June 2023 Seawords

SEAWORDS

TheMarineOptionProgramNewsletter

June2023

VolumeXXXVIII, Number 6

Aloha and Welcometo theJuneissueof Seawords!

In this summer issue, we'rebringing you thelatest in ocean science, from theimplications of an impending El Niño (page4) to thefish who set a new deep sea record (page22)! Wealso explorehow oyster reefs can help bettlecoastal erosion (page8) as well as somenew DNA sampling techniques (page14). Let your imagination run wild and read about an undertwater laboratory in themaking on page10.

Finally, allow us to introduceJune's Creatureof theMonth: theHawaiian monk seal! And don't forget to check out our fun new crossword puzzleat theback of this issue! Happy summer reading MOPers!

What would you liketo seemoreof in Seawords?Send in your thoughts, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @mopseawords!

AbbieJeremiah, SeawordsEditor & Sofía Flores Pina, AssociateEditor

Contents

2: Letter From theEditor

4: El Niño

8: Oyster Reefs

10: PROTEUS: TheUnderwater SpaceStation

14: New Sampling Techniques For Species Cataloging

Utilizing eDNA

18:Creatureof theMonth: Hawaiian Monk Seal

22: Deep Sea Fish Sets a New Record

26: Seawords Crossword Puzzle

Photo Credits

Front Page: Monk seal swimming over a coral reef. Photo by: NOAA; Wikimedia Commons.

Table of Contents: Anemoneshrimp. Photo by: Vlad Tchompalov; Unsplash.

Back Cover: Midway Atoll albatross. Photo by: Kristy Lapenta/UFSWS; Flickr.

El Niño

By: Sarah McGhee, UHM MOP Student

Turksand CaicosHorizon.

Photo by:Romello Williams; Unsplash.

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El Niño and La Niña are cycles of cooling and warming in oceans across the globe, however little is known about the effects they have on the ocean and its inhabitants. We know an El Niño affects ocean temperatures, currents, and even weather on the shores across the world. The cycles and ?routines?of the warming and cooling periods are hard to track and even harder to predict. However, with scientists predicting an El Niño within the next year, ocean life, such as coral reefs, may be facing a new threat.

The El Niño phenomenon is part of a much larger event known as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Exacerbated by climate change, the El Niño is the warming period in this cycle. Coastal upwelling is the process in which warmer waters are pushed along the Pacific by trade winds. When the trade winds weaken, the

warmer water moves less, leading to the warming period. In a La Niña the opposite occurs, more trade winds blow, and a ?cooling? period occurs. Predicting these cycles is not an easy task and little is known about what may trigger different periods. Climatologists working in the early 1900?s learned that the El Niño occurred at the same time as the Southern Oscillation, meaning as the ocean water temperature increased, the atmospheric pressure above the ocean decreased. It was believed that an El Niño or La Niña event occurred every two to seven years. However, as climate change becomes more drastic and the ocean warms, the events may become more frequent or more extreme.

But what does the warming and changing of cycles mean for the animals that call the ocean home?

Specifically looking at coral reefs, which are greatly affected by warming

temperatures, even a slight increase in ocean temperatures causes an event known as coral bleaching. When water temperatures get too warm, corals expel their zooxanthellae, the algae that produces the coral's nutrients and color, resulting in bleaching. If the temperatures do not return to a comfortable level, the coral will likely not recover and die. Coral reefs provide shelter for a number or species across the Pacific. As a result, mass coral bleaching events are also detrimental to fish populations. With the prediction of an El Niño later this year, scientists are already concerned for the fate of some reefs.

The most extreme El Niño of the 20th century occurred in 1982-1983, where in some parts of the Eastern Tropical Pacific, surface temperatures increased 9-18 degrees F above normal. The El Niño

event in 2015-2016 triggered the worst global bleaching event and mass mortality of coral to date. While scientists as NOAA are not predicting an event as detrimental as this, the effects cannot be ignored. Their predictions estimate an 80%chance of a moderate El Niño, with surface temperatures increasing by 1.8 degrees F from normal. Even small changes can influence coral reefs, who rely on constant temperatures to survive. While we as people cannot control the ENSO cycles, we can help to mitigate the effect climate change has on the cycle and the life it affects. Millions of people rely on the fishing and tourism industry in all parts of the world, where coral reefs are the backbone of their livelihood.

Understanding the role we all play in ocean health is the first step toward ensuring the longevity of our reefs.

Black Coral Reef.Photo by: BenjaminL.Jones;Unsplash.

Oyster Reefs

By:

Soleil Von Hausch,UHM MOPStudent

OysterReef Habitat.Photo by: Joe Whalen/The Tampa Bay EstuaryProgram;Unsplash.

If you were to travel to New York two centuries ago,you would observe plentiful oysters lining the coast. These mollusks boosted the New York economy by giving people an accessible and inexpensive snack,but more importantly,oysters protected New York's shoreline.Like coral reefs, oyster reefs absorb incoming wave energy,which prevents coastal erosion.Additionally,oysters support a wide range of species,boosting biodiversity.However,nowadays oysters have been over-fished relentlessly,leaving American coastlines undefended against storm surges.Thankfully,many environmentalists and scientists are coming up with artificial solutions to combat shore erosion.

Many coastal cities opt for traditional seawalls to replace the natural oyster reefs.However,these seawalls don?t absorb energy the way reefs do,and instead allow it to increase wave energy in nearby environments,destroying natural areas for the sake of protecting cities. Start-up company Reefy intends to solve this problem through its use of concrete building-blocks that look similar to Legos.These blocks have holes going through them,so wave energy decreases as it passes through,

instead of being deflected as in the case of most seawalls.Furthermore, the blocks are covered in something called ?Reefy Paint,?which is a calcium carbonate blend that allows organisms to attach to the substrate.Through this,the blocks can be used as a foundation for nature to build from. Reefy?s blocks can also be customized for different shorelines,as the blocks can be formed in a variety of shapes. One thing the blocks don?t directly address however are oysters' natural filtration abilities.Oysters are able to filter water pollution,which naturally helps the environment.With no set plan on placing oysters on the blocks,Reefy can?t guarantee the blocks will have the same ecological benefit as natural oyster reefs. Thankfully,many non-profits such as the Billion Oyster project in New York have been established to ensure the restoration of oyster reefs.These reefs are made artificially by adding a mixture of old oyster shells and other hard substrates to areas on the ocean floor that already have existing oyster larvae.Through this,the oyster population has a stable foundation from which to re-establish.No matter what the solution,it?s important to find environmentally friendly ways to prevent coastal erosion.

PROTEUS: TheUnderwaterSpaceStation

By:LucianAnderson,UHMMOPAlumnus

NEEMO11Crewmember worksnearNOAA's undersea laboratory, "Aquarius,"forNASA's Extreme Environment MissionsOperations (NEEMO)project in 2006.

Photo by: Johnson/NASA;Flickr.

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?Instead,I chosesomething different,I chosetheimpossible,I choseRapture?

-Andrew Ryan,Bioshock 200

Thislineisinreferenceto theintroductiontoBioshock,a survival horror gamereleasedin 2007.Thesettingisacity built at thebottomof theAtlanticOcean whereAndrew Ryansought to createautopiaof innovationwith nobounds.Thegamehasalot of philosophical themessuchas ethicsandscienceadvancements inadditiontofreewill.At the beginning,thegameplacesthe player inalighthousewherethey enter asubmersiblebathysphere. Thebathyspheretransportsthe player toacity reminiscent of New York or Chicagobuilt underwater.Whalesandsea turtlesswimpast thecolossal buildings.The?streets?are populatedby schoolsof fishand neonlights.In2007,theconcept of acity at thebottomof the

oceanfascinated mebut it isa fantastical concept.Or isit?

NOAA (National Oceanand AtmosphericAdministration)of theUnitedStatesgovernment andProteusOceanGroup partnereduptocreateafacility tostudy theoceanenvironment. Thefacility wouldhost scientists, privatecitizens,innovators,and publiccustomersfromall over the worldworkingtobetter understandthemarine environment.Thefacility will be built intheCaribbeanoff the coast of Curacao.ProteusOcean Groupdescribesthisproject as ?International SpaceStationof theSea.?

Thedirector of NOAA Ocean Exploration,Jeremy Weirichsaid inregardstothefacility,?this partnershiphasthepotential to greatly expandour capabilitiesin studyingtheocean.?Spendingthis amount of timeintheoceanwill allow ustohavemoreaccurate

dataonspecificoceaneventsand functions.However,thedata collectedat thisfacility will be specifictotheCaribbeanand possibly only theCuracaoarea. How theoceanicenvironment interactswiththecoastline, seafloor,or islandscanvary dependingonmany factorssuch ascurrents,storms,andeven platetectonics.Thisisn't tosay a facility isuseless,but it will givea

lot of datatomakebetter decisionsregardingoceanpolicy andscientificbreakthroughsthat canbecrossreferencedwithdata inother countriesor possibly other underwater facilities.

Facilitieslikethiscan provide24/7 surveillanceof the ocean.Peoplewill beabletostay inthesefacilitieslongtermlike theInternational SpaceStationor anAntarcticbase.Thiswill allow

NEEMOcrewmembersparticipate in a sessionof extravehicularactivity(EVA).

Photo by:Johnson/NASA;Flickr.

continuousobservationbelow thesurfacepossible.Founder of ProteusOceanGroup,Fabien Cousteaustated,?withNOAA?s collaboration,thediscoverieswe canmake? inrelationtoclimate refugia,super corals,life-saving drugs,microenvironmental data tiedtoclimateeventsandmany others? will betruly groundbreaking.Welook forwardtosharingthosestories

withtheworld.?

Whiletheideaof acity underwater islikely not goingto happen,thisfacility built 60 ft underwater off thecoast of Curacaowill providehumanswith arareandhumblingexperience:a chancetowitnesslifebelow the wavesfor longer thanoxygen tankswill allow.A new frontier hasbeenopenedthat wasonce thought tobeimpossible.

Digital rendering of the Proteus UnderwaterLaboratory.Photo Source:FabienCousteau; ProteusOceanGroup.

NewSampling TechniquesforSpecies CatalogingUtilizing eDNA

ByAlexandriaRobinson,UHMMOPStudent

ChemistryLab.Photo by:Girl withthe Red Hat;Unsplash.

The rangeof fields of study in the biological sciences spans from the tallest mountain to the deepest part of thesea and is ever-evolving. New technologies areconstantly making collecting information about our natural world more accessible and quantifiable. Currently one of the biggest issues facing modern biological scientists is the ability to quantify thenumber of species in large ocean areas. Many topics including biodiversity indexing,species migration,and species invasion have been incredibly intensive in terms of the labor,time,and funding they require. As a result,these challenges have limited the scope of potential discoveries in the field of biology.

However,as technology evolves,so too do the sampling techniques.Some of thebest large-scalesampling tools previously utilized were expensive satellites. Satellites do not always offer great resolution and accuracy, and face limitations in their wider

application to deep-sea environments. Now,environmental DNA,also called eDNA,is taken from anywhere including air,soil, and even water to sample for possible identification from the residual shedding of DNA that organisms naturally do. In thecase of the USMarine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON), eDNAis being used in theoceans to catalog species at a lower cost and much more efficiently than having large research crews try to sail between locations hoping to catch proof of a species living there.

USMBON has set up monitoring stations within the national marine sanctuaries for fish monitoring that could better inform scientists about abundance, breeding habits,location,and efficacy of these marine sanctuaries to better inform fisheries practices. These samples can include secretions such as mucus,waste,reproductive gametes,and dead tissue. All

samples can have a rangeof viability with the genetic information preserved with the tests,either being performed on 12SrDNAfor vertebrates,16S rDNA for microscopic organisms, 18SrDNAfor planktonic species,or COI for invertebrate species.

Samples are often collected using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs),filtered,and brought to a wet lab to conduct PCR amplification of theDNA that is later sequenced to be uploaded to a shared database. There are some ?dark taxa?that have yet to be described so they cannot be matched in these databases but are still important for future research. Traditional mass sequencing is also more cost effective than smaller scale PCR amplification of DNA.

Water does tend to degrade eDNA segments as well as high wave action in oceanic mixing from air movement and tidal shifts,but not all hopeis lost for this eDNA. Research has shown lower

temperatures are much better for preserving the integrity of the eDNA,which is why many samples areplaced on ice in the lab while processing. This could mean that lower oceanic temperatures, especially in coastal upwelling marine sanctuaries keeps the eDNAfrom being completely unusable as soon as it is shed.

One research team was able to match 42 different species of fish to their eDNAthat was shed, with 80%of those identified being common local species. This is promising for indexing species as a whole instead of individually. Currently,the most important aspect of refining the use of eDNA as a viable sampling technique is unifying the methodology of sampling. Continued use of eDNA to lower thenumber of ?dark taxa? along with this conformity of sampling methods will continue to build repeatable and useful long term mass monitoring in our marine sanctuaries whilebeing more labor and cost effective.

MolecularTesting.Photo by:the CenterforDisease Control (CDC);Unsplash.

Creatureof theMonth: Hawaiian Monk Seal

By:Jesslyn Mirto

Hawaiian monkseal. Photo by: KlausStiefel;Flickr.

Seal

Hawaiian monk seals

(Neomonachusschauinslandi) are also known by their Hawaiian name ?ilioholoi ka uaua, which means ?dog that runs in rough water,?and areknown to bethesecond rarest seal species in theworld.

Hawaiian monk seals undergo various changes as they mature. Newborn monk seal pups areborn black whileolder seals display darker gray/brown coloration on their backs and lighter gray/brown fur on their bellies. To surviveas effectivepredators, theseals have flippers and a streamlined body shapethat allow them to glide through water swiftly, thick blubber that keeps them warm and buoyant, and sensitiveears that allow them to hear underwater when diving at darker depths.

Out of themain Hawaiian Islands, Kaua?i has themost prevalent monk seal population. Occasionally however, a monk seal can beseen on land to givebirth and nurseits pups. Earlier this year in April, a monk seal pup was born at Kamaina Beach on O?ahu and was

protected by police, NOAA, the Hawaiian MarineAnimal Response (HMAR), and volunteers for several weeks to ensurethat no one bothered it or its mother. A month later in May, another monk seal was born on Moloka?i at Kalaupapa National Historic Park.

Hawaiian monk seals are considered ?generalist feeders,? meaning that their diet depends on what?s present in their environment. They eat a diverse rangeof organisms, including common fishes, cephalopods, crustaceans, and even eels. Though monk seals can diveover 1,800 feet and hold their breath for up to 20 minutes, they usually divefor around 6 minutes at depths below 200 feet to find prey that hides in thesand and underneath rocks.

Though measures havebeen put in placeto protect Hawai?i?s monk seals from extinction, they arestill considered critically endangered. Currently, the population is only a third of the historical population levels. Besides food limitations, seal populations arealso threatened by issues

caused by humans like entanglement and habitat loss. Most significantly, however, the main causeof seal death on the main islands is toxoplasmosis, an illness caused by a parasitethat spreads into theenvironment via cat feces.

Monk seals arenot solely an adorablecreatureto marvel at; they contributeto thebiodiversity of Hawai?i whilelimiting the populations of their food sources. Currently, theHawaiian monk seal is protected under theEndangered Species Act, theMarineMammal Protection Act, and Stateof Hawai?i laws. In theevent that you encounter a monk seal, it is important to admiretheanimals only from a distanceof about 50 feet, or about 15 meters, while keeping pets away from them. To protect this species, it is important that policy makers, scientists, and individuals alikecontinueto protect, study, and respect the Hawaiian monk seal in thepresent to ensurethat this species can thrivefor generations to come.

Hawaiianmonk seal.Photo by: Ed Lyman;Wikimedia Commons.

Deep SeaFish Sets aNew Record

By: Haley Chasin,

UHM MOP Alumna

Snailfish and Cusk Eels.

Photo by:OldMateWA; Wikimedia Commons.

The deepest part of the ocean is called the Hadal zone named after the Greek god of the underworld, Hades. The Hadal zone spans depths from 6-11 km (20,000-36,000 ft) in pitch black darkness, with pressures reaching 1,086 bars (equal to the weight of 100 elephants) and near-freezing temperatures. How do species survive these extremes?

Deep sea organisms have adapted at a cellular level. Some have high concentrations of an organic molecule called piezolyte (Greek word ?piezin?meaning pressure) allowing them to stop cellular membranes and proteins from being crushed under extreme pressures. These proteins counteract the weight of the water by increasing the space that proteins take up in the organism's cells. TMAO forms strong hydrogen bonds with water molecules allowing them to resist high pressures. Tim Shanks at the Woods Hole Oceanographic

Institution, Massachusetts describes, ?it?s like putting the stakes up in a tent.?The amount of piezolyte trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) increases with the depth of the habitat.

Fish closer to the surface have gas-filled organs like that of a scuba buoyancy control device (BCD) allowing them to stay float or sink whereas deep-sea fishes lack swim-bladders. Also, they must adapt to low levels of oxygen.

Similar to the Mexican cavefish, deep sea fishes have larger red blood cells that produce higher concentrations of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen.

Due to these harsh conditions, the deep sea was once thought to be lifeless. Today we know better. Recently, marine scientists on the journey to the Galápagos Rift in the Pacific Ocean took Alvin, an ROV(Remotely Operated Vehicle), to the deep sea.

At 8,000 ft (2,440 m) they discovered a deep sea miracle.

Sulfur spewing chimneys acted as the primary source of energy production through chemosynthesis. Geysers on the rift base almost resembled hot springs at the Yellowstone National Park and were brimming with life. Since then, scientists have found up to 600 never-before-seen species including the scaly-foot gastropod (Chrysomallon squamiferum), a type of snail with iron armor, and a new crab ?The Hoff?(Kiwa tyleri) after actor David Hasselhoff due to its hairy chest.

In August 2022, a team from Minderoo-UWA Deep Sea Research Centre and Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology boarded the research ship DSSV PressureDrop for a two-month long expedition to explore three deep trenches in the Northern Pacific Ocean: 23,950 ft off of Ryukyu, the 26,246 ft deep Japan trench, and the 30,511 ft deep Izu-Ogasawara trench as part of a 10 year study of the deep-sea dwelling fish populations. On this mission the deepest fish ever recorded was

discovered. This juvenile fish of unknown species in the genus Psuedoliparis, was found at a depth of 8,336 m (27,349 ft) in the Izu-Ogasawara Trench, South-East of Japan. The team from Japan and Australia discovered it using bait and a deep-sea submersible support vessel. The team also collected two snailfish from the same trench at 8,022 m and the only fish caught deeper than 8 kilometers. The previous Guinness World Record for the deepest fish ever recorded was the Mariana snailfish (Psuedoliparisswirei) found at 8,178 m (26,831 ft) between Japan and Papua New Guinea in the Mariana Trench near Guam.

Though these discoveries are new and exciting, still lots is to be discovered. Scientists say that they know more about outer space than they do the deep sea and why deep sea exploration is so important, from discovering new species to inventing new innovative technologies to discover these new creatures.

Hadal Snailfish.Photo by:Alan Jamieson/Newcastle University;Journal of Integrative Oganismal Biology.

Turtle and reef.Photo

Francesco Ungaro;Unsplash.

Volume XXXVIII,Number 6

Editor: Abbie Jeremiah

Associate Editor:Sofía Flores Pina

Dr.Cynthia Hunter (eminence grise) Jeffrey Kuwabara (eminence grise)

Writing Team:Lucian Anderson,Alexandrya Robinson,Haley Chasin, Abbie Jeremiah,Sofía FloresPina,Sara McGhee,Dora Figueroa, Soleil Van Hausch,Jesslyn Mirto

Seawords- Marine Option Program

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Seawords isthe monthly newsletter newsletter of the Marine Option Program at the University of Hawai?i.Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Marine Option Program or of the University of Hawai?i.

Suggestions and submissionsare welcome.Submissions may include articles,photography,art work,or anything that may be of interest to the marine community in Hawai?i.and around the world.

All photosare taken by MOP unlessotherwise credited.