Spatiotemporal Variation in Distribution, Size, and Relative Abundance within a Salish Sea Nearshore Forage Fish Community

Frick, Kinsey E.; Kagley, Anna N.; Fresh, Kurt L.; Samhouri, Jameal F.; Ward, Larry S.; Stapleton, Justin T.; Shelton, Andrew O.

doi:10.1002/mcf2.10202

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 97 publications

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“…Forage fishes, including Pacific herring ( Clupea pallasi ), surf smelt ( Hypomesus pretiosus ), and sand lance ( Ammodytes hexapterus ), are designated as priority species by US federal and state agencies and are of growing conservation concern (Federal Register, 2016; WDFW, 2018; Audubon Society, 2020). Forage fishes use the nearshore, including kelp environments, for foraging and as nursery habitat (Miller et al, 1980; Baker et al, 2019; Shaffer et al, 2019; Shaffer, Munsch & Cordell, 2020; Frick et al, 2022). Forage fishes provide a link from primary productivity to higher trophic levels, making them foundational species for coastal systems (Penttila, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamics of juvenile salmon and forage fishes in nearshore kelp forests

Shaffer,

Gross,

Black

et al. 2023

Aquatic Conservation

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North‐east Pacific juvenile salmon and forage fishes, including the endangered salmon species Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch), chum (Oncorhynchus keta), and pink (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha), and the forage fishes species of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi), surf smelt (Hypomesus pretiosus), and sand lance (Ammodytes hexapterus), utilize kelp environments. Many details of the kelp forest ecosystem function for these fishes are lacking. Kelp forests, salmon, and forage fishes are declining precipitously as the global climate shifts and developments along coastal shorelines expand. It is therefore essential to understand kelp forest function for these species. Analysis of 7 years of snorkelling survey videos indicates that both forage fishes and salmon use kelp forests throughout the outmigration season, and that their interactions occur in small and large groups, primarily along the outer edge of kelp beds. Over the course of outmigration, juvenile Chinook and coho salmon encounter sand lance first, followed by smelt and herring. The majority of interactions are intermingling, in which a subset proceed to predation, primarily on herring. It is important to develop and implement specific fishery and habitat conservation measures to preserve and restore these functions. Long‐term research has shown that intact, conserved nearshore habitats function better ecologically than restored habitats, and individual kelp forests can function differently for forage fishes and salmon. Therefore, conservation plans should be developed to conserve wild kelp forests which are documented to provide ecosystem function for salmon and forage fishes, by protecting them from various development impacts, including dredging, filling, and water‐quality decline. Coastal restoration is often only successful when ecosystem‐limiting factors that result in a loss of habitat are resolved. Kelp forest restoration, therefore, should be prioritized for regions of known high historical kelp forest importance, with restoration actions focused on correcting the limiting factors that caused loss and/or degradation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamics of juvenile salmon and forage fishes in nearshore kelp forests

Shaffer,

Gross,

Black

et al. 2023

Aquatic Conservation

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Resilience to a severe marine heatwave at two Pacific seabird colonies

Wagner¹,

Pearson²,

Good³

et al. 2024

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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A severe marine heat wave (MHW) persisted in the California Current ecosystem from 2014 through 2016. The MHW featured record-high sea surface temperatures in 2015, with 2014 to 2016 being the warmest 3 yr period on record. Our decade-long (2010-2019) breeding and diet monitoring of the rhinoceros auklet Cerorhinca monocerata, a burrow-nesting seabird, at significant breeding colonies on Destruction Island (California Current) and Protection Island (Salish Sea) allowed us to compare reproductive and dietary responses to this MHW. Although the colonies are relatively close to each other, and their reproductive output is, on average, similar, the auklets’ responses to the MHW differed. At Destruction Island, burrow occupancy rates were lower during the MHW (0.54 ± 0.02 vs. 0.61 ± 0.02 [mean ± SE] in non-MHW years), suggesting that birds skipped breeding, but fledging success rates did not differ (0.85 ± 0.02 vs. 0.89 ± 0.03). At Protection Island, burrow occupancy remained at non-MHW levels (0.72 ± 0.02 vs. 0.69 ± 0.02), but reproductive success declined (0.71 ± 0.03 vs. 0.82 ± 0.02). Chick provisioning also showed different patterns. The energy (kJ) per bill load at Destruction Island showed no clear MHW effect, while at Protection Island, it was reduced. At the same time, bill-load prey item count rose at Protection Island, indicating increased foraging effort and/or a reduction in diet quality. Our results further suggest rhinoceros auklets may be more resilient than other seabird species to major climate perturbations. However, with MHWs predicted to become more frequent and severe, the auklets’ ability to maintain these levels of breeding success will be tested.

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Nearshore subtidal community response during and after sediment disturbance associated with dam removal

et al. 2023

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Dam removal is used increasingly to restore aquatic ecosystems and remove unnecessary or high-risk infrastructure. As the number of removals increases, there is a growing understanding about the hydrologic, geomorphic, and ecological responses to these removals. Most dam removal studies, however, focus on river and watershed responses to dam removal. The removal of two dams on the Elwha River provided a unique opportunity to characterize the response of nearshore (coastal) ecosystems. We conducted SCUBA surveys between 2011 and 2022 to quantify trajectories of change in a nearshore ecosystem during and after dam removal. We focused on the degree to which the abundances of kelp, benthic invertebrates, and fish changed in response to patterns of sediment fluxes during and after dam removal. Our findings point to two pathways of response depending on the disturbance mechanism and species type. Sites with persistent sediment deposition were characterized by wholesale community changes that did not recover to a before dam removal condition. Instead, the sites were colonized by new species that were largely absent prior to dam removal. Sites that experienced high turbidity but lacked persistent seafloor deposition were primarily characterized by a reduction in the abundance of kelp and other algae during dam removal and a rapid recovery after sediment flux to the nearshore declined. Dam removal influences on invertebrates and fish at these sites were more variable, benefiting some species and disadvantaging others. In addition to dam removal, sea star wasting syndrome and a marine heatwave exerted distinct controls on subtidal communities during the same period. The loss of the predatory sea star Pycnopodia helianthoides was associated with gains in some of its prey species, and kelp community changes reflected regional trends in ocean temperature and kelp abundance. The results presented here have important implications for understanding the response of marine ecosystems to future dam removals and similar sediment perturbation events.

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Spatiotemporal Variation in Distribution, Size, and Relative Abundance within a Salish Sea Nearshore Forage Fish Community

Cited by 4 publications

References 97 publications

Dynamics of juvenile salmon and forage fishes in nearshore kelp forests

Dynamics of juvenile salmon and forage fishes in nearshore kelp forests

Resilience to a severe marine heatwave at two Pacific seabird colonies

Nearshore subtidal community response during and after sediment disturbance associated with dam removal

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