scholarly journals Will the California Current lose its nesting Tufted Puffins?

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4519 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Hart ◽  
Ryan P. Kelly ◽  
Scott F. Pearson
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Significant Risk ◽  
California Current ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Ensemble Model ◽  
Emission Scenarios ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Tufted Puffin ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem

Tufted Puffin (Fratercula cirrhata) populations have experienced dramatic declines since the mid-19th century along the southern portion of the species range, leading citizen groups to petition the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to list the species as endangered in the contiguous US. While there remains no consensus on the mechanisms driving these trends, population decreases in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem suggest climate-related factors, and in particular the indirect influence of sea-surface temperature on puffin prey. Here, we use three species distribution models (SDMs) to evaluate projected shifts in habitat suitable for Tufted Puffin nesting for the year 2050 under two future Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emission scenarios. Ensemble model results indicate warming marine and terrestrial temperatures play a key role in the loss of suitable Tufted Puffin nesting conditions in the California Current under both business-as-usual (RCP 8.5) and moderated (RCP 4.5) carbon emission scenarios, and in particular, that mean summer sea-surface temperatures greater than 15 °C are likely to make habitat unsuitable for breeding. Under both emission scenarios, ensemble model results suggest that more than 92% of currently suitable nesting habitat in the California Current is likely to become unsuitable. Moreover, the models suggest a net loss of greater than 21% of suitable nesting sites throughout the entire North American range of the Tufted Puffin, regardless of emission-reduction strategies. These model results highlight continued Tufted Puffin declines—particularly among southern breeding colonies—and indicate a significant risk of near-term extirpation in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem.

scholarly journals On the robustness of an eastern boundary upwelling ecosystem exposed to multiple stressors

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ndague Diogoul ◽  
Patrice Brehmer ◽  
Hervé Demarcq ◽  
Salaheddine El Ayoubi ◽  
Abou Thiam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Stressors ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Relative Index ◽  
Upwelling System ◽  
The North ◽  
Latitudinal Shift ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem ◽  
North And South

AbstractThe resistance of an east border upwelling system was investigated using relative index of marine pelagic biomass estimates under a changing environment spanning 20-years in the strongly exploited southern Canary Current Large marine Ecosystem (sCCLME). We divided the sCCLME in two parts (north and south of Cap Blanc), based on oceanographic regimes. We delineated two size-based groups (“plankton” and “pelagic fish”) corresponding to lower and higher trophic levels, respectively. Over the 20-year period, all spatial remote sensing environmental variables increased significantly, except in the area south of Cap Blanc where sea surface Chlorophyll-a concentrations declined and the upwelling favorable wind was stable. Relative index of marine pelagic abundance was higher in the south area compared to the north area of Cap Blanc. No significant latitudinal shift to the mass center was detected, regardless of trophic level. Relative pelagic abundance did not change, suggesting sCCLME pelagic organisms were able to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Despite strong annual variability and the presence of major stressors (overfishing, climate change), the marine pelagic ressources, mainly fish and plankton remained relatively stable over the two decades, advancing our understanding on the resistance of this east border upwelling system.

scholarly journals Combining otolith microstructure and trace elemental analyses to infer the arrival of juvenile Pacific bluefin tuna in the California current ecosystem

2015 ◽  
Vol 72 (7) ◽  
pp. 2128-2138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannes Baumann ◽  
R. J. D. Wells ◽  
Jay R. Rooker ◽  
Saijin Zhang ◽  
Zofia Baumann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Fork Length ◽  
California Current ◽  
Bluefin Tuna ◽  
Otolith Microstructure ◽  
Pacific Bluefin Tuna ◽  
Thunnus Orientalis ◽  
Trace Elemental ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Age Estimates

Abstract Juvenile Pacific bluefin tuna (PBT, Thunnus orientalis) are known to migrate from western Pacific spawning grounds to their eastern Pacific nursery and feeding grounds in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME), but the timing, durations, and fraction of the population that makes these migrations need to be better understood for improved management. To complement recent work focused on stable isotope and radiotracer approaches (“tracer toolbox”; Madigan et al., 2014) we explored the suitability of combining longitudinal analyses of otolith microstructure and trace elemental composition in age ∼1–2 PBT (n = 24, 66–76 cm curved fork length) for inferring the arrival of individuals in the CCLME. Element:Ca ratios in transverse otolith sections (9–12 rows, triplicate ablations from primordium to edge, ø50 μm) were quantified for eight elements: Li, Mg, Mn, Co, Cu, Zn, Sr, and Ba, which was followed by microstructure analysis to provide age estimates corresponding to each ablation spot. Age estimates from otoliths ranged from 328 to 498 d post-hatch. The combined elemental signatures of four elements (Ba, Mg, Co, Cu) showed a significant increase at the otolith edge in approximately half of the individuals (30–60 d before catch). Given the different oceanographic properties of oligotrophic open Pacific vs. high nutrient, upwelling CCLME waters, this signal is consistent with the entry of the fish into the CCLME, which was estimated to occur primarily in July after a transoceanic migration of ∼1.5–2.0 months. Our approach comprises a useful addition to the available tracer toolbox and can provide additional and complementary understanding of trans-Pacific migration patterns in PBT.

scholarly journals Climate vulnerability assessment for Pacific salmon and steelhead in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem

PLoS ONE ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. e0217711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa G. Crozier ◽  
Michelle M. McClure ◽  
Tim Beechie ◽  
Steven J. Bograd ◽  
David A. Boughton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vulnerability Assessment ◽  
Pacific Salmon ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
California Current ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Climate Vulnerability

scholarly journals Improving Metabarcoding Taxonomic Assignment: A Case Study of Fishes in a Large Marine Ecosystem

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary Gold ◽  
Emily Curd ◽  
Kelly Goodwin ◽  
Emma Choi ◽  
Benjamin Frable ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Molecular Ecology ◽  
California Current ◽  
Reference Sequence ◽  
Taxonomic Assignment ◽  
Global Database ◽  
Assignment Accuracy ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem

DNA metabarcoding is an important tool for molecular ecology. However, its effectiveness hinges on the quality of reference sequence databases and classification parameters employed. Here we evaluate the performance of MiFish 12S taxonomic assignments using a case study of California Current Large Marine Ecosystem fishes to determine best practices for metabarcoding. Specifically, we use a taxonomy cross-validation by identity framework to compare classification performance between a global database comprised of all available sequences and a curated database that only includes sequences of fishes from the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem. We demonstrate that the curated, regional database provides higher assignment accuracy than the comprehensive global database. We also document a tradeoff between accuracy and misclassification across a range of taxonomic cutoff scores, highlighting the importance of parameter selection for taxonomic classification. Furthermore, we compared assignment accuracy with and without the inclusion of additionally generated reference sequences. To this end, we sequenced tissue from 605 species using the MiFish 12S primers, adding 253 species to GenBank’s existing 550 California Current Large Marine Ecosystem fish sequences. We then compared species and reads identified from seawater environmental DNA samples using global databases with and without our generated references, and the regional database. The addition of new references allowed for the identification of 16 native taxa and 17.0% of total reads from eDNA samples, including species with vast ecological and economic value. Together these results demonstrate the importance of comprehensive and curated reference databases for effective metabarcoding and the need for locus-specific validation efforts.

scholarly journals Using integrated, ecosystem-level management to address intensifying ocean acidification and hypoxia in the California Current large marine ecosystem

Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terrie Klinger ◽  
Elizabeth A. Chornesky ◽  
Elizabeth A. Whiteman ◽  
Francis Chan ◽  
John L. Largier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Acidification ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Abrupt Change ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
California Current ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Global Emission ◽  
Ecosystem Level ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Management Approaches

Ocean acidification is intensifying and hypoxia is projected to expand in the California Current large marine ecosystem as a result of processes associated with the global emission of CO2. Observed changes in the California Current outpace those in many other areas of the ocean, underscoring the pressing need to adopt management approaches that can accommodate uncertainty and the complicated dynamics forced by accelerating change. We argue that changes occurring in the California Current large marine ecosystem provide opportunities and incentives to adopt an integrated, systems-level approach to resource management to preserve existing ecosystem services and forestall abrupt change. Practical options already exist to maximize the benefits of management actions and ameliorate impending change in the California Current, for instance, adding ocean acidification and hypoxia to design criteria for marine protected areas, including consideration of ocean acidification and hypoxia in fisheries management decisions, and fully enforcing existing laws and regulations that govern water quality and land use and development.

Plastics in the Pacific: Assessing risk from ocean debris for marine birds in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem

2020 ◽  
Vol 250 ◽  
pp. 108743
Author(s):  
Thomas P. Good ◽  
Jameal F. Samhouri ◽  
Blake E. Feist ◽  
Chris Wilcox ◽  
Jaime Jahncke
Keyword(s):  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
California Current ◽  
Marine Birds ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystem
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