Research and Impacts

Habitat conservation can help buy time for heat-sensitive species in the face of climate change – but it might also leave them in a trap by preventing them from adapting in time, according to a new study from the UC Davis Bodega Marine Laboratory recently published in the journal Ecology.

Read the article on ucdavis.edu

In a world where charismatic megafauna often capture the majority share of attention, microscopic marine larvae can sometimes end up overlooked. However, Dr.

“This is actually better than sustainable, because the more you fish it, the better off the kelp forest will be. This is a restorative seafood product.” -Laura Rogers-Bennett, a research associate at the University of California, Davis and a scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife

If you’ve ever had the chance to explore a rocky intertidal ecosystem, you may have noticed quickly that all of the “cool,” colorful critters tend to reside in the deeper pool areas that are underwater, even when the surrounding rocks are exposed to the air. When many people go “tidepooling,” they are usually interested in exploring these pools because there typically resides a greater diversity of species. But have you ever wondered why it is that more species live in those pools than on the bare rocks? Or why some species can survive on the bare rocks while others seemingly cannot?

Stepping out onto the rocky shore of Bodega Bay, you would quickly notice that the intertidal zone is teeming with life. From mussels and barnacles to crabs and anemones, hundreds of species occupy these rocky areas - experts Jackie Sones and Dr. Eric Sanford estimate that there are about 250 different species that make their homes in this rocky intertidal zone in Bodega Bay!

New research documenting the population crash of the iconic sunflower sea star (Pycnopodia helianthoides), and complete absence of population recovery since the 2013 outbreak of the marine wildlife epidemic sea star wasting disease, was published today in the prestigious journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The study calls for new strategies for protecting species impacted by increasingly frequent marine epidemics associated with changing ocean conditions.

Marine ecosystems are vulnerable to climate driven events such as marine heatwaves yet we have a poor understanding of whether they will collapse or recover. Kelp forests are known to be susceptible, and there has been a rise in sea urchin barrens around the world. When temperatures increase so do physiological demands while food resources decline, tightening metabolic constraints. In this case study, we examine red abalone (Haliotis rufescens) looking at sublethal impacts and their prospects for recovery within kelp forests that have shifted to sea urchin barrens.

The flashlight illuminates tens of thousands of swirling, floating specks, each no bigger than a breadcrumb. Raising my voice to be heard over the low roar of machinery in the wet lab, I ask Dr.

Researchers at UC Davis’ Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute (CMSI), in collaboration with UC Santa Cruz and Humboldt State University, recently received a joint $1.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation to understand how ecological restoration might incorporate future climate change impacts.

Taking a holistic, ecosystem-based approach to managing small prey species known as forage fish could yield several economic and ecological benefits, a new study has found. The research, which focused on forage fisheries off the coast of California, modeled a management strategy for two forage fish species—anchovy and sardine—while also considering populations of halibut and brown pelicans, both of which feed upon forage fish.