Gulf of Alaska | Lower Trophic Levels
Glacial influence on oyster farm fouling communities Presenter: Brian Ulaski , bpulaski2@alaska.edu, University of Alaska Fairbanks
Oyster farms can have a wide ecological footprint that influences their surrounding system, including the various organisms that capitalize on the available habitat created by the farms. The growth of fouling organisms on oyster farm structures can decrease water flow and inhibit oyster productivity through competitive interactions, which can be a costly nuisance to farmers. While the ecological and economic impacts of fouling organisms on oyster farm equipment are broadly understood, there is uncertainty in the effect that glacial runoff has on fouling community development. Such information on drivers of fouling communities and their intensity can benefit farmers during site selection. Glacial runoff can have significant effects on adjacent ecosystems, thereby structuring nearshore and intertidal communities, which would likely also affect the fouling organisms that are exposed to the environmental conditions defined by glacial or non-glacial characteristics. As such, this project seeks to describe associations of fouling communities with oyster farms influenced by discharged waters from glacial and non-glacial watersheds. The specific questions this project will address are: (1) Which fouling organisms are associated with oyster farm structures in a high latitude estuary? and (2) How do the fouling communities on oyster farm structures compare in and out of glacial areas? I hypothesize that the fouling communities comprised of invertebrates and seaweeds are significantly different in and out of glacial areas. To address these questions, in spring and summer 2023, I will work with oyster farmers and survey fouling communities on their farms that are established in nearshore waters influenced by either glacial (Halibut Cove) or non-glacial (Jakolof Bay) watersheds in Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Farms will be sampled to assess early (March) and late (June) season variability of fouling community density and composition considering temporal changes in watershed discharge and resulting environmental conditions. Outcomes of this study will expand our understanding of how fouling communities on oyster farms are influenced by glacial runoff and will provide useful information to a developing mariculture industry in Alaska.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium 2023 137
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