
Volume 2023, Issue 3
The centerpiece of the Shannon Point Marine Center is the Sulkin Commons, a beautiful meeting space overlooking the Guemes Channel and islands of the San Juans. Named in honor of Dr. Steve Sulkin, the Commons is tribute to the 28 years he spent as SPMC Director, leaving a deep legacy in the programs, facilities, people, and opportunities that continue today.
Despite having retired in 2013, Dr. Sulkin remains interested and invested in the work being done at SPMC. The Sulkin legacy grew again this month when Steve and Shelley (who spent her career as a science educator) donated $25,000 to establish the Sulkin Graduate Research Fund, which will support students pursuing M.S. thesis research at SPMC by providing funds for such things as small equipment purchases, supplies, travel for research activities, and publication of thesis research.
Explaining the purpose of their generous gift, the Sulkins wrote,
"We are pleased to support the research of Western’s marine science graduate students who are using the resources of the University’s Shannon Point Marine Center. We feel that a Master’s degree is essential in providing the training and research experience that makes students well-prepared and competitive both in entering marine science careers directly and for those interested in pursuing a doctorate in the coastal, marine and ocean sciences."
We are grateful for all the Sulkins have already done for SPMC and appreciate the additional support for research, training, and career development of graduate students fortunate enough to work at the marine center. Thank you Shelley and Steve!
Earlier this fall I caught up with Western seniors Alexis Jordan, Ian McBride (both Marine and Coastal Sciences) and Ben Molenhouse (Environmental Sciences) crafting new covers for the seagrass mesocosms - those big tanks located in the fenced yard east of the Shannon Point boatshed. All three enthusiastically shared their experiences working on the multi-year seagrass project with Dr. Sylvia Yang. Sylvia is the Research Coordinator at Padilla Bay Estuarine Research Reserve, as well as Research Assistant Professor at WWU/Shannon Point.
Left to Right: Ian, Ben, and Alexis at Shannon Point. A remarkable community of students has participated in the research as part of the Seagrass Team. Recent WWU alums include Cameron Sokoloski, Avia Breiter, Kal DeLong, Ben Bierle, Jake Kuester, and Mary Valentine. Spring 2023 MACS capstone students also assisted with the project this year
The Seagrass Team is in the second year of an experiment monitoring effects of elevated (5°C) temperatures on a common Salish Sea seagrass (eelgrass Zostera marina); they’re tracking growth, shoot density, and prevalence of wasting disease. Funded mainly by the Department of Natural Resources, this study uses eelgrass transplanted to Shannon Point from a variety of locations in the Salish Sea, including Padilla, Dumas and Sequim Bay as well as Lynch Cove. Elevated seawater temperature affected plants differently depending on season. During summer, warmed plants grew faster and achieved a higher density, but warming of 5°C had deleterious effects during winter and spring, suggesting the timing of a heatwave matters. Avia Breiter presented these findings recently at the Pacific Estuarine Research Society conference in Bellingham. These results led to questions about the effects of warming on reproductive strategies, the focus of the next round of experimentation.
Alexis and Avia working on improvements to the tank system.
Z. marina normally uses a perennial strategy but can also reproduce as an annual, flowering and dying within one growing season. Some eelgrass beds have higher densities of annual plants, and it’s been hypothesized that the annual life history strategy is associated with stressful environmental conditions. Seeds from a variety of bed types are being collected to look at germination rates and timing under both present-day and warmer conditions. Team Seagrass is also collaborating with University of Washington researchers who will sample the plants to understand the molecular basis of flowering in annual and perennial eelgrass. The work has a conservation focus: Which type of Z. marina stock is better suited for restoration projects in the Salish Sea?
Seagrass Team in Padilla Bay collecting perennial flowering shoots for seed harvesting (L to R: Christine Nolan, Ian, Alexis, Ben, UW collaborator Dr. Takato Imaizumi)
When asked about the most unexpected elements of their experience, Ian pointed to the number of unknowns in research - he’s been amazed by what we (even the professors!) don’t know. Ben spoke to the exploratory nature of the work, particularly the amount of ‘figuring out’ (often on one’s own) that needs to be done - “Not like in class!” Alexis appreciated as well that there is something new each day, often something that has not been laid out neatly but needs to be made, fixed, or otherwise problem-solved. These practical skills and novel opportunities are “just what she wanted from MACS and WWU!” She has also appreciated all of the information about possible careers.
Spring 2023 MACS capstone students do monthly eelgrass measurements.
These students lead full and interesting lives. Alexis, who was a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) participant at Shannon Point in 2022, finds a creative outlet in making and editing videos. Ben’s a musician who plays guitar, piano and drums, and also likes to sing. Ian was a high-rise window cleaner in Seattle before deciding on a university education; he hopes to have a real impact on the local landscapes, ecology, and ocean that he loves. If you’re feeling in need of optimism and hope for our complex world, I recommend a chat with these inspiring folks as soon as possible!
Shannon Point scientist Brooke Love (Associate Professor, Environmental Science) has partnered with an artist and childhood friend to create undersea magic at the La Conner Museum of Northwest Art (MONA). The ‘Outside In’ exhibit “Transition, Adaptation and Action in Padilla Bay” immerses museum-goers in a larger-than-life seagrass bed. Interactive flip-up panels (built by WWU Scientific Technical Services craftsman David Fry) entice visitors to learn about coastal creatures through children’s artwork. Quadrats (yes, the kind used for intertidal surveys!) contain suggested actions for climate change mitigation, which visitors can opt into by means of colored stickers. More magic is introduced by Helena Richardson’s textile art, which cleverly knits together bright-green, pool noodle-derived ‘seagrass’ blades and draws us into woven colorscapes of the coastal sea.
Brooke (left) and Helena (center) create a seagrass meadow ; a young museum-goer (right) explores the flip-up panels. Photo credits: Brooke Love, Helena Richardson
‘Outside In’ involves a local organization in each larger MONA exhibit. Brooke and Helena teamed with Rodger Fuller, Annie England and other Padilla Bay Estuarine Research Reserve scientists and educators to create the seagrass meadow within the context of “SURGE: Mapping Transition, Displacement, and Agency in Times of Climate Change”. SURGE features a plethora of works by mostly local artists, including paintings, glass, papercut, and sculpture. There is an exhibit of glass diatoms! A room filled with bird paintings, accompanied by bird song, offers predictions of temperature change effects on each species. A gorgeous papercut and fabric piece, ‘Mudflat Plunder’, represents the toll taken by (recently expanded) snow geese flocks on the local salt marsh environment.
Brooke reports that the most fun part of the process (besides working with a lifelong friend!) was to figure out how to convey the underwater lushness of a seagrass bed to us non-aquatic creatures. Brooke, Helena, and their Padilla Bay colleagues certainly succeeded in that goal! The exhibit is open through January 21, 2024; a Shannon Point field trip opportunity, perhaps?
Kaitlin’s marine science experience began in summer 2021 when she joined Shannon Point’s Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program from Cal State Bakersfield. Working creatively yet remotely (COVID!) with Drs. Brian Bingham and Sylvia Yang, Kaitlin learned about collecting sediment cores in Padilla Bay and used microscopy in California to identify sediment-dwelling invertebrates. She was able to parlay this experience into a successful National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, a prestigious award providing 3 years of funding toward a graduate degree. Now under the advisement of Brian Bingham (Environmental Science), Kaitlin is doing experimental work to discover the effects of invasive green crabs (Carcinus maenas) on benthic communities in eelgrass beds.
Green crabs, which are native to northern Europe, arrived on the U.S. west coast likely in ballast water. They were first found in Padilla Bay in 2016. While still in the early stages of invasion there, the crabs are “one of the most invasive species in the marine environment.”1 They outcompete native crabs and destroy eelgrass habitat. A Washington State Emergency Order in 2022 allocated funds to monitor and eliminate (as possible) green crabs, seen as a direct threat to tribal and commercial shellfish harvests as well as seagrass habitat.
Kaitlin’s research required isolation of these invasive species, bringing into play Shannon Point’s talent for innovation. The old pumphouse behind the Sundquist Building was repurposed into a quarantine facility, recently permitted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Recirculating seawater (with temperature control), bleach treatment of wastewater, and disposal to the city sewer now allow work with species that cannot safely occupy our flow-through seatables or outdoor mesocosms.
As if this weren’t hard enough, Kaitlin and her team (Nate, Derek, Sylvia, Brian) then had to collect sediment and associated invertebrate communities from Padilla Bay. Heavy, wet slabs were sledded from far out in the bay to the base of the spiral staircase, lugged to the top, and transported to their new home: Plexiglas tanks in the new quarantine ‘shed’. After a few shipping mishaps, Kaitlin’s young adult green crabs arrived from Willapa Bay and were introduced to the tanks (control tanks lacked crabs). Cameras were useless because the crabs stir up the sediment, so inference from known crab behavior helped establish the experiment duration. Ultimately Kaitlin collected three cores from each tank, one to assess sediment properties and two to characterize the infaunal community. Now she’s hard at work with the microscope identifying and counting the invertebrates from each core. She plans to involve Marine and Coastal Sciences undergraduates in some of her sample analysis, adding teaching and mentoring to her already considerable skill set.
What has been most unexpected for Kaitlin so far? How much she loves macroinvertebrates, especially polychaetes! (And there are so many of these…) Kaitlin notes that, while she had no real history with ‘dirt or worms’ while growing up, examining the samples is like a treasure hunt where you never know what you are going to see.
When not working hard on green crabs and benthic inverts, Kaitlin likes to hike with her dog Cleo, hang out with friends, and take trips home when possible to see family in California. She also likes cooking and baking. We wish Kaitlin all the best on her M.S. research and her future plans to work in service of marine conservation.
1https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/invasive/carcinus-maenas
R.V. Magister
R.V. Magister, one of Shannon Point’s largest vessels, is getting new outboard motors after months of dealing with mechanical issues.
According to vessel captain Nate Schwarck, “The new motors are 250HP Seapro Commercial Outboards. Our original motors were 200HP Mercury Verado’s. We’ve gone up in HP [horsepower] with the expectation that we can cruise at lower RPM’s and save fuel.” SPMC was plagued by the same supply-chain and delivery issues that have slowed commerce worldwide since the pandemic - it took almost 1.5 years to get the new Seapros. Once some additional mechanical issues are repaired, Magister should be up and running for research and education!
Student Lab
Work (and noise) in progress; it will look better when it’s done, we promise!
Remodeling of the second-floor teaching space/student laboratory at Shannon Point is in full swing this fall.Drilling through brick walls and coring of concrete has led to numerous ‘excessive noise’ warnings and low-level seismic testing of the Sundquist Lab (just kidding…), but we know the disruptions will be worth the utility and appeal of a fully modernized teaching space for marine science. The finished laboratory/classroom will be up to main campus standards, including a teaching station with podium and two projectors. Large screens that descend from the ceiling will make visual presentations easier to share. The former room divider has been removed, as has the peninsula that contained sinks and counters, so the space available for student activity will feel larger. New ADA-compliant mobile lab tables (8 of them!) will include provisions for work while sitting, standing or using a wheelchair. Replacement of floors, ceiling and lighting will bring the space into the 21st century, along with an HVAC system (goodbye to the old window-mounted fans!). Through all of this change, the original SPMC lab ‘flavor’ will be retained: the exposed brick will remain, floor-to-ceiling glass cabinets on the west wall will house the microscope collection, and there will be a ‘library’ for identification guides and other reference works.
A class in the student lab learns about fish back in the day.
Dr. Jay Dimond, with colleagues Melissa Miner and Pete Raimondi at UC Santa Cruz, has been funded by Washington Sea Grant to assess intertidal community vulnerability to sea level rise in Washington. The project is titled "Characterizing Rocky Intertidal Communities to Assess Resilience and Inform Management and Conservation.” Best of all, the grant will fund four Marine and Coastal Sciences senior capstone projects to survey rocky intertidal communities with the UCSC crew and assess population connectivity of intertidal species with Jay.
Members of the Larval Lab (led by Dr. Shawn Arellano) attended the 7th International Symposium on Chemosynthesis-Based Ecosystems this August in Sao Paolo, Brazil. The group had quite a presence with two talks and four posters.
Members of the Strom group completed their last oceanographic cruise of this field year in September aboard the U.S. Fish and Wildlife vessel Tiglax. The samples and data were hard-won, between equipment breakdowns and storm systems moving through the Gulf of Alaska. Hiding from a storm in Prince William Sound did allow some of the group to get a close look at a tidewater glacier!
The Larval Lab goes south! (L to R: NSF GEO-REPS (post bacc) scholar Dexter Davis, Shawn Arellano, Research Associate Ahna Van Gaest, postdoc Dr. Tanika Ladd, MS student Michelle McCartha)
Graduate students Jaime Blais (Biology/SPMC) and Kris Lerdal (a terrestrial biologist getting their first taste of salty research!) on board the R.V. Tiglax during one of the calmest weather days of the cruise.
Newsletter content prepared by Suzanne L. Strom (stroms@wwu.edu) unless otherwise specified.