Article
Ecology
Shigeru Kawamata, Seiya Taino
Summary: The study of a marine protected area in southwest Japan with strict fishing management and habitat enhancement by artificial reefs showed that the control effect of lobsters on sea urchins led to the establishment of well-established macroalgal communities, indicating the cascading effects of predator recovery.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Kelsey I. Miller, Celia A. Balemi, Daria R. Bell, Caitlin O. Blain, Paul E. Caiger, Benn J. Hanns, Sara E. Kulins, Ohad Peleg, Arie J. P. Spyksma, Nick T. Shears
Summary: Sea urchin overgrazing is a major cause of kelp forest loss, and removing sea urchins can promote the recovery of kelp and other algae species. The study found that a one-off removal of sea urchins from large areas of urchin barrens can effectively and efficiently promote rapid recovery of multiple algae species within two years. However, this approach does not restore the entire ecosystem and requires long-term management of sea urchins and/or rebuilding of predator populations.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Kjell Magnus Norderhaug, Kjell Nedreaas, Mats Huserbraten, Even Moland
Summary: The article proposes the fishery driven predator release as the cause for the largest grazing event ever observed in the NE Atlantic, discussing the overgrazing of kelp forests due to sea urchin bloom and likely depletion of predatory coastal fish stocks by coastal fisheries modernization. It hypothesizes the importance of coastal predatory fish in regulating sea urchins and the necessity of a local population dynamics perspective in managing coastal ecosystems.
Article
Ecology
Ohad Peleg, Caitlin O. Blain, Nick T. Shears
Summary: This study compared the temporal variation in ecosystem state between a marine reserve and nearby fished reefs in New Zealand. The results showed that the protected reserve exhibited more persistent and stable reef ecosystem states compared to the fished sites. It was found that long-term protection of predators facilitated kelp forest recovery, prevented shifts to denuded alternate states, and enhanced kelp forest stability.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2023)
Review
Ecology
Cameron D. Bullen, Alberto A. Campos, Edward J. Gregr, Iain McKechnie, Kai M. A. Chan, Jacquelyn Gill
Summary: Based on historical evidence and ecological knowledge, researchers suggest that the extinction of Steller's sea cows in the North Pacific Ocean before the 1760s had significant impacts on kelp forest dynamics, affecting ecosystem structure, productivity, nutrient cycling, species interactions, and nutrient export to surrounding ecosystems. This highlights the important ecological roles lost with the extinction of megafauna, showing alterations in kelp forest dynamics and resilience prior to more recent stressors like industrial fishing and climate change.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Stephen R. Wing, Nicolas T. Shears, Leigh W. Tait, David R. Schiel
Summary: Aotearoa New Zealand provides a recent record of ecological legacy effects in the coastal zone. Large-scale land clearances of forests, overfishing, and declines in predatory species have affected the distribution and composition of algal forests. This study examines these processes in three biogeographic regions and highlights the importance of ecosystem-based management of kelp forest habitats.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Rituraj Sharma, Stephen E. Swearer, Rebecca L. Morris, Elisabeth M. A. Strain
Summary: Kelps are important ecosystem engineers forming forests that provide essential services; however, they are threatened by herbivory, particularly from sea urchins. A study found that flexible fencing is effective at excluding sea urchins and could help restore kelp in barren areas. Despite its success, cost limitations may restrict the widespread implementation of this management strategy.
MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Emily M. Donham, Scott L. Hamilton, Nichole N. Price, Susan Kram, Emily Kelly, Maggie D. Johnson, Alexander T. Neu, Jennifer Smith
Summary: This study investigated the impacts of ocean acidification and grazing by purple sea urchins on benthic assemblages in southern California kelp forests. The results showed consistent negative impacts of OA on community processes such as calcification and grazing rates, with effects on community structure being highly context-dependent.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL MARINE BIOLOGY AND ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Joshua G. Smith, Joseph Tomoleoni, Michelle Staedler, Sophia Lyon, Jessica Fujii, Tim Tinker
Summary: Consumer and predator foraging behavior can have significant impacts on community regulation, influencing ecosystem structure and stability. The response of apex predators to changes in prey behavior can alter the role of top-down forcing, depending on the spatial organization of ecosystem states. In this study, a shift in prey behavior and condition led to changes in predator-prey dynamics, highlighting the importance of trait-mediated responses in shaping ecosystem stability.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Daniel M. Cryan, Natalie H. N. Low, Steven Y. Litvin, Craig W. Osenberg, Fiorenza Micheli
Summary: Echinoderms, specifically the bat star Patiria miniata, play crucial roles in marine ecosystems. The trophic ecology of P. miniata, which is abundant in the kelp forests of the northeastern Pacific coast, has been understudied. This study provides new insights into the trophic role of P. miniata and suggests that its diet is narrower and more carnivorous than previously expected.
MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES
(2022)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Satomi Takagi, Yuko Murata, Yoichi Sato, Atsuko Kokubun, Yukio Agatsuma
Summary: This study investigated the effects of feeding Eisenia bicyclis kelp on the gonad quality of Mesocentrotus nudus and found that it promoted gonad maturation but resulted in inferior flavor compared to feeding on Saccharina japonica or Undaria pinnatifida.
ALGAL RESEARCH-BIOMASS BIOFUELS AND BIOPRODUCTS
(2022)
Article
Biology
A. W. E. Galloway, S. A. Gravem, J. N. Kobelt, W. N. Heady, D. K. Okamoto, D. M. Sivitilli, V. R. Saccomanno, J. Hodin, R. Whippo
Summary: The recent collapse of predatory sunflower sea stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) due to sea star wasting disease (SSWD) has led to the proliferation of sea urchin barrens and loss of kelp forests on the North American west coast. Experiments and a model were used to test whether restoring Pycnopodia populations could help recover kelp forests by consuming nutritionally poor purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) found in barrens. The results show that Pycnopodia has a significant impact on regulating sea urchin populations and maintaining healthy kelp forests.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alfonso Medellin-Ortiz, Gabriela Montano-Moctezuma, Carlos Alvarez-Flores, Eduardo Santamaria-del-Angel, Hector Garcia-Nava, Rodrigo Beas-Luna, Kyle Cavanaugh
Summary: This study analyzed the effects of food availability, predator abundance, and environmental variability on red sea urchin populations. The results showed that local environmental factors had a greater impact on population changes compared to regional and oceanic scale variables. The study also emphasized the importance of managing the red sea urchin harvest for maintaining resilient ecosystems.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Kousuke Yatsuya, Yukio Matsumoto
Summary: A long-term monitoring study conducted from 2014 to 2021 revealed a significant decrease in abundance of the annual kelp Saccharina japonica, leading to a transition from a kelp forest to a crustose coralline bed along the northeastern coast of Japan. The decline in kelp forest was attributed to colder seawater temperature in the winter/spring, which reduced herbivore grazing during kelp germination and early growth. Changes in the Oyashio Current further contributed to the transformation of the ecosystem. This study highlights the importance of environmental monitoring and the potential impacts of ocean warming on kelp-dependent ecosystems.
REGIONAL STUDIES IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Stephen R. Wing, Leonardo M. Durante, Alex J. Connolly, Amandine J. M. Sabadel, Lucy C. Wing
Summary: The study aimed to investigate the long-term effects of exploitation and changes in organic matter sources on marine food web trophic structure. The results suggested declines in organic matter contribution from kelps and increases in trophic levels of mesopredatory fishes. This data provides insights into the bioenergetics of fish communities in response to exploitation and environmental changes.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2022)
Article
Limnology
Jason M. Smith, Gordon Blasco, Mark A. Brzezinski, John M. Melack, Daniel C. Reed, Robert J. Miller
Summary: Urea is a readily available source of nitrogen for giant kelp, but uptake rates are lower compared to phytoplankton and are influenced by light intensity. Persistent urease activity in kelp tissues suggests additional roles beyond processing urea from the environment, contributing to year-round growth sustainability.
LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
A. Raine Detmer, Robert J. Miller, Daniel C. Reed, Tom W. Bell, Adrian C. Stier, Holly Moeller
Summary: The study found that storm disturbance has significant impacts on benthic community structure, with extreme storm regimes leading to increased understory macroalgae and decreased sessile invertebrates. The periodic loss of giant kelp and direct storm impacts on benthos influenced competition outcomes among benthic community members.
Article
Ecology
David M. Iwaniec, Michael Gooseff, Katharine N. Suding, David Samuel Johnson, Daniel C. Reed, Debra P. C. Peters, Byron Adams, John E. Barrett, Brandon T. Bestelmeyer, Max C. N. Castorani, Elizabeth M. Cook, Melissa J. Davidson, Peter M. Groffman, Niall P. Hanan, Laura F. Huenneke, Pieter T. J. Johnson, Diane M. McKnight, Robert J. Miller, Gregory S. Okin, Daniel L. Preston, Andrew Rassweiler, Chris Ray, Osvaldo E. Sala, Robert L. Schooley, Timothy Seastedt, Marko J. Spasojevic, Enrique R. Vivoni
Summary: This paper highlights the importance of long-term data collection and experiments in addressing the most challenging questions in scientific ecology. The diverse case studies presented within the LTER network demonstrate the complex interactions and impacts of human and environmental factors on ecosystems. Long-term ecological research shows that connectivity plays a crucial role in sustaining ecosystem functions and can also be a driver of state change and the introduction of undesirable species.
Article
Limnology
Paige M. Miller, Thomas Lamy, Henry M. Page, Robert J. Miller
Summary: Sea urchins are important grazers in coastal seas, and through studying the gut microbiomes of two dominant species in southern California, it was found that they have distinct microbial compositions which may aid in digestion and act as a source of nutrition. This highlights the role of microbiomes as an extended ecological trait within macroorganisms and suggests that microbes play a crucial role in resource use and partitioning in co-occurring species.
LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Max C. N. Castorani, Shannon L. Harrer, Robert J. Miller, Daniel C. Reed
Summary: The study found that habitat quality can mediate the effects of intensified disturbances on kelp forest net primary productivity, with understory macroalgae partially compensating for canopy NPP losses, and this effect magnifying with increasing habitat quality.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Erin Meyer-Gutbrod, Li Kui, Robert Miller, Mary Nishimoto, Linda Snook, Milton Love
Summary: Anthropogenic climate change has led to warming temperatures and decreased oxygen concentrations in the global oceans. Research conducted in the Southern California Channel Islands over a 15-year period showed that many fish species shifted their peak distribution to shallower depths in response to declining oxygen levels. This climate-driven distribution shift has important implications for fisheries management, including habitat reduction, compression, trophic dynamics, and body condition.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Kyle A. Emery, Jenifer E. Dugan, R. A. Bailey, Robert J. Miller
Summary: Declines in species diversity can have significant impacts on ecosystem functioning, particularly in detrital-based food webs where species traits, rather than species richness, play a key role in influencing ecosystem function. In the study of kelp consumption on sandy beaches, consumer species diversity had minimal effects while the species composition of the detritivore community was the primary driver of variation in consumption rates.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Thomas Lamy, Kathleen J. Pitz, Francisco P. Chavez, Christie E. Yorke, Robert J. Miller
Summary: Biodiversity is rapidly changing at local and regional scales, with beta diversity emerging as a key driver of ecosystem function that can inform spatial conservation efforts. Decoding eDNA left behind by organisms offers a detailed picture of spatial variation in taxonomic richness and community turnover. Comparing eDNA with underwater visual census, it is found that eDNA can outperform diver counts to capture spatial patterns in biodiversity at fine scales with less field effort.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Tiffany Hiroko Cedeno, Mark A. Brzezinski, Robert J. Miller, Daniel C. Reed
Summary: Giant kelp exhibited surge uptake of ammonium and nitrate in summer, but had limited capacity for surge uptake of urea. The ecological importance of surge uptake patterns for ammonium and nitrate is questionable, as the small scale and ephemeral nature of ammonium pulses, together with longer duration pulses of nitrate, may sustain giant kelp growth during seasons with low nitrate concentrations.
Article
Ecology
Heili E. Lowman, Kyle A. Emery, Jenifer E. Dugan, Robert Miller
Summary: The nutritional quality of giant kelp tissue in southern California has been found to decline over time, primarily due to increasing seawater temperatures and regional/local scale processes. This decline in nutritional quality has important implications for the nutrition and behavior of marine organisms, particularly key consumers such as sea urchins. The projected declines in kelp abundance due to climate change may be compounded by reductions in its nutritional quality, indicating potential further ecological consequences.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Henry M. Page, Juliann Schamel, Kyle A. Emery, Nicholas K. Schooler, Jenifer E. Dugan, Angela Guglielmino, Donna M. Schroeder, Linnea Palmstrom, David M. Hubbard, Robert J. Miller
Summary: The study found that island foxes on the California Channel Islands utilize sandy beach resources to expand habitat and dietary options, with stable isotope analysis showing individual differences in diet. Abundant marine resources on coastal beaches may increase population resilience of island foxes, especially during declines in terrestrial resources due to climate variability and long-term climate change.
Article
Ecology
Kyle A. Emery, Valerie R. Kramer, Nicholas K. Schooler, Kristen M. Michaud, Jessica R. Madden, David M. Hubbard, Robert J. Miller, Jenifer E. Dugan
Summary: The variation in tidal phase has important effects on the activity patterns and habitat use of mobile species, which can help avoid interspecific competition.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Gema Hernan, Alexandra K. Dubel, Jennifer E. Caselle, David J. Kushner, Robert J. Miller, D. C. Reed, Joshua L. Sprague, Andrew Rassweiler
Summary: Monitoring is crucial for measuring the progress and success of environmental policies and management programs. This study demonstrates the importance of assessing the relationship between sampling effort and confidence in biodiversity metrics, and compares the efficiency of different methods for monitoring biodiversity. The findings emphasize the need for optimizing resources and highlight the effectiveness of strategically chosen sampling strategies.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Dianne L. McLean, Luciana C. Ferreira, Jessica A. Benthuysen, Karen J. Miller, Marie-Lise Schlappy, Matthew J. Ajemian, Oliver Berry, Silvana N. R. Birchenough, Todd Bond, Fabio Boschetti, Ann S. Bull, Jeremy T. Claisse, Scott A. Condie, Pierpaolo Consoli, Joop W. P. Coolen, Michael Elliott, Irene S. Fortune, Ashley M. Fowler, Bronwyn M. Gillanders, Hugo B. Harrison, Kristen M. Hart, Lea-Anne Henry, Chad L. Hewitt, Natalie Hicks, Karlo Hock, Kieran Hyder, Milton Love, Peter I. Macreadie, Robert J. Miller, William A. Montevecchi, Mary M. Nishimoto, Henry M. Page, David M. Paterson, Charitha B. Pattiaratchi, Gretta T. Pecl, Joanne S. Porter, David B. Reeves, Cynthia Riginos, Sally Rouse, Debbie J. F. Russell, Craig D. H. Sherman, Jonas Teilmann, Victoria L. G. Todd, Eric A. Treml, David H. Williamson, Michele Thums
Summary: Offshore oil and gas infrastructure has an impact on ecological connectivity in marine habitats, particularly for larvae and mobile animals. However, there is still a lack of knowledge on the specific effects of oil and gas structures on ecological connectivity, which requires further research. When decommissioning oil and gas infrastructure, it is important to consider the impact on species survival, movement, and distribution.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Jose Diesel, Gary Molano, Gabriel J. Montecinos, Kelly Deweese, Sara Calhoun, Alan Kuo, Anna Lipzen, Asaf Salamov, Igor V. Grigoriev, Daniel C. Reed, Robert J. Miller, Sergey V. Nuzhdin, Filipe Alberto
Summary: The study presents a high-quality genome assembly of the giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera, using PacBio reads and Hi-C technology. The assembled genome is 537 MB in size, with 35 scaffolds and 188 contigs. Annotation of the genome identified 25,919 genes. Additionally, the study confirms the population structure of giant kelp using genetic variation data.