Kari St.Laurent
Bon Voyage to Oceanbites
Oceanbites has been an incredible experience. Today is my goodbye post and my thank you to the readers and Oceanbites contributors! Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and am finishing up a post-doc at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (Horn Point Laboratory). […]
Cascading Effects From Geoduck Expansions
An ecosystem model predicts how the Puget Sound ecosystem could be affected as the popular geoduck aquaculture industry increases. Including mediating affects, such as changes in predator refuges, allowed ecosystem-wide changes to be uncovered. For example, a decrease in seabirds was predicted due to shifts in prey populations resulting from the anti-predation guards for geoducks. […]
Oysters going viral
The human norovirus persisted longer than 6 weeks in contaminated oysters held at lower water temperatures, suggesting that the water temperature oysters are held at during depuration should be considered when determining if a contaminated oyster bed is safe to eat . Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School […]
Rip Rap Sill: The Best of Both Worlds
The hybrid shoreline stabilization method called rip rap sill combines rock structures with native vegetation. This study found that fish biodiversity and abundance in rip rap sills was more similar to a native marsh than a built rip rap. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) […]
Wave the Yellow Flag
While the blue flag iris is native to United States wetlands, the yellow variety is invasive and just starting to pop up on the radar of concern for land managers. This study found that seed dispersal was the main reproduction tactic, which was unique since asexual reproduction from rhizome pieces breaking off is the common […]
Plant Parents: Divide, Seed, and Conquer
Phragmites is the ultimate parent in terms of reproductive success, allowing it to increase in area by 25% since 1971 in the Rhode River subestuary. While phragmites can spread asexually through rhizome clones, seed dispersion requiring two parents was the most successful tactic found in this study. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in […]
A Million Little Pieces….of plastic
Trillions of tiny plastic fragments are floating in the Earth’s ocean. These microplastics can attract organic pollutants, be ingested by marine organisms, and even end up in table salt. This Earth Week post gives a broad introduction to microplastics and examples of how we can all help to reduce this problem! Kari St.LaurentI received a […]
It’s ALIVE: Living Shorelines!
It’s no secret we want to protect our shorelines from erosion and coastal storms. One best management practice catching steam is a living shoreline, which uses native vegetation instead of concrete. Living shorelines not only have the potential to protect coastal communities, but may also be a carbon sink. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in […]
Flying high: the ospreys are alright!
Chesapeake Bay osprey populations were at an all-time low in the 1970’s due in part to pesticides like DDT. Forty years later, organic pollutant concentrations in eggs and fledglings are on the decline and observations from 2011-2012 suggest there were no large scale effects of organic contaminants on osprey productivity. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. […]
It’s a TRAP! Predators help trap carbon in coastal sediments
Vegetated coastal ecosystems, such as salt marshes, can trap and store carbon for millennia. This perspective investigates how the effects from the global loss of predators has cascaded down to these habitats, often resulting in lower carbon storage. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and […]
Jump in, the water is warm!
Satellite data was used to measure surface water temperatures throughout Chesapeake Bay over the last 28 years. This new approach will allow us to monitor future water temperature changes from the comfort of home. This study uncovered that Chesapeake Bay water temperatures are increasing faster than air temperatures, which could have negative ecological consequences. Kari […]
Beyond the Science: Networking at the Geological Society of America Conference
Most scientists go to conferences to present their work and to share and learn about new scientific findings and methods, but there is so much more to conferences! This post will highlight a small handful of activities, networking events, and presentations from the first day of the Geological Society of America meeting that go beyond […]
Double Whammy: Losing sea ice may be worse than we thought
When Arctic sea ice melts, it warms the local region by decreasing the albedo, or lowering the area’s reflectiveness. This atmospheric warming likely intensifies methane production in Arctic wetlands, which causes more warming and ultimately creates a positive feedback by melting more ice! Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate […]
Bait and Switch: are Maryland crabs the ingredient in your Maryland crab cake?
The non-profit organization Oceana went undercover to analyze the DNA in 90 crab cakes sold throughout Maryland and D.C. Their results suggest that 38% of these “locally caught” crab cakes were mislabeled, containing crab species other than the blue crab. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography […]
CSI Holocene: Who started the fire?
Sediment and ice cores suggest that peaks in fire activity that happened 2,500 years ago in Europe was likely caused by early humans applying the slash and burn technique to clear away forests. This demonstrates that the anthropogenic carbon footprint dates back further than the Industrial Revolution. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in […]
Lessons Learned during a Congressional Visit Day
In an effort to connect scientists with policy-makers, the American Meteorological Society hosts Congressional Visit Days. This post highlights six “lessons” learned during these unique and important meetings with our local and national policy-makers. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and am finishing up a […]
It’s getting warm, should I migrate now?
Leatherback turtles are nesting later due to warming sea surface temperatures at their foraging grounds, raising questions on how climate change will affect turtle migrations in the future. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and am finishing up a post-doc at the University of Maryland […]
Nineteen years later: The clean-up of Boston Harbor’s waste water
The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority spent ten years from 1991 and 2000 drastically improving the treatment of waste water released into Boston Harbor in an effort to improve the overall health of this unique estuary. This study measured how the sediments reacted and recovered to this massive effort. Despite the complexities and variability, from start […]
Blooming around the world: A story of coccolithophore co-existence
Satellite remote sensing suggests that different phytoplankton species can live in harmony during phytoplankton blooms in the open ocean. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and am finishing up a post-doc at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (Horn Point Laboratory). I am […]
Do increasing air temperatures mean increasing stream temperatures? Spoiler, yes!
Stream water temperatures have increased over the last 51 years in the Chesapeake Bay watershed and are connected to increases in air temperature, latitude, and changes in land-use, causing potential shifts in ecosystem dynamics and stratification. Kari St.LaurentI received a Ph.D. in oceanography in 2014 from the Graduate School of Oceanography (URI) and am finishing […]
by oceanbites 4 days ago
Being on a research cruise is a unique experience with the open water, 12-hour working shifts, and close quarters, but there are some familiar practices too. Here Diana is filtering seawater to gather chlorophyll for analysis, the same process on- by oceanbites 1 month ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on #oceanbites we are featuring Hannah Collins @hannahh_irene Hannah works with marine suspension feeding bivalves and microplastics, investigating whether ingesting microplastics causes changes to the gut microbial community or gut tissues. She hopes to keep working - by oceanbites 2 months ago
Leveling up - did you know that crabs have a larval phase? These are both porcelain crabs, but the one on the right is the earlier stage. It’s massive spine makes it both difficult to eat and quite conspicuous in - by oceanbites 2 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on #Oceanbites we are featuring Cierra Braga. Cierra works ultraviolet c (UVC) to discover how this light can be used to combat biofouling, or the growth of living things, on the hulls of ships. Here, you - by oceanbites 2 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Elena Gadoutsis @haysailor These photos feature her “favorite marine research so far: From surveying tropical coral reefs, photographing dolphins and whales, and growing my own algae to expose it to different - by oceanbites 3 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on Oceanbites we are featuring Eliza Oldach. According to Ellie, “I study coastal communities, and try to understand the policies and decisions and interactions and adaptations that communities use to navigate an ever-changing world. Most of - by oceanbites 3 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Jiwoon Park with a little photographic help from Ryan Tabata at the University of Hawaii. When asked about her research, Jiwoon wrote “Just like we need vitamins and minerals to stay - by oceanbites 3 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on #Oceanbites we are featuring @riley_henning According to Riley, ”I am interested in studying small things that make a big impact in the ocean. Right now for my master's research at the University of San Diego, - by oceanbites 3 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Gabby Stedman. Gabby is interested in interested in understanding how many species of small-bodied animals there are in the deep-sea and where they live so we can better protect them from - by oceanbites 4 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Shawn Wang! Shawn is “an oceanographer that studies ocean conditions of the past. I use everything from microfossils to complex computer models to understand how climate has changed in the past - by oceanbites 4 months ago
Today we are highlighting some of our awesome new authors for #WriterWednesday Today we have Daniel Speer! He says, “I am driven to investigate the interface of biology, chemistry, and physics, asking questions about how organisms or biological systems respond - by oceanbites 5 months ago
Here at Oceanbites we love long-term datasets. So much happens in the ocean that sometimes it can be hard to tell if a trend is a part of a natural cycle or actually an anomaly, but as we gather more - by oceanbites 5 months ago
Have you ever seen a lobster molt? Because lobsters have exoskeletons, every time they grow they have to climb out of their old shell, leaving them soft and vulnerable for a few days until their new shell hardens. Young, small - by oceanbites 6 months ago
A lot of zooplankton are translucent, making it much easier to hide from predators. This juvenile mantis shrimp was almost impossible to spot floating in the water, but under a dissecting scope it’s features really come into view. See the - by oceanbites 6 months ago
This is a clump of Dead Man’s Fingers, scientific name Codium fragile. It’s native to the Pacific Ocean and is invasive where I found it on the east coast of the US. It’s a bit velvety, and the coolest thing - by oceanbites 7 months ago
You’ve probably heard of jellyfish, but have you heard of salps? These gelatinous sea creatures band together to form long chains, but they can also fall apart and will wash up onshore like tiny gemstones that squish. Have you seen - by oceanbites 7 months ago
Check out what’s happening on a cool summer research cruise! On the #neslter summer transect cruise, we deployed a tow sled called the In Situ Icthyoplankton Imaging System. This can take pictures of gelatinous zooplankton (like jellyfish) that would be - by oceanbites 8 months ago
Did you know horseshoe crabs have more than just two eyes? In these juveniles you can see another set in the middle of the shell. Check out our website to learn about some awesome horseshoe crab research. #oceanbites #plankton #horseshoecrabs - by oceanbites 8 months ago
Feeling a bit flattened by the week? So are these summer flounder larvae. Fun fact: flounder larvae start out with their eyes set like normal fish, but as they grow one of their eyes migrates to meet the other and - by oceanbites 8 months ago
Have you seen a remote working setup like this? This is a photo from one of our Oceanbites team members Anne Hartwell. “A view from inside the control can of an underwater robot we used to explore the deep parts
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