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Resilience Amidst a Sea of Change: The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER Program

Resilience Amidst a Sea of Change: The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER Program. Suzanne Strom Russ Hopcroft , Ana Aguilar-Islas, Seth Danielson, Jerome Fiechter. Outline. What is the LTER program? The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER: components, opportunities

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Resilience Amidst a Sea of Change: The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER Program

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  1. Resilience Amidst a Sea of Change:The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER Program Suzanne StromRuss Hopcroft, Ana Aguilar-Islas, Seth Danielson, Jerome Fiechter

  2. Outline What is the LTER program? The Northern Gulf of Alaska LTER: components, opportunities Preliminary findings from year 1 (2018) River plume process work planned for year 2

  3. Long-Term Ecological Research Multi-decade Discover, explorefundamental ecologicalprinciples A National Science Foundation programInitiated in 1980

  4. Andrews Forest LTER (AND) Arctic LTER (ARC) Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES) Beaufort Lagoon Ecosystem (BLE) Bonanza Creek LTER (BNZ) California Current Ecosystem LTER (CCE) Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve (CDR) Central Arizona - Phoenix LTER (CAP) Coweeta LTER (CWT) Florida Coastal Everglades LTER (FCE) Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER (GCE) Harvard Forest LTER (HFR) Hubbard Brook LTER (HBR) Jornada Basin LTER (JRN) Kellogg Biological Station LTER (KBS) Konza Prairie LTER (KNZ) Luquillo LTER (LUQ) McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER (MCM) Moorea Coral Reef LTER (MCR) Niwot Ridge LTER (NWT) North Temperate Lakes LTER (NTL) Northeast U.S. Shelf (NES) Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGA) Palmer Antarctica LTER (PAL) Plum Island Ecosystems LTER (PIE) Santa Barbara Coastal LTER (SBC) Sevilleta LTER (SEV) Virginia Coast Reserve LTER (VCR) Newest sites

  5. Contrasting biomes:

  6. LTER Philosophy and Approach: Long-term and broad-scale research is necessary for truly understanding environmental phenomena Unique aspects:1. Sites chosen to represent distinct biomes 2. Data are collected in five core areas: --Patterns and controls of primary production --Spatial and temporal population dynamics and food web interactions --Patterns and controls of organic matter accumulation and decomposition --Patterns of inorganic inputs and movement of nutrients --Patterns and frequency of disturbances 3. Focus on integrative, cross-site, network-wide research

  7. Cross-site Comparison Opportunities • Our closest marine partners: California Current Ecosystem (CCE)Palmer (Antarctic Peninsula) (PAL)New England Shelf (NCE) • Other Alaska sites: Bonanza Creek (boreal forest)Arctic (lakes, tundra)Beaufort Lagoon (Arctic coastline)

  8. Builds on Seward Line program

  9. NGA LTER observations: NOAA Fisheries

  10. NGA LTER observations: Three cruises per year: May, July, Sept (~ 14 days) • Physics (T, S, Optical properties) • Chemistry • Macronutrients (N, P, Si) • Carbon (DIC, POC, PIC) • Suspended and sinking particles • Iron (multiple pools) • Lower trophic levels • Chlorophyll (size fractionated) • Primary production • Phytoplankton, microzooplankton composition • Upper trophic levels • Metazooplankton (3 mesh sizes) • Large jellies • Seabirds/marine mammal observer R.V. Tiglax R.V. Sikuliaq

  11. Dealing with Heterogeneity Process focus areas: Copper River plume Spring bloom NOAA Fisheries

  12. NGA LTER observations: Capturing variability in time: To be deployed summer ‘19 NOAA Fisheries

  13. Modeling Capturing variabilityin time and space • High horizontal resolution for ROMS • ‘Hill’ runoff • NEMURO-based NPZ model ‘NEMUGA’ PS: Nanophytoplankton PL: Diatoms ZS1: Microzooplankton (small flagellates) ZS2: Microzooplankton (ciliates, dinoflagellates) - Mixotrophy? ZL1: Small Copepods ZL2: Large Copepods ZP: Euphausiids(E. pacifica, T. spinifera)

  14. Remote Sensing Altimetry:mesoscale eddies Ocean color: phytoplankton biomass Chlorophyll (µg liter-1)

  15. Conceptual Framework • Hypotheses related to role of hydrologic cycle in regulating timing and location of primary and secondary production • Ecological framework proposes that intense environmental variability leads to high resilience in the NGA • Resilience is achieved through specific, evolved properties of individuals, species, and communities: nutritional plasticity, life history strategies, species redundancy

  16. Education and outreach: Marilyn Sigman • Schoolyard program: Virtual field trips for K-12 (under development) • Teachers-at-Sea program in cooperation with NOAA: lesson plans, blog posts • Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) program • Graduate student involvement • Video series (40!) from Spring 2018 Sikuliaq cruise • Article series by Lauren Frisch

  17. Information management: Chris Turner • In progress: • Searchable, publicly accessible database • Data workflows • Metadata templates • File naming and formatting conventions Liz Dobbins Our web site! Please explore

  18. Findings from 2018 Albatross Bank: a summer and fall biological ‘hot spot’ Kodiak Is. Tidal mixing and nutrient pumping: Persistent diatom bloom: Distance offshore (km) Chlorophyll(µg/liter) µM NO3: 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

  19. Findings from 2018 Albatross Bank: a summer and fall biological ‘hot spot’ Total birds / km2 300 September July Apr-May 5 Shearwaters, murres September Fin whales Cushing et al. Seabird Poster Monday PM

  20. Findings from 2018 Unexpected and interesting organisms: large jellies

  21. Findings from 2018 Wet Weight (g m-3) Unexpected and interesting organisms: large jellies <0.5 1 5 10 X - Not present WW Biomass of small jellies is on the order of 10-50 mg m-3 Mendoza-Islas Jelly Poster Monday PM

  22. Findings from 2018 Unexpected and interesting organisms: green ciliates (mixotrophs) Laboeastrobila Blue ex: chl-a UV ex: nuclei Light Spring 2018:Contribution of chloroplast-retaining (green) ciliates to total ciliate biomass Can be a large fraction of the“microzooplankton” Strom et al. Mixotrophy talk, Tuesday 9:00 AM

  23. 2019 Process Study: Copper River plume 21-d cruise in July Freshwater discharge from allsources into the Gulf of AK:(from Beamer et al. 2016)

  24. 2019 Process Study: Copper River plume Major input of fresh water to the summerand fall shelf: July 2018 Middleton Island Line 23 28 26 30 10 20 Depth (m) • Freshwater input: • Affects stratification, which in turn affects production • Contributes (with winds) to driving the Alaska Coastal Current Distance offshore (km)

  25. 2019 Process Study: Copper River plume Rivers supply iron, a micronutrientessential for primary production: Fall 2018 surface data Salinity Dissolved iron

  26. Salinity and copepod distribution: May 2002 May 2001 32.4 32.4 offshore offshore inshore inshore Data from K. Coyle

  27. Copper River plume process cruise Iron fish and Acrobat high-resolution surveys of plume depth, extent, orientation SBE-49 FastCat Temperature Conductivity (Salinity) Pressure (Depth) Acrobatdeployment ECO Triplet Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Optical Backscatter Colored Dissolved Organic Matter CTD Acrobat

  28. Copper River plume process cruise • Drifter deployments to follow plume evolution • Associated sampling for • Community composition • Rate measurements (e.g. growth, grazing, export flux) • Assessment of growth-limiting factors Stabeno et al. 2004 Modeling studies usingimproved freshwater dischargesubmodel: Ocean Model with Low resolution Discharge Ocean Model with High resolution Discharge Observed September Climatology: Surface Salinity

  29. Context: What are the consequences of long-term changesin freshwater input to the Gulf of Alaska? 1970-2018

  30. Opportunities • LTER is meant to be leveraged – a backbone! • 5 years funding this cycle; 6-year funding cycle going forward • Berths on Sikuliaq cruises • Possible sample and/or data collection • Student and volunteer opportunities • Other collaborations incl data sharing Please see our web site:https://nga.lternet.edu/

  31. Thank you for your attention! Photo Credits: Satellite-based Chl-a early May estimates provided by Stabenoand Salo Satellite true color images all from NASA Diatom bloom https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/123914/view/marine-phytoplankton-diatom-bloom Common murre: https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/common-murre Sooty shearwater: Matthias Dehling Fin whale: Nino Pierantonio, Tethys Research Institute Green Laboeastrobila: Franz Neidl, Glacier Bay National Park

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