MARINe: A Long-Term Monitoring Program for Detecting Change in Rocky Intertidal
Environments
Steve Murray CSU FullertonRichard F. Ambrose UCLA
Jack Engle UCSBPete Raimondi UCSC
Mary Elaine Dunaway U.S. Minerals Management Service
MARINe (33 Unique Partners)
MARINe Sites
Core Monitoring
Sites (n = 80)
MARINe Core Monitoring Sites
MARINe South (San Luis Obispo – San Diego Counties)
57 sites: 34 mainland + 23 island 3 sites target abalone only
Longest monitoring period = 23 yrs (since 1982)MARINe North (Del Norte – Monterey Counties)
23 sites 8 sites target abalone only
Longest monitoring period = 6 yrs
MARINe Core Monitoring Sites
Sampling FrequencySemi-Annual (Spring/Fall) * south of San Francisco
Annual (Summer) * north of San Francisco
Point Conception
34 mainland sites
23 island sites
Core Monitoring Program: South
Species Monitored• Target species (13):
Anemones--Anthopleura elegantissima/solaBarnacles--Pollicipes polymerus Tetraclita rubescens Chthamalus dalli/fissus/Balanus glandula Black abalone--Haliotis cracherodii Owl limpets--Lottia gigantea California mussels--Mytilus californianus Seastars--Pisaster ochraceusBoa Kelp--Egregia menziesiiRockweed--Hesperophycus californicus Silvetia compressaTurfweed--Endocladia muricata Surfgrass--Phyllospadix scouleri/torreyi
• Core species: found in plots and transects in association with Target species
• Optional species
Sampling MethodsSampled Spring and Fall each year
Fixed PhotoplotsMussels, barnacles, rockweed, anemones, turf algae
Sampling MethodsSampled Spring and Fall each year
• Fixed Circular Plots– Owl limpets
• Band Transects & Irregular plots– Seastars, abalone
• Line Transects– Surfgrass
The Value of Regional Monitoring Programs
MARINe is a Regional Monitoring Program
Silvetia % Cover
1990 1995 2000 2005
DATE
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
CO
VE
R
Pt. Conception & North
STA
SHB
PSN
OCC
HAZ
GPT
CAY
BOA
ALEG
Lottia gigantea (Owl Limpet)
• Large and easy to catch and long history of collection by humans
• Humans select larger Owl Limpets
• Recent studies (Kido & Murray 2003; Roy et. al 2003; Lindberg et. al 1998; Pombo & Escofet 1996) show reduced sizes at local sites where humans are numerous
Access Category
1 – Open Access
2 - Protected
3 - Islands
33 MARINe SitesLegend
Mexico
Los Angeles
San Diego
San Luis Obispo
1
0
50
100
150C
ou
nt
0.00
0.02
0.04
0.06
0.08
0.10
0.12
0.14
Pro
po
rtion
pe
r Ba
r
2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Co
un
t
0.00
0.02
0.04
0.06
0.08
0.10
Pro
po
rtion
pe
r Ba
r
0 20 40 60 80 100 120SIZE
0
20
40
60
80
100
Co
un
t
0.00
0.01
0.02
0.03
0.04
0.05
0.06
0.07
0.08
0.09
Pro
po
rtion
pe
r Ba
r
3
n = 949
n = 847
n = 1227
Shell Length (mm)
Smaller mean, median, and
maximum Limpet sizes in open access
sitesHypotheses
Ho: Humans are taking the large limpets wherever they can
Ha1: Oystercatchers
Ha2: Visitor (Trampling) impact
Ha3: Natural Geographic clines in size
MARINe Database
• Microsoft Access database by SCCWRP in 2003-2004• Relational database for core monitoring data
• Currently contains ~ 1 million records• Photo database planned
MARINe Field Logs
Biodiversity Surveys
Alegria, S.B. Co.
Distributions and Abundances Site Comparisons Community data
SCCC CIOR NCWA
alegria
andrew molera
ano nuevo
arroyo hondo
bird rock
boat house
bob creek
bodega
bolinas pt
burnt hill
cabrillo zone 1
cabrillo zone 3
cambria
cannonball island
cape arago
cape mendocino
carpinteria
cayucos
chilean memorial
coal oil pt
crystal cove
cuyler_2
dana point
ecola
fitzgerald
fogarty creekgovernment pt
hazards
hopkins_2
landing cove
johnsons_2
little harbor catalina
mill creek
mussel shoals
nw talcott sri
old stairs
paradise cove
pigeon pt
pt fermin
santa maria creek
scott_2
scripps
terrace_2
crook pt smicuyler harbor smi
east pt sri
ford pt sri
forney scifossil reef sri
fraser pt sci
frenchys cove ai
johnsons lee sri
middle ai
prisoners sci
pt lobos
pt sierra nevada
sea lion rookery sbisea ranch
shaws cove
shell beachshelter cove
stairs
starfish pt
stillwater
taylor pt
trailer sci
valley sci
whites pt
willows sci
hopkins
sandhill
scott
terrace
Stress: 0.19
This nMDS was constructed using only those species that had a total of at least 25 points across all sites (118 total spp). Data were sq. rt. transformed.
Melissa Wilson, Pete Raimondi
Community Surveys
Mark M. Littler’s Studies
MDS OrdinationsMainland Sites
1999-2000 Samples differ from seasonal and annual variation
exhibited by 1970s Samples
Corona del Mar
Whites Point
Stress 0.09
Stress 0.09
Steve Murray
State of the Shoreline Report A key goal is making data directly available to
managers and decisionmakers
A Key Goal of MARINe is Increasing Public Awareness of Tidepools and How They Can Help Protect these Resources
MARINe Partnerswww.MARINe.gov
Top Related