Research on Hood Canal Marine Life

A team of students and professors from the University of Puget Sound is studying marine life conditions in Hood Canal and I thought you might be interested in their research. Their recent work has focused on the large bacterial mats that have formed at the bottom of Hood Canal and seem to be affecting marine life. Here is an underwater photo of the mat covering the Canal floor (right) and a 40x magnified image (below left). Click on the images to enlarge them.

Click Here to visit the research website. Here is a description of the project taken from the website:

Hood Canal is experiencing low dissolved oxygen levels (see the Hood Canal Dissolved Oxygen Program website) and recently there have been reports of fish kills and dead zones. The Skokomish tribe has also reported that the bottom of some areas of Hood Canal are covered with bacterial mats (see Tacoma News Tribune article). To compare the bacterial mats in Hood Canal with those that we have observed in Commencement Bay, we are conducting a collaborative study with the Skokomish tribe and the Hood Canal Dissolved Oxygen Program. We are using underwater videography techniques and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to map the distribution and abundance of bacterial mats in relation to water depth, sediment type, and water quality variables.

We are working with Dr. Mark Martin and his Microbiology students to identify the microbial community that make up the bacterial mats. We will be using microscopy and genetic sequencing methods to identify the bacteria. At this point we have tentatively identified the dominant bacterial type as the sulfide-oxidizing bacterium Beggiatoa spp. These bacteria are some of the largest known, and visible surface mats of Beggiatoa spp. have been observed in areas with low oxygen levels in the water column. The mats have also been regarded as an indicator of organic enrichment from either natural or anthropogenic sources.

The UPS team, under the direction of Biology professor Joel Elliott, has sent a research submarine down at several sites on Hood Canal to survey the bottom and assess the marine life conditions. Interestingly, one of the research sites seems to be just a few hundred yards from the Shorehill dock, so it gives some indication of what's happening in our part of the Canal.

You can see recent video taken at this and other research sites on Hood Canal. Click here and you will be taken to a large map of Hood Canal with the research sites indicated. The red star closest to the center of your screen is the "Shorehill" site (as I have decided to name it). Click on the star and you'll see video taken of the bottom of the Canal, showing starfish, crab and so on. You can compare our area to other parts of the Canal by clicking on the stars representing the other research sites.

-- Mike Veseth

P.S. The Shorehill Blog was visited more than 2500 times over the last three months! Happy New Year to all our Shorehill friends.