LUMCON’s Research in the Gulf of Alaska Contributes to
Understanding of the Global Ocean Ecosystem
Scientists aim to determine the role and importance of copepods in Alaskan waters
This past summer, LUMCON
scientists completed their last of
five research cruises in the Gulf of
Alaska. What a refreshing break
from south Louisiana’s summertime heat! Dr. Michael Dagg and
his team of scientists conducted
these cruises to examine the feeding behavior of copepods and how
it relates to the coastal Gulf of
Alaska ecosystem, particularly in
regards to its pink salmon population. The five-year project, funded
by the National Science Foundation, is just one component of
Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics
(GLOBEC), an international
program studying the world’s ocean
ecosystem and how it may be affected by global change. Many of GLOBEC’s research projects are focused
on zooplankton (animal plankton)
and how shifts in their populations
may alter oceanic food webs.
of copepods (Neocalanus spp.) as
predators and prey in the Gulf of
Alaska. Copepods are related to
shrimp, crabs and crawfish, and
are a major component of the
zooplankton; in fact, they comprise
the highest percentage of zooplankton biomass in most regions of the
ocean. They are eaten by a wide
variety of animals including fish,
jellyfish, baleen whales and even
some birds! Pink salmon, a fish of
great commercial importance, may
depend on copepods as a main
food source during their early life;
therefore, a drop in zooplankton
abundance could harm salmon
populations and the industry and
predators that rely on them.
among the copepods—the largest of the
three species can reach ten millimeters.
That’s quite large considering most
species grow no larger than two or three
millimeters.”
Aboard the R/V Alpha Helix, a
National Science Foundation vessel
operated by the University of Alaska’s
Institute of Marine Science, LUMCON researchers conducted experiments to look at what, how much and
how quickly the three species of
Neocalanus copepods were eating.
These species consume vast quantities
of phytoplankton (plant plankton),
but they also eat microzooplankton—
zooplankton that measures less than
200 microns (1/127 of an inch). The
importance of microzooplankton in
their diet is poorly understood,
although some research shows that
these copepods feed more on microzooplankton when phytoplankton
densities decrease.
“The three copepod species we are
looking at are unique to the sub-arctic
ocean,” explains LUMCON researcher
Dr. Hongbin Liu. “They are giants
LUMCON’s team of researchers is
examining the role of three species
The June 2003 research crew included
LUMCON’s Adriana Hashinaga, Dr. Hongbin
Liu and Greg Breed (back row: first, fourth
and fifth from left, respectively).
The snow-capped mountains that rise up from
Resurrection Bay appear to be blue-tinted
during a June sunset.
Greg Breed
Each of the five research cruises departed
from the small town of Seward, AK, pictured
here.
Franchesca Perez
Greg Breed
Alaska continued on page 10
Marine Scientists and Educators Head Out
to the Marsh and Out to Sea to Promote
Ocean Sciences Education Excellence
Teachers and marine scientists who have
participated in programs developed by
the Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE) have embarked on a course to improve marine
science education throughout the
nation. COSEE is composed of seven
centers in the United States, each
dedicated to increasing awareness of the
ocean, its marriage to the land, and its
connection to people. LUMCON is
Louisiana’s representative for the Central
Gulf of Mexico COSEE (CGOM:
COSEE) that also includes Florida,
Alabama, Mississippi and Texas. The
Center’s programs are funded for two
years by the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration/National
Sea Grant College Program and the
National Oceanographic Partnership
Program/Office of Naval Research.
COSEE is focused on uniting
educators and marine scientists in an
effort to enhance both of their crafts
and enrich those who are touched by
them. By working directly with
scientists, teachers learn hands-on
about the marine environment, a
method that can help them bring
marine science more vividly into their
classrooms. In reciprocation, teachers
help scientists develop ways to communicate the value of their research to a
broader audience. The Central Gulf of
Mexico COSEE is accomplishing these
goals through three main initiatives.
LUMCON’s DeFelice Marine Center
hosted a Teacher/Science Institute June
22–27, 2003, that brought together
Louisiana middle school teachers and
scientists for field-based studies and lab
work. Scientists from Louisiana State
University (LSU, Baton Rouge), Loyola
University, Nicholls State University,
the Barataria–Terrebonne National
Estuary Program and LUMCON
worked closely with teachers, explaining
the wonders and complexities of the
surrounding estuary and Gulf of
Mexico. Teachers and scientists then
joined efforts to develop marine science
activities that will be used in the
classroom. Educators who participated
in the Institute and completed a
subsequent ten-day online marine
science course will receive three graduate
credits in oceanography from LSU.
Informal Educators Workshop
November 14–15, 2003
Teacher/Science Institute
June 21–25, 2004
Graduates from the Teacher/Science
Institutes held at each CGOM: COSEE
center have the added option of participating in Sea Scholars. Sea Scholars is a
program funded by the U.S. Navy that
brings teachers onboard a U.S. Navy
oceanographic survey ship to work
alongside scientists and learn first-hand
about oceanography and geography
during two-week research cruises.
The Central Gulf of Mexico: COSEE
also offers Informal Education Workshops for those teachers who work
outside of a formal classroom. This
group includes, but is not limited to,
nature center, museum, aquarium and
zoo educators. LUMCON’s workshop
will be held at the DeFelice Marine
Center November 14–15, 2003. Dr.
Jessica Kastler, LUMCON’s Marine
Education Instructor, is inviting both
educators and scientists from this
summer’s Teacher/Science Institute to
CGOM: COSEE Centers
work with informal educators followJ.L. Scott Marine Education Center & Aquarium
ing a program similar to that of the
The University of Southern Mississippi
Institute.
Ocean Springs, MS
Lead COSEE Institution
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
Dauphin Island, AL
University of Florida, Florida Sea Grant
Florida Museum of Natural History
Gainesville, FL
A COSEE scientist-teacher team measures the
dissolved oxygen content of a water sample
collected in a salt marsh near LUMCON.
Upcoming Events at LUMCON
The University of Texas Marine Science Institute
Port Aransas, TX
Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium
Chauvin, LA
Page 2
LUMCON’s participation as a Center
for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence demonstrates its employees’
commitment to improving marine
science education in Louisiana.
Educators and scientists who are
similarly dedicated to this cause can
contact Kastler at [email protected]
for information on attending upcoming CGOM: COSEE events.
Gulf Guardian Award
Goes to LUMCON Researcher
Dr. Nancy Rabalais has been selected for the 2003 first place Gulf
Guardian Award (individual category) in recognition of her efforts to
monitor hypoxia in the Gulf of
Mexico and increase national awareness of this problem. The award is
presented by the EPA-sponsored
Gulf of Mexico Program, a consortium formed in 1988 that includes
government agencies, private and
public institutions and citizens from
a wide range of disciplines, working
together to enhance the Gulf’s
health and associated economy of
the coastal region. Rabalais was
selected from a group of nominees
chosen from the five Gulf States:
Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama and Florida. Awards are
presented for first through third
place in six categories: business,
youth and education, government,
nonprofit organizations, individual,
and partnership efforts.
LUMCON Interim Administrator
and Barataria-Terrebonne National
Estuary Director Kerry St. Pé
nominated Rabalais for the award.
“The research efforts led by Dr.
Rabalais at LUMCON have aroused
a new national awareness of what
human activities throughout an entire
watershed can do for our environment,” says St. Pé. “Her work has
motivated people throughout the
enormous Mississippi River system to
begin discussions of solutions to
environmental problems seen far
downstream in the Gulf of Mexico.
We congratulate Nancy for her
contribution to these renewed efforts to
protect “America’s Sea” and for her
selection for this prestigious award.”
The research efforts led
by Dr. Rabalais at
LUMCON have
aroused a new national
awareness of what
human activities
throughout an entire
watershed can do for
our environment.
Rabalais has taken the previously
little-known phenomenon of hypoxia
in the northern Gulf of Mexico and
turned it into an environmental issue
that has garnered increasing space in
the national spotlight. Hypoxia is a
low-oxygen (<2 parts per million)
condition
–Kerry St. Pé , LUMCON
that
Interim Administrator
develops in
the
northern
Gulf waters
during the
spring and
summer.
This area is
frequently
referred to
as the Dead
Zone.
While a
Dr. Nancy Rabalais has monitored hypoxia in
natural
the Gulf of Mexico for the past 18 years.
occurrence
in some
parts of the
world,
hypoxia in the Gulf is most likely a
24, 2003, at the Mississippi Coast
recent result of human influences,
Coliseum and Convention Center in
particularly nutrient run-off from
Biloxi, MS. The presentation is
agricultural activities in the
being hosted by the Southern States
Mississippi River basin.
Environmental Conference and
Exhibition, which is taking place
concurrently at the Center. Other
Louisiana recipients of the 2003
“I’m honored to receive this award
Gulf Guardian Awards include the
and to be seen as a champion for the
Louisiana Sea Grant College
health of the Gulf,” says Rabalais.
Program, Coastal Roots: School
“Yet, there are many people to
Seedling Nursery Program for
acknowledge…many collaborators who
Wetland Restoration (second place,
have helped along the way and
youth and education), the U.S. Army
continue to make great strides in
Corps of Engineers, New Orleans
hypoxia research. I am thankful for
District, Mississippi Delta Region
their efforts.”
Project (second place, partnership)
and the Gulf Safety Committee
The Gulf Guardian Awards
ceremony will be held on September (third place, partnership).
Page 3
Leaping Fish!
Asian Carp Threaten
Native Species
“Saturday, June 28, I caught a
fish in Bayou Teche near Morgan
City while bass fishing. The fish
was approximately three and a
half feet long and weighed
between 40–50 pounds. After
boating the fish and trying to put
it in the live-well, it jumped from
my grasp and fell back into the
water. I have bass fished all over
the country, speck and red fished
extensively and a little off shore.
Myself and three locals that
witnessed the near catch were not
able to identify the fish. I sincerely
believe that this was something
that should have not been where
it was. I’ve caught 60-pound
amberjack and nothing compares
to the power and fight of this fish.
When no one at the tournament
could answer my questions, it
confirmed my suspicions that this
was not a species native to this
area.”
–Mike Echols, Shreveport, LA
Within a few weeks, LUMCON
received three unusual and similar
descriptions of this fish. Echols was
correct in saying that this animal,
identified as a bighead carp
(Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) should not
have been in Bayou Teche—its home
is thousands of miles away. Bighead
carp, along with their relatives the
grass (Ctenopharyngodon idella), silver
(Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and black
carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) are native
to Asia, and all, with exception of the
Critter Corner
black carp, have become established
in parts of the United States.
weighed down with Asian carp that
can reach well upwards of 50 pounds.
An additional threat posed by Asian
Grass carp first arrived in the United
carp is their strength and great
States in 1963 as a shipment to
jumping ability. Dr. Martin
aquaculture facilities in Alabama and
O’Connell, Director of the Nekton
Arkansas. Bighead, silver and black
Research Laboratory, Pontchartrain
carp were imported into Arkansas
Institute for Environmental Sciences,
around a decade later, with the black
recounted a
carp entering
story of a
the country as
“Anything
that’s
put
in
a
pond
is
young boy
a contaminant
eventually going to escape.”
getting a black
in a shipment
eye from a
of grass carp.
–
Dr.
Glenn
Thomas,
Research
bighead carp,
Each species
Program
Manager
for
Inland
and Thomas
has feeding
Fisheries,
Louisiana
Department
had similar
habits that
of Wildlife and Fisheries
stories to tell,
sparked the
one in
interest of
particular
of
a
woman
who was not
several aquaculturists and biologists,
too pleased after being hit in the
convincing them to initially stock the
head by a jumping carp.
species in ponds to evaluate their
effectiveness as biological control
The most serious threats posed by
agents.
these animals may result from their
feeding habits—the same reason they
“Anything that’s put in a pond is
were initially imported into the
eventually going to escape,” says Dr.
United States. Grass carp consume
Glenn Thomas, Research Program
vast quantities of aquatic vegetation,
Manager for Inland Fisheries,
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and making them a powerful tool for
reducing choking flora in waterways;
Fisheries, in a recent interview about
in fact, biologists intentionally
the increasing accounts of Asian carp
introduced them into Arkansas lakes
in Louisiana waterways. And that’s
to reduce unwanted vegetation.
exactly what happened with each of
Unfortunately, this fish is too
these species. Thomas reports that
efficient of a feeder. Grass carp have
commercial fishermen in Louisiana
been known to clear all vegetation
landed 67,000 pounds of grass carp
from bodies of water and then
and 11,000 pounds of bighead carp
in 2002, and he expects their numbers proceed to feed on other organic
material. These fish can disrupt the
to only rise. Reportedly, commercial
fishermen have abandoned entire sites ecosystem in many ways, including
over-competing native species for food
along the Missouri River, unable to
and destroying essential fish habitat.
retrieve their nets because they are
Page 4
“In the Southeast we have the highest
diversity of freshwater mussels on the
planet, unfortunately many of these species
are threatened,” says O’Connell. “Black
carp could further harm these species—some
of them could be wiped out for good.”
O’Connell gives a specific example
of how black carp could harm the
ecosystem in Lake Pontchartrain.
“The Rangia clam is the keystone animal
in Lake Pontchartrain. They are highly
effective filterers of the Lake’s water and
serve as critical substrate. If black carp
got into the Lake and began feeding on
the clams, they could throw the whole
system off balance.”
Currently, little can be done to
reduce the threat of grass, bighead and
silver carp populations in the lower
Mississippi River basin; however,
some efforts are being made to
prevent their spread into yet uninvaded waters. Monitoring the spread
of Asian carp in Louisiana will help
scientists estimate the species’ success
at reproduction and colonization and
possibly lead to effective measures for
dealing with these invasive species.
Information for this article was
gathered from a U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service brochure on Asian
carp. This useful source can be
downloaded at http://wwwaux.
cerc.cr.usgs.gov/MICRA/
Asian%20Carp%20Brochure%20
MICRA.pdf.
Leo Nico, U.S. Geological
Survey
Black carp have fused gill rakers that
are used for crushing the shells of their
main food sources—mollusks and
crustaceans. They were imported to
control the spread of a parasitic
trematode of cultured catfish. The
trematode uses a snail as its intermediate host; the carp feeds on these
snails and could therefore reduce the
threat of infection in catfish. The only
reported escape of black carp into
public waterways occurred in Missouri
in 1994, yet according to Thomas, one
sterile black carp was caught in the
upper Mississippi river basin this
summer. Imagine what could happen if
black carp became established in
Louisiana waterways and began feeding
on bivalves such as mussels and oysters.
Dept. of Fisheries & Allied
Aquaculture, Auburn Univ.
Bighead and silver carp were imported
for use in water quality improvement
in aquaculture ponds and in the case
of the silver carp, as a food fish. Both
species are filter feeders and remove
phytoplankton (plant plankton) and
zooplankton (animal plankton) from
the water by straining it through their
gill rakers. Gill rakers are the prong-like
projections on gills that aid in food
capture. The gill rakers of the silver
carp are fused into sponge-like plates,
enabling this fish to filter food more
efficiently and feed on food of a
smaller size than the bighead carp.
These species pose a threat to native
filter-feeding animals, including
paddlefish, all juvenile fish and many
invertebrates, by competing with them
for the same food source.
Silver Carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix
Grass Carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella
Chris Salmonsen
Dr. Jimmy Avery
The Invaders
Black Carp, Mylopharyngodon piceus
Bighead Carp, Hypophthalmichthys nobilis
Page 5
Dr. Jessica Kastler
Faculty Focus
Dr. Jessica Kastler
“I was awed by the rapid changes in our
local estuarine systems. The wetlands of
the Atchafalaya delta were growing,
while the wetlands of Terrebonne and
Barataria Bay were diminishing…both
at astonishing rates,” says Kastler.
“Working for the Center was a great
experience, from
the camaraderie
between students
and faculty, to the
sheer enjoyment
of being in the
marsh.”
“The first time I remember having an
interest in science was in third grade.
That’s when I became fascinated by
insects,” recalls Dr. Jessica Kastler,
LUMCON’s Marine Education
Instructor. Perhaps the students who
have benefited from Kastler’s teaching
should thank the bugs for providing
her with this early inspiration, or
perhaps they should thank her
relatives. Kastler’s ties to education
stretch further back in history than
her interest in insects and science. She
descends from a line of educators; in
fact, her great, great grandparents
started the Industrial and Mechanical
Department at Tulane University in
New Orleans, and her grandfather
taught biochemistry at Tulane Medical
School.
Kastler earned her doctorate in
oceanography and coastal sciences
from LSU in 1999. Her doctoral
work was on how the binding of
organic material to mineral sediment
particles affects the transport and use
of these materials in Barataria Bay.
Jean May-Brett
Josh Collins
Kastler came to
LUMCON in
1999 as a postdoctoral student
for Dr. Nancy
Rabalais, a
scientist who is
best known for
After graduaher work on
ting with her
hypoxia (low
bachelor’s
Dr. Kastler shows students how to use a redegree in
oxygen) in the
geology, Kastler fractometer, an instrument that measures
northern Gulf of
water salinity.
attended the
Mexico. Kastler
University of Virginia where she
was responsible for collecting sediworked on salt marsh sedimentation
ment cores underlying hypoxic waters
Yet Kastler, a New Orleans native who
and analyzing how organic material
on Virginia’s Eastern Shore and
now lives in Houma, confesses a bit
was stored in these sediments. During
received her master’s degree in
unwillingly that her undergraduate
this time, she also began analyzing
environmental sciences. She wanted
studies at Louisiana State University
what she wanted to do after completo continue working on coastal
(LSU) in Baton Rouge, began as
tion of her post-doc.
wetlands but she also wanted to
neither an education nor science
return to her family in Louisiana; a
major, but as a Spanish major.
Louisiana Board of Regents fellow“Although I was enjoying my research,
Although she loves the Spanish
I began looking for a way I could
ship to LSU allowed her to do both.
language, she was unfulfilled by her
focus more on educating
studies and opted to switch her
people about our marine and
major to geology—a choice she
estuarine environment,” says
admits, again with some hesitation,
Kastler. This opportunity
was made “simply because the
fortuitously arose when LUMdepartment was one of LSU’s
CON’s Marine Education
greater strengths.” It wasn’t until
Instructor left to pursue other
Kastler began working at the
interests. Kastler was hired for
the position and immediately
University’s Center for Wetland
began to build her department
Resources, now the Coastal Ecology
and develop programs that
Institute, that she found her true
address Louisiana’s needs for
inspiration—the wetlands that
Dr. Kastler (kneeling, front left) explains the characmarine education.
surrounded her since childhood.
teristics of the beach sediment on Timbalier Island.
!
Page 6
This is the best place in the world to do this job... I
feel so lucky; we teach right out of the great
outdoors, right out of our own backyard.
–Dr. Jessica Kastler
She sees her department as having two
main missions; to educate students on
marine science and on LUMCON’s
research projects, and to serve as a
resource for teachers. This second mission has become increasingly important
to Kastler, as she has realized the natural
limits to LUMCON’s resources.
“No matter how much we would like to
have all students in Louisiana come
through LUMCON’s doors, we simply
cannot provide this opportunity. I have
chosen to put more emphasis on identifying
how our Marine Education Program can
help Louisiana teachers provide rich
learning experiences for their students in
their own classrooms.”
ready to share their knowledge with
the rest of the class.
While the number of teachers involved
in LUMCON’s programs continues to
grow, kindergarten through twelfth
grade is by far the largest group reached
by LUMCON’s educators. Last year
nearly 2500 students participated in
field trips ranging in length from
several hours to several days. University
education is another large component
of the department. Faculty and
students visit LUMCON year-round for
field trips and credit classes. Public
education provides Kastler and her staff
with opportunities to address nonstudent groups both at LUMCON and
at offsite venues, such as festivals and
conferences. Kastler enjoys talking to
groups outside of LUMCON, yet she’s
clearly partial to teaching onsite.
Andrew Barron
Programs such as the Center for
Ocean Sciences Education Excellence
(page 2), Faculty Institutes for
Reforming Science Technology
(LUMCON News, Winter 2003) and
“This is the best place in the world to do this
Students and Teachers as Educational
job. You can smell the chemical reac-tions in
Partners in Science (STEPS) all
the marsh, identify freshly collected plankton
provide unique learning experiences
under the microscope,
for teachers. STEPS,
trawl for fish and test
which is sponsored by
water quality in the
the BaratariaGulf. Right now a
Terrebonne National
class is pressing salt
Estuary Program, pairs
marsh plants.
teachers with two of
Tomorrow they will
their students for a
collect and press fresh
weekend at
water plants. What
LUMCON that
more could we want to
focuses on the seven
teach about coastal
priority problems of
ecology and the global
the estuary. Teachers
ocean? I feel so lucky;
and students learn
we teach right out of
together through fieldthe great out-doors,
intensive training and
Dr. Kastler and Dr. Frank Jordan of
right out of our own
return to the
Loyola University examine a sediment
backyard.”
classroom as a team,
core taken from the marsh.
Page 7
LUMCON Library Offers
Valuable Resource
By John Conover
LUMCON Librarian
The Effects of Offshore Oil and
Gas Development is a quarterly,
annotated bibliography
published by the LUMCON
library on the latest research on
global offshore oil production.
Research topics include the
effects of oil spills on the
ecosystem, the management of
spills and the changing technology of spill response, the
bioremediation of crude oilrelated products, the cultural
impact of offshore development, and other issues that
arise from the oil industry.
The library has published the
bibliography since 1990,
thanks to a series of grants from
the Minerals Management
Service (MMS), U.S. Department of Interior. In 2000, the
LUMCON Library, working
with the Information Technology Department, published the
bibliography online. Users of
the database can search the
nearly 7000 citations by
author, keyword or phrase. In
2004, a print version of
citations from 2000 through
2004 will be sent to MMS for
distribution.
The bibliography can be viewed and searched at http://
www.lumcon.edu/library/
eoogd. Email John Conover at
[email protected] to
receive a quarterly announcement of updates to the
bibliography.
BTNEP Update
Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program
National campaign is ready
for launch on September 27th
By Leslie McVeigh
In an effort to increase public
awareness about the value of
estuarine systems to the ecology,
economy and culture of the
nation, the Association of National
Estuary Programs, in cooperation
with each of the 28 individual
estuary programs, will launch a
nationwide education and
outreach campaign entitled What’s
an estuary?..Now you know. The
official launch of the campaign
will be on September 27, 2003,
which has been designated National
Estuary Day by the Environmental
Protection Agency. The
centerpiece of the campaign is
an eight-minute presentation
comprised of four 2-minute
segments, each describing a
different function or value of an
estuarine system. The presentation
can be viewed or downloaded from
the campaign website:
www.whatsanestuary.com
the ecology, economy and culture
of the Barataria-Terrebonne
system, as well as great entertainment, food, and hands-on activities
for children of all ages. Of course,
Program Director Kerry St. Pé will
reprise his role as judge in the everpopular cast-net throwing contest.
We are also pleased that Ducks
Unlimited will be returning this
year to host a Green Wing Day as
an adjunct to our festival. Sure to
be popular attractions are the
Louisiana Science Center’s Nature
Van and the Zoo Mobile from the
Audubon Zoo.
A new BTNEP publication will be
available to the public at the
festival this year—the Marina
Environmental Measures Guide. This
recently released publication is a
user-friendly guide that provides
practical information that South
Louisiana’s recreation boaters can
use to help reduce pollution from
fuel, oil and sewerage discharges.
Currently at press is the new
BTNEP environmental indicators
report: Healthy Estuary, Healthy
Speaking of National
Estuary Day…
The Barataria-Terrebonne
National Estuary Program will
again be sponsoring its annual
festival, La Fete d’Écologie on
Saturday, September 27, at Peltier
Park in Thibodaux. The festival
features a wide variety of exhibits
and demonstrations highlighting
An Americorps volunteer samples a dish made with
nutria, the other white meat, at the 2002 La Fete
d’Écologie.
Page 8
Economy, Healthy Communities. Using
a small suite of environmental
indicators, this report presents an
overview of the health of our
estuarine system, and in certain
instances, the effect of restoration
and enhancement efforts by the
BTNEP partnership.
Estuary Live! is coming
September 26th & 27th
By Deborah Schultz
Sign up now for all or part of
Estuary Live!, a free two-day
estuarine odyssey exploring eight
estuaries around the country in
celebration of National Estuaries
Day. Join scientists and kids as they
participate in a virtual field trip in
your classroom via the internet. Preshow and post-show standards-based
activities are available at
www.estuarylive.org.
Come visit with us on September 26th
at 10:45 AM for 50 minutes of excitement as the Barataria-Terrebonne
National Estuary takes the Estuary
Live! stage. We invite you to explore
the former hideout of Jean Lafitte
the pirate in the rich waters of
Louisiana’s Cajun Coast. Here you
will observe the rich bounty of
shrimp, redfish, crabs and oysters,
offshore oil rigs, pelicans and other
resident and migratory birds. You
will learn about the levees that
protect these fragile wetlands and
why this national treasure, the
Barataria-Terrebonne National
Estuary is the fastest disappearing
landmass in the world.
Leslie McVeigh
BTNEP Staff Photo
CREST Advances Coastal
Restoration Science
The timing could hardly have been
better orchestrated. Tropical Storm
Bill moved over land in Louisiana
the last day of June 2003, causing
flooding along the coast as the
storm surge quickly inundated the
low-lying coastal areas. The following day, a two-day workshop
entitled Advances in Coastal Habitat
Restoration in the Northern Gulf States
began on the campus of Nicholls
State University in Thibodaux, LA.
“We served up the storm as an
appetizer for today,” joked Margaret
Davidson, Director of the NOAA
Coastal Services Center in
Charleston, SC. What an unpalatable prelude to the conference! The
serious extent of destruction that
was caused by this relatively weak
storm hit hard with each of the
conference attendees, and following
last year’s assaults from Tropical
Storm Isidore and Hurricane Lili,
seemed like a redundant, unnecessary
call to action.
The workshop was hosted by Coastal
Restoration and Enhancement
through Science and Technology
(CREST)—a consortium of 11
universities, NOAA (funding agency)
and the U.S. Geological Survey.
CREST was formed in Spring 2001 in
response to the alarmingly rapid and
expansive deterioration and disappearance of critically important coastal
habitat along the northern Gulf of
Mexico. According to Dr. Piers
Chapman, Director of CREST, the
Institute’s main objective is to promote the scientific and technical
advancement and monitoring of coastal habitat
restoration procedures,
and to improve coordination of the scientific
research that is being
Members of CREST
conducted at universities
throughout Louisiana
Louisiana State University, Home Office
and Mississippi. CREST
Louisiana State University Agricultural Center
also aims to address the
Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, Fiscal Agent
McNeese State University
social impact of coastal
National Oceanographic and Aeronautic Association restoration.
Nicholls State University
Southeastern Louisiana University
Southern University at New Orleans
Tulane University
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
University of New Orleans
University of Southern Mississippi
United States Geological Survey
Money is awarded to scientists through a competive process
that assesses the value and applicability of their proposed
research to the advancement of coastal restoration science.
From left are CREST Director Dr. Piers Chapman,
LUMCON Interim Administrator and BTNEP
Director Kerry St. Pé, NSU Head of the Dept. of
Biological Sciences Dr. Marilyn Kilgen and President of the University of Maryland Center for
Environmental Science and former LUMCON
Director Dr. Donald Boesch.
navigating legal issues to examining
environmental sociology–the way people’s
lives are affected by changing
environmental conditions.”
Rapid change in the landscape has
become the norm in south Louisiana,
where scientists project another 500
square miles of coast will be lost by
2050 if effective restoration measures
are not put into place. The urgency
among workshop participants to act
reflected this alarming loss. Despite
the depressing statistics that many at
the meeting could rattle off seemingly
without thought, optimism ran high
that their coordinated efforts will
result in improved and expedited
coastal restoration practices.
“I hope managers and agencies will turn to
CREST as a resource for improving and
developing restoration activities and
understanding the implications of
restoration actions,” says Reed. “I’d like
“No other program is really CREST to function as the nexus that
brings university researchers face to face
calling for people’s ideas
and proposals to address the with real restoration issues and allows
variety of social needs,” says them the opportunity to help, not just
look on from the sidelines.”
Dr. Denise Reed, a
University of New Orleans
To learn more about CREST, visit
professor of geology and
LUMCON adjunct professor their web site at www.gulfcrest.org.
From their site you can link to other
who chairs CREST’s
organizations dedicated to coastal
Technical Board. “These
restoration.
needs can range from
Page 9
BTNEP Educational PublicationsState CIAP Implementation
Investigator: Kerry M. St. Pé
08/01/02–11/30/04
$100,000
La. Dept. of Natural Resources,
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA)
Maritime Forest Ridge and Marsh
Restoration at Port Fourchon
Investigator: Richard Demay
01/01/03–12/31/03
$90,000
Gulf of Mexico Foundation
N-GOMEX 2002, Hypoxia Studies in
the Northern Gulf of Mexico
Investigator: Dr. Nancy Rabalais
05/01/03–04/30/04
$513,422
NOAA
Ship Time (R/V Pelican) to Support
Navy Projects and Scientist
Investigator: Steve Rabalais
05/15/03–12/31/03
$40,153
Office of Naval Research
Oceanographic Instrumentation
Investigator: Steve Rabalais
07/01/03–06/30/04
$34,719
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Barataria-Terrebonne National
Estuary Program
Investigator: Kerry M. St. Pé
10/01/03–09/30/04
$506,685
Environmental Protection Agency
“Collaborative Research+RUI: The
Effects of Water Movement and
Zooplankton Escape Behavior on
Planktivory by Coral Reef Fishes in
Different Microhabitats.”
Co-investigators: Drs. Chris Finelli
(LUMCON), Ed Buskey (U. of Texas,
Marine Science Institute), Ray Clarke
(Sarah Lawrence College)
10/01/03–9/30/06
$81,243
NSF
Alaska continued from page 1
copepods, they must separate them
Determining the factors that
by species, a task that poses all new
influence phytoplankton and
microzooplankton populations and challenges. When collected
offshore, the two physically similar
how changes in their abundance
smaller species can be identified
may affect copepod populations is
from one another by differences in
an important part of the team’s
coloration; however, when collected
research. Their work, along with
near the coast, much of their
that of many other researchers,
coloration is absent. Liu is unsure
aims to elucidate how global
why this difference exists, but he
warming will alter plankton
communities; more specifically,
hypothesizes that it is related to
how a rise in ocean temperature
changes in the copepods’ diets
will change the timing and scale of
between locations.
phytoplankton
blooms and
In addition to
how such
the work in the
“They are giants among
Gulf of Alaska,
changes will
the copepods–the largest
Dagg and his
affect the
of the three species can
team are
development
reach ten millimeters.
involved in
and health of
– Dr. Hongbin Liu
copepod and
the Neocalanus
other zooplankpopulation.
ton studies in
LUMCON’s scientists are now
the Gulf of Mexico’s Mississippi
analyzing the data collected from
River plume. Copepods are a vital
their last cruise and comparing it to component of marine food webs
their results from previous cruises.
worldwide; determining the factors
Such work can be challenging, yet
that regulate their populations and
Liu concedes that one of his
the role that these populations
greatest challenges with this project play in the food web structure is
was the actual collection and
important to understanding the
oceanic ecosystem, how it may
holding of the copepods.
adapt to global change and how
people who depend on the ocean’s
“It’s very difficult to catch copepods
resources
in good shape
may be
and keep
them healthy
affected.
throughout
the experiPlease visit
ments. They
www.pml.
are very
ac.uk/
delicate
globec/
animals,”
main.htm
says Liu.
for more
information
Once the
Large Neocalanus copepods collected aboard the R/V
on GLOscientists
Alpha Helix are easily visible without the aid of a microBEC.
collect the
scope.
Greg Breed
Recent Grants
Page 10
Storms Offer Temporary Fix to Low Oxygen in Gulf of Mexico
Winds stir up Gulf waters, but calming seas
allow for rebuiding of hypoxia
Rabalais attributes this low measurement to the timing of the cruise. It
followed on the tails of Tropical
Storm Bill (June 30) and Hurricane
Claudette (July 14–15), two storms
whose winds churned up the stratified
Gulf waters, mixing oxygen from the
Gulf’s surface into the depths.
“Timing certainly played a significant role
in our results,” says Rabalais. “If we had
sailed just two weeks later, we would have
seen lower oxygen measurements at most of
the stations. I expect the Gulf waters to
soon restratify and hypoxia to increase in
step.”
One of the world’s leading experts on
hypoxia, Rabalais clearly knows what
she is talking about. She has since
returned to several of the stations off of
Terrebonne Bay and Atchafalaya Bay
and has recorded an increase in both
stratification and hypoxia.
Northern Gulf waters become increasingly stratified in response to spring
rains and melting snow that boost the
flow of fresh water entering the Gulf
from the Atchafalaya and Mississippi
Rivers. Fresh water is less dense than
the salty Gulf water; a characteristic
that causes the formation of two layers
in the delta: fresher water above, saltier
water below. The boundary between
these layers impedes the transfer of oxygen from the surface into deeper waters.
Hypoxia is a low-oxygen condition
that develops in the northern Gulf
bottom waters during spring and
summer. In some parts of the world
it occurs naturally, but in the Gulf
it is likely encouraged by human
activities that release excess nutrients
into the Mississippi River basin.
These nutrients eventually drain into
the Gulf and stimulate phytoplankton (algae) growth and reproduction.
Many members of the zooplankton
graze on phytoplankton, but much
of it still goes uneaten, eventually
dying, and settling to the bottom
of the Gulf where it is decomposed
by bacteria. This process depletes
oxygen from the bottom waters,
forcing fish and invertebrates to
move to more oxygenated waters.
Those animals that are unable to
leave, perish. The area has commonly
been called the Dead Zone in reference to its inability to support most
animal life.
Lora Pride
Dr. Nancy Rabalais and her team of
LUMCON scientists conducted their
annual shelf-wide cruise July 23–29,
2003, to record the extent of hypoxic
water (<2ppm oxygen) in the northern Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River west to the Louisiana/
Texas border. The results from this
cruise showed a marked decrease in
size from last year’s hypoxic area—only
8,500 square kilometers (3,300 square
miles), less than half the size of last
year’s 22,000 square kilometers
(8,500 square miles).
Page 11
Tropical Storm Bill Turns LUMCON
Into an Island, June 30, 2003
Recent Publications
Liu, H. and M. Dagg. 2003. Interactions between nutrients,
phytoplankton growth, and micro– and mesozooplankton
grazing in the plume of the Mississippi River. Mar. Ecol. Prog.
Ser. 258: 31–42.
Powell, R. T. and M.R. Alexander. 2003. Trace Metal
Contamination in Sediments of Barataria Bay, Louisiana.
Bull. Environ. Contam. and Toxicol. 71 (2): 308–314.
The volleyball net can be seen in the lower left corner
of this photograph. Part of LUMCON’s dormitory wing
is visible on the right.
Gary Burnett
Liu, H. and E. Buskey. 2003. Effects of media N:P ratio on
extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) production of the
brown tide-forming alga, Aureoumbra lagunensis. Plankton Biol.
Ecol. 50 (2).
Scavia, D., N. N. Rabalais, R. E. Turner, D. Justic, and W. J.
Wiseman, Jr. 2003. Predicting the response of Gulf of
Mexico hypoxia to variations in Mississippi River nitrogen
load. Limnol. & Oceanogr. 48: 951–956.
Joe Malbrough
Turner, R. E. and N. N. Rabalais. 2003. Linking landscape
and water quality in the Mississippi River basin for 200 years.
BioScience 53: 563–572.
LUMCON employees normally park their cars under the
building...not their boats.
The Louisiana Universities
Marine Consortium
8124 Highway 56
Chauvin, LA 70344
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Chauvin, LA
Permit No. 119
LUMCON NEWS
Volume 3, Number 3, Fall 2003 http://www.lumcon.edu
This publication is printed on partially recycled paper.
Please send all inquiries to Danielle Richardi, Editor
[email protected]