Ecosystem Observations

Annual Report

for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

1998

Ecosystem Observations

Annual Report

for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

1998

Welcome

Established in 1992, the Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary is the largestof twelve Sanctuaries nationwide managedby the National Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration (NOAA). Encompassingover 5,300 square miles of water, theSanctuary stretches along the CentralCalifornia Coast from Marin County inthe north to Cambria in the south. TheSanctuary contains many diverse ecosys-

tems, ranging from rocky shores and kelpforests to the largest underwater canyonson the West Coast. These habitats aboundwith life. Huge blue whales forage inthese waters for tiny plankton, whileschools of sardines swim near jelliesdrifting with the currents.

Our mission is to protect the ecologicaland cultural integrity of the Sanctuary. Tocarry out this mission more effectively, we

improved the organization of theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaryprogram by clearly defining four divisionsin 1998: resource protection, education,research, and program support. Althoughthese divisions work together on projects,each brings a particular focus. Followingis a summary of the major accomplish-ments and activities within each division for 1998.

Welcome to the first edition of what wehope to be an ongoing report of what WE as a communityhave learned and observed about the ecosystem protectedby NOAA's Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.We've titled it, Ecosystem Observations.

This Sanctuary has been in need of an annual report forsome time, but we decided not simply to highlight our ownaccomplishments. Rather, this document, while includingsome classic annual report kinds of things, focuses on thenatural resources, organized in a way that tracks themarine biological communities, habitats, and populationsof Central California. We accomplished this by meetinganother of our goals: to provide an opportunity for the"users" of the Sanctuary to present what they havediscovered about its marine resources. By virtue of itsmany contributors, this annual report, our EcosystemObservations, also stands as a tribute to the strong networkof individuals and organizations who cooperate to protectand promote the Sanctuary's resources.

Please view this report as a "snapshot" rather than athorough overview, and, for space reasons, we have had toomit background on some articles to focus on 1998 obser-vations. Nonetheless, when you read this, you will see whyI am proud both of the Sanctuary staff's accomplishmentsand the contributions of our partners.

Certainly 1998 - the International Year of the Ocean -

has been a remarkable year. In March Sanctuary staff

pitched in with the JASON Project, broadcast from the

Monterey Bay Aquarium, adjacent kelp beds, and NOAA

ships to two million school kids. In June we co-hosted,

with the Navy, countless leaders in ocean policy, including

the President, at the National Ocean Conference. The

Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary was featured in

many national publications - National Geographic, Sunset,

Time, Outside - culminating in the Sanctuary being identi-

fied by Audubon magazine (Dec. 1998) as one of the top

ten conservation successes, "paradises preserved," in the

United States this century. Whoa.

What's up for next year? The Sustainable Seas

Expeditions, a partnership between NOAA and the National

Geographic Society, kick off the exploration of National

Marine Sanctuaries in Monterey this spring. We hope to see

the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, our enabling legisla-

tion, reauthorized this summer. As a human community,

we hope to make further progress on our understanding of,

and protection for, the marine ecosystem encompassed by

the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. This annual

report - these and future Ecosystem Observations - should

help us mark that progress.

-WILLIAM J. DOUROS, SUPERINTENDENT

NOAA’S MONTEREY BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

1998 Sanctuary Program Activities And Accomplishments

1998 Sanctuary ProgramActivities And Accomplishments

Table of ContentsSanctuary Program Accomplishments 1-4

Intertidal Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6

Rocky Subtidal Systems . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8

Open Ocean and Deep Water . . . . . . 9-10Systems

The Physical Environment . . . . . . . 11-12

Wetlands and Watersheds . . . . . . . 12-13

Endangered and Threatened . . . . . 14-16Species

Marine Mammals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18

Bird Populations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Marine Mammal and Bird Surveys . 20-21

Harvested Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-23

human Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-25

Further Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Credits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

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The purpose of the Resource ProtectionProgram is to develop and implement strate-gies to reduce human impacts to theSanctuary. A significant accomplishment in1998 was the completion of a recommended,comprehensive plan to address ongoingthreats to the Sanctuary from potential spillsof oil and other hazardous materials fromcommercial vessel traffic. With approximately4,000 large vessels crossing the Sanctuaryeach year (see chart, p. 25), preventing spillsis recognized as a key issue, since a majorspill would have a catastrophic effect on theregion's seabirds, marine mammals, and fisheries.

Beginning in 1997 NOAA, represented bythe Sanctuary, and the U.S. Coast Guard metwith representatives from the shipping andpetroleum industries, conservation organiza-tions, other government agencies, and thepublic at large to evaluate ways of reducingthe risk of groundings and collisions whilesustaining the economic vitality of the shipping industry. In June of 1998 the grouprecommended a proposal, which includesmodifying the port approaches to SanFrancisco Bay and the Santa BarbaraChannel, moving container ships and bulkproduct carriers approximately ten miles further offshore, better organizing traffic patterns for all types of large vessels, andstrengthening vessel monitoring and education.

Portions of the plan will be implementedduring 1999, while other strategies requiringinternational approval will be presented tothe International Maritime Organization ofthe United Nations. Completion of this planrepresents a major step towards long-termprotection of the Sanctuary.

Sanctuary staff responded to two oil spillevents in 1998. In January, a tarball incidentoccurred off Point Reyes which killed ordebilitated at least 600 marine birds, particu-larly Common Murres. Most of the birdswashed ashore on beaches from Point ReyesNational Seashore in the Gulf of theFarallones National Marine Sanctuary tobeaches in the northern part of the MontereyBay National Marine Sanctuary. The sourceof the oil remains unknown, but chemicalfingerprinting of oil samples has eliminatedthe possibility that the tarballs came fromnatural seeps. The Sanctuary and severalother government agencies are evaluatingdamages that occurred during the spill andthe origin of the spill, and assessing theimpact of the tarball incidents on CentralCalifornia bird populations.

In September oil from a slick washedashore along the San Mateo County coast.

Responders recovered about thirty barrels atsea and about 9,000 pounds of oily tarballsfrom beaches from San Francisco to SantaCruz County. Marine life was affected in boththe Monterey Bay and Gulf of the FarallonesSanctuaries. Several hundred oiled birds(mostly Common Murres) were found, but itis estimated that hundreds more were lost atsea. Bird recovery and evaluation by severalagencies, including the Sanctuaries, wasparamount to the investigation and restora-tion of oiled wildlife. In cooperation withother government agencies, theU.S. Coast Guard investigatedthe cause of the spill, resultingin the U.S. Attorney's Officealleging that it came from theT/V Command. In December afederal grand jury deliveredthree indictments against theship’s owner, ANAX Intern-ational Agencies, the vessel'scaptain, and the vessel's chiefengineer for criminal violationsof the Federal Clean Water Act.The vessel owners have notadmitted guilt. The criminal caseis being prosecuted by the U.S.Attorney's Office.

El Niño-driven storms inFebruary tore up Highway 1through Big Sur in over eightylocations. In past years, such amassive road repair project would have ledCalTrans to rebuild the road by dumpingrock, soil, and repair debris into the ocean,thereby violating the regulation prohibitingdischarging into the Sanctuary. Workingdirectly with CalTrans and other agencies, wecrafted a repair program for Highway 1 whichallowed CalTrans to clear landslides andrepair washouts unabated, while avoidingany dumping in the Sanctuary. These effortsaverted discharging a quarter to a half millioncubic yards of material into the ocean, thusavoiding the loss of productive intertidal andsubtidal habitat and possible impacts to com-mercial and recreational fishing. CalTransconducted repairs in an environmentally sen-sitive manner without delaying the re-open-ing of a highway crucial to businesses in BigSur and the Monterey Peninsula.

The agencies, public, and private groupswho are members of the Sanctuary's WaterQuality Protection Program (WQPP) con-tinued addressing polluted runoff from agri-cultural sources in 1998. A draft plan for agriculture was completed which includes acommitment by the California Farm BureauFederation and six regional Farm Bureaus totake a leadership role in addressing polluted

runoff. The commitment was formalized inan agreement signed in November establish-ing the Central Coast Farm Bureau Coalition.The Coalition will focus on educating itsmembers on polluted runoff, establishinglandowner committees and pilot projects inseveral watersheds to strengthen on-farmmanagement practices, developing growerself-monitoring to evaluate the effectivenessof the practices, and serving as a liaison withthe WQPP and the Regional Water QualityControl Board (RWQCB).

The Sanctuary's WQPP began implement-ing strategies identified in its urban runoff,marinas and boating, regional monitoring,and agricultural plans as well. A new projectincluded installing and monitoring the effec-tiveness of stormwater filters in trapping oil,sediment, and trash from the paved areas atMonterey Harbor and Fisherman's Wharf. Incooperation with Save Our Shores, oil absorp-

Resource Protection

MontereyBayNationalMarineSanctuary

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President Clinton dons our whale tail hat at the National OceanConference in June.

The purpose of the Education and OutreachProgram is to promote understanding andstewardship of the Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary. In 1998 we took a directrole in carrying out the Model Urban RunoffProgram’s educational and citizen monitoringelements. Sanctuary staff developed and dis-tributed educational materials on ways thepublic and businesses can protect water qual-ity, including a brochure and poster for localresidents and posters for restaurants and autorepair shops. Additional outreach included

use of a watershed runoff model for schoolsand public events which has provided ahands-on opportunity to "see" pollutedrunoff for thousands of local residents during 1998.

The first of its kind in California, theUrban Watch Stormdrain Monitoring Program(initiated by the Sanctuary, City of Monterey,and Coastal Watershed Council) serves as amodel for other small cities. Data from thevolunteers who monitored storm drains in1997-1998 consistently showed high deter-gent levels along Cannery Row, resulting inan outreach effort to educate the restaurantcommunity about urban runoff pollution andsimple changes in cleaning practices that canreduce detergent outflow. Restaurants havebeen receptive to the effort and have provid-ed valuable input for future educationalefforts.

Sanctuary staff produced Watersheds toSea Shores, a video on water quality issuesfeaturing interviews with growers, ranchers,and watershed educators. The video show-cases farmlands, coastal urbanized areas,sensitive rivers, and offshore habitats toillustrate the link between Central Coastwatersheds and the Sanctuary. Designed forhigh schools, colleges, businesses, and theagricultural community, it has already won afirst place recognition award at the 1998Santa Cruz Environmental Film Festival.

In addition to education focused on waterquality issues, staff was involved with manyother outreach efforts. Volunteer fish enthusi-asts helped to make the fifth annual GreatAmerican Fish Count a huge success. Over100 new and returning fish counters attendedtraining seminars in Santa Cruz, PacificGrove, Cambria, and the San Francisco Bayarea. Divers logged nearly 100 hours of bot-tom time counting eighty-one different

species of fish at twenty different locationsthroughout the Sanctuary. Of the eighty-onespecies recorded, divers observed señoritawrasses on 78 percent of their dives, followedclosely by the colorful bottom-dwelling paint-ed greenling. Of the 127 surveys collected,sixty-eight were submitted by divers whocounted fish along Cannery Row.

The Monterey Bay and Channel IslandsSanctuaries participated in the JASON Projectduring March. World-famous ocean explorerDr. Robert Ballard (discoverer of the wreck ofthe RMS Titanic) founded the JASON Project,a year-round scientific expedition and dis-tance learning program designed to exciteand engage teachers and students in scienceand technology. For two weeks in March,"you-are-there" telecommunications trans-ported millions of students worldwide livevia satellite into the Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary. Students watched theexpedition, interacted with Dr. Ballard andlocal scientists, and controlled live-feed videocameras, all from the Sanctuary and theMonterey Bay Aquarium. The two-weekresearch voyage involved two teams of stu-dent "Argonauts" based in Monterey, whoconducted their own research projects andreported back to students worldwide on theInternet. Much of the Argonauts’ researchcomparing the surface, mid-level, and deepsea ocean environments of Monterey Bay andBermuda was conducted aboard the R/VMcArthur, a 175-foot NOAA research ship.

Sanctuary staff also participated in orga-nizing the Oceans Fair, a huge communityevent celebrating our deep connection to theocean. Held during the National OceanConference in June, the fair attracted morethan 10,000 visitors to Monterey's CustomHouse Plaza. Visitors enjoyed spectacularmarine technology exhibits, environmental

tive pads were distributed and outreach con-ducted to boaters at the region's harbors.Two other projects were begun to installbilgewater and crankcase oil pumpout facili-ties at the harbors and conduct outreach tothe fishing community.

The RWQCB has helped implement theWQPP's regional monitoring strategy. Thesemonitoring efforts will be strengthened by anew grant to develop a coordinated citizen'swater quality monitoring network for theSanctuary (under the direction of the Centerfor Marine Conservation and the CoastalWatershed Council) and by a grant wereceived jointly with the San Mateo County

Resource Conservation District to characterizeand monitor sedimentation in the Pescaderowatershed. Finally, several grants have beenapproved to implement agricultural strategies.

A Model Urban Runoff Program (MURP)was completed through the joint efforts ofthe cities of Monterey and Santa Cruz, theCalifornia Coastal Commission, theSanctuary, and other groups. The MURP is a comprehensive how-to guide for smallcities struggling to address the issue of urbanrunoff. Implementation is underway inMonterey and Santa Cruz, and many othercities have expressed interest in carrying it out.

Education and Outreach

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Sanctuary AwardsSanctuary ReflectionsAwardsPresented at the 1998 SanctuaryCurrents Symposium:

SPECIAL RECOGNITION:KARIN STRASSER KAUFFMANN

PUBLIC OFFICIAL: ROY TORRES

CONSERVATION: ELLEN FAUROT-DANIELS

EDUCATION: MILOS RADAKOVICH

RESEARCH: MARY YOKLAVICH

ORGANIZATION: UC SEA GRANT PROGRAM

BUSINESS: O’NEILL

RICKETTS MEMORIAL AWARD:GEORGE SOMERO, HOPKINS MARINE STATION,STANFORD UNIVERSITY

NOAA’S NATIONAL MARINESANCTUARIES STARS OF THESEA AWARD AND NOAA’SENVIRONMENTAL HERO AWARDMOSS LANDING MARINE LABORATORIES

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The Sanctuary’s water quality efforts help protect wet-lands essential to these Snowy Egrets and other animals.

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activity booths, continuous music and enter-tainment, and a flotilla of research shipsincluding NOAA's R/V David Starr Jordan. Atthe Technology Pavilion, visitors could makea 3-D video flyby of the wreckage of theTitanic, take the controls of a NOAA robotsub working in Monterey Bay, explore theBay in 3-D, and visit a virtual kelp forest cre-ated by the Naval Postgraduate School.Visitors could also see the Deep Worker sub-mersible which Dr. Sylvia Earle will use in1999 to explore the nation's twelve NationalMarine Sanctuaries, and view live videobroadcasts from the Monterey Bay AquariumResearch Institute's remotely-operated vehicledeep in Monterey Bay.

Some of the ways in which we affect theocean, and Monterey Bay in particular, werethe subject of presentations by an impressivearray of speakers at the 1998 SanctuaryCurrents Symposium, held during March inSanta Cruz. Speakers discussed the impactsof vessel traffic, fisheries, ecotourism, coastaldevelopment, exotic species, toxic chemicals,and global warming. Visitors also viewedresearch posters highlighting scientific workunderway around Monterey Bay and exhibitsof Sanctuary-related conservation and educa-tion groups. In addition, participants honoredindividuals and organizations for their dedi-cation to the Sanctuary (see p. 3).

The purpose of the Research Program is todetermine and fill scientific information gaps,develop collaborations to study resourcemanagement issues, and interpret research todecision-makers.

With over twenty research institutes, thebroader Monterey Bay region is recognizedworld-wide as a center of excellence formarine science. To facilitate coordinatedresearch throughout the Sanctuary, theSanctuary’s Research Activity Panel, consist-ing of representatives from all these institu-tions, met nine times this year. The results ofcollaborative research funded or organized bythe Sanctuary Program and the ResearchActivity Panel are presented throughout thisreport: restoring Rhinoceros Auklet popula-tions on Año Nuevo Island (see p. 19),studying human disturbances in kelp forests

(see p. 7), monitoring birds and mammals onthe water and dead on the beaches (see pp. 20 - 21), and assessing coastal ero-sion (see p. 5). Moreover, the Sanctuary stafforganized cruises on the 175-ft. NOAA R/VMcArthur to describe ocean currents andmap essential fish habitats along the Big SurCoast (see pp. 7-8), map the continental shelfbetween Carmel and San Francisco(see p. 11), assess oceanographic conditionsof El Niño (see pp. 11-12), and determinewhy the Sanctuary is a critical area forwhales (see p. 17).

The Sanctuary staff has also started usingour aircraft to monitor seal and sea lion rook-eries and kelp canopies, and more standardtechniques to survey for the European greencrab. This introduced species has now spreadsouth from San Francisco, but has not

become abundant in Elkhorn Slough, perhapsbecause it is within the sea otter range.

We're proud to have graduated a newclass of Beach COMBERS volunteers toexpand the beaches we can survey (see p.20). This group provided information criticalto assessing the impacts of significant redtide events, and data that resulted in placingobservers on fishing boats to assess mortalityof birds and mammals in gill nets.

At long last a regional geographic information system (GIS) for mappingresource management information in a useful format was made available by ouroffice. It includes masses of data on fisheries,water quality, shoreline physical and biologi-cal information, and even the pinniped haul-out data collected from our NOAA planeover the last year.

As the name might imply, our ProgramSupport team takes care of the tasks thatare crucial to support our broad programmandates. We operated our patrol vessel,SharkCat, and our plane shared with theChannel Islands National Marine Sanctuarythroughout the year. We moved our officesinto a more productive and roomy space, still at 299 Foam Street. In January wewelcomed our new Superintendent, whichwas no small task.

The Sanctuary Advisory Council (anappointed group of volunteers and agencyrepresentatives who provide diverse perspec-tives and expertise from an array of Sanctuaryconstituencies) met regularly in 1998 to assiststaff in building short-term and long-termplans, receive information and concerns fromstakeholders on current issues, and bring

additional technical and other information tothe Superintendent as requested. The Councilplayed an active role in 1997-98 strategic plan-ning, and has been asked for future assistancein addressing the National Marine Sanctuariesprogram's strategic initiatives: human activi-ties assessment and threat reduction, zonalmanagement, cultural resources, programreauthorization, water quality, and habitatcharacterization.

The Council also worked closely with itsfour Working Groups (Research, Education,Conservation, and Business and Tourism) toseek information and advice relating to themanagement of the Sanctuary's resources.Issues of concern in 1998 included a compre-hensive Vessel Traffic Study, the impacts ofkelp harvesting, the live fish fishery, finaliza-tion of the Jade Rule for collection of jade in

limited areas of the Sanctuary, invasivespecies in vessel ballast water, and theHighway 1 Management Plan. Several of theseare ongoing areas of concern which willreceive additional attention during 1999. TheCouncil will also play an expanded role ineducating the public about the Sanctuary pro-gram and in fulfilling its liaison responsibili-ties between its constituencies and theSanctuary staff.

In January a new Sanctuary website wasunveiled with many added and advanced fea-tures, such as links to the Sanctuary’s listservsand online databases. For instance, the SiteCharacterization, summarizing what is knownabout the ecosystems of the Sanctuary, wasexpanded to include a chapter on the openocean. Our web page continues to be a sourcefor timely information on Sanctuary activities.

Research

Program Support

The Oceans Fair included educational displays.

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For over two decades, researchers from theUniversity of California Santa Cruz (UCSC)have sampled an abandoned intertidalsewage outfall to document the ecologicalrecovery there once the discharge was termi-nated. The most recent survey, completed inJune 1998, indicates that the surfgrass beds

have finally recovered. The recovery wasslow and erratic over the years.

Twenty-five years ago domestic sewagewas discharged onto the rocky intertidal ontwo sides of Monterey Bay. The Pacific Groveoutfall at Point Pinos and the Santa CruzCounty “Eastcliff” outfall at Soquel (Pleasure)Point both had been in operation for overtwenty years. By the early 1970s they dis-charged daily 1.5 to 3 million gallons of pri-mary treated sewage, respectively, over thewave-swept rocks. These sewage-impactedareas were characterized by classes taught at Stanford University’s HopkinsMarine Station (the Point Pinos site)and UCSC (the Soquel site). Theeffect was similar at both: fishes,crustaceans, limpets, snails, sponges,ascidians, foliose red algae, and surf-grasses were conspicuously absent. Intheir place was a near-complete coverof diatoms and low-growing corallinealgae, interspersed with clumps of sea lettuce, the red alga Prionitislanceolata, deformed individuals ofoar kelp, and large, solitary seaanemones.

Both outfalls were terminated inthe mid-1970s when the sewage wasredirected to longer outfalls discharg-ing subtidally. Changes following ter-mination were similar. Ephemeralgreen algae, especially sea lettuce,were conspicuous within months, tobe replaced over the succeeding fewyears by a variety of foliose red algaeand kelps, along with numerousinvertebrates previously missing.Other species, such as sponges andascidians, took much longer tobecome re-established. Particularlyslow in becoming re-established werethe visual dominants in these lowintertidal areas, surfgrasses(Phyllospadix scouleri and P. torreyi);

their come-back was accompanied by theslow decimation of the low-growing corallinealgae, the visual dominant of the sewage-impacted areas. From a distance, the areasslowly changed from pink (coralline algae) togreen (surfgrasses) as they recovered.

Changes following the termination of thedischarge at Soquel Point were documentedby teams from UCSC, following samplingdone the previous three years. Each springthe teams quantitatively sampled the SoquelPoint site. A comparative site 1 km to thenortheast at Opal Cliffs that showed little sign

1997

Soquel Point

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LIDAR Survey Shows Storm Damage AlongSanctuary In the months of October 1997 and April1998 scanning airborne laser (LIDAR) sur-veys were conducted jointly by the USGS,NASA, and NOAA along 1,200 km of theWest Coast. The shoreline of the Sanctuarywas a focus for one of the survey segmentswhich collects high-resolution topographicinformation. The primary purpose of theinvestigation was to document beach andcoastal bluff changes as a result of severe ElNiño-induced winter storms. Highlights ofthe LIDAR investigations include documen-tation of: erosion of the dune/cliff system insouthern Monterey Bay of up to 20 m,active bluff retreat along many segments ofthe Sanctuary shoreline, and dramaticchanges in beach width and morphologyduring the course of the winter. Productsfrom the study will include high-resolutionmaps depicting coastal topography inOctober 1997 and April 1998, along with amap showing change between the two sur-vey dates. Further information can beviewed at the web site:

http://aol.wff.nasa.gov/aoltm/projects/beachmap/98results/

-BRUCE M. RICHMOND

USGS COASTAL AND MARINE GEOLOGY PROGRAM

Intertidal SystemsIntertidal Systems

Surfgrass Beds Recover, Slowly

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ContributedEcosystemObservations

ContributedEcosystemObservations

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of impact from the discharge was also sam-pled. Quarter-meter-square quadrats wereplaced randomly within permanent plots ateach site and the abundance of speciesrecorded. Abundance of surfgrass was esti-mated by counting the number of 10x10cmsquares in the quarter-meter-square quadratsthat contained attached plants (total numberof squares in a quadrat=25).

The abundance of surfgrass at Opal Cliffsremained high throughout the twenty-fiveyears of sampling, with over half of thesquares containing plants on most samplingdates. Considering the number and length ofthe surfgrass leaves (most over 30 cm long),this abundance means that there was nearlycomplete and uniform cover of surfgrass. Incontrast, there was no surfgrass at all at theSoquel Point site when the sewage was beingdischarged. (See figure 1 below.) The firstplants were noted in a few quadrats in 1980,four years after the discharge was stopped,but their abundance increased very slowly,

mainly as the seedlings spread by clonalgrowth. The two sites were finally statistical-ly indistinguishable with respect to surfgrasscover in 1997, twenty-one years after the outfall was abandoned, and a similar highabundance was found again in 1998.

Periodic examination of the abandonedoutfall site at Point Pinos also revealed aslow recovery of the surfgrass beds, and they

now appear nearly as fullyrecovered as at the SoquelPoint site. The re-establish-ment of surfgrass was prob-ably inhibited at both sitesby the dense cover of low-growing coralline algae. AtSoquel Point, where quanti-tative data are available, theabundance of corallinealgae has slowly decreasedfrom being present in allthe 10 x 10 cm squares in1976 and before to beingpresent in slightly morethan half in 1998, comparedto fewer than 10 percent atthe Opal Cliffs site. The twospecies apparently competefor space, and when well

established, the coralline algae probablyinhibit seedlings from getting established (theseedling may attach to the algal fronds,which then break off, carrying the seedlingswith them). However, once securely attachedon the underlying rock, the surfgrass rhi-zomes slowly grow outward, replacing thecoralline algae and trapping sand, which fur-ther changes the habitat.

Surfgrass beds are rich, productive, anddiverse systems. The twisted rhizomes andlong leaves provide shelter and habitat formany animals, as does the thick layer of sandtrapped by the rhizomes. Storm-detached

leaves become litter that is scattered acrossthe ocean floor and down into deeper water,providing resources for numerous detritivoresand their predators far beyond the intertidal.It is reassuring that these surfgrass beds, dec-imated by sewage discharge, have now - afterseveral decades - essentially recovered totheir former health.

-JOHN PEARSE, ERIC DANNER, LANI WATSON,AND CHELA ZABIN

INSTITUTE OF MARINE SCIENCES,UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ

Visitor Impacts at Fitzgerald MarineReserveAlthough the number of persons collect-ing invertebrates from the intertidal zoneat Fitzgerald Marine Reserve has declined94 percent from 1972 to 1996, annual vis-itor attendance has more than doubled -to 135,000 - during the same period.(Attendance for 1998 was lower - around110,000 - because the Reserve’s sign wasdestroyed in a traffic accident.)

Most visitation at the Reserve is con-centrated in a 500-m length of rockyintertidal reef. Human impact haschanged markedly during the 1972-1996period, from the gathering of intertidalorganisms for food and curios to tram-pling, rock rolling, and displacement.

To determine the extent of recoveryfrom present-day visitor impact along a350-m length of reef, two sites wereselected at random in the mid-tide zones.One section of each site was cordoned offfrom public use and posted with signs inApril 1994; to control for human impact,the second section at each site was givenno special treatment. Five quadrats (onesquare meter each) in each of the foursections have been monitored on amonthly basis since April 1994.

Observations are made on faunalabundances and floral frequencies anddominances. Populations of someattached vertebrates such as the aggregat-ed sea anemone (Anthopleura elegantissi-ma) appear to be increasing in areaswhere visitors are excluded anddecreasing in heavily-traveled areas.(Further data are in the process of beinganalyzed.)

-BOB BREEN

FITZGERALD MARINE RESERVEFigure 1: Changes in surfgrass abundance at Soquel Point (solid line), adjacent to the Santa Cruz County sewage out-fall, and Opal Cliffs (dotted line), about 1 km northeast of the outfall. Sewage discharge was discontinued in 1976.Samples were taken each summer from 50 x 100’ permanent plots; means +/- 95% confidence limits are shown.

Nudibranchs inhabit the intertidal zone.

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Big Creek Ecological Research Reserve(BCER), an area off the Big Sur coast thatofficially has been closed to fishing sinceJanuary 1994, affords a good opportunity toevaluate the contribution that a small marineprotected area (MPA) might make to the sur-rounding environment. The California SeaGrant College System, on behalf of theDepartment of Fish and Game’s (DFG)Marine Ecological Reserves ResearchProgram, currently has funded three studiesto evaluate fisheries resources in this area.Two research studies are currently using side

scan sonar, bathymetry, and underwatervideo transect methodologies in and out ofBCER to characterize and quantify benthicfish and their habitats. A third study is using

social science research methods to examinethe relationship between nearby fisheries andthe reserve and to evaluate a cooperative

data collection system involving local fishersand the reserve manager.

During one of these studies, two cruiseswere conducted by biologists from the DFG’sCentral California Marine Sport Fish Projectaboard the research vessel (R/V) Mako in1998. Fish populations and seafloor habitatswere surveyed using SCUBA and laser-scaledvideo. From preliminary analysis, mean fishdensities within BCER, to the north, and tothe south have remained generally stablefrom 1996 to 1998. Greater numbers of largesexually mature individuals occurred withinBCER than in adjacent areas. A nearshorehabitat map of seafloor within BCER (Figure1) has been completed with cooperation fromABA Consultants. This map was producedfrom data collected with RoxAnn (anechosounder that indicates substratum rough-ness and hardness) and a depth sounder onboard DFG vessels P/B Bluefin and R/VMelanops. Nine distinct substrate types (andpercent coverage) have been identified: sand(23%); rock (20.3%); rock w/turf (20%);gravel (19.6%); rock w/sand (7.1%); biota(5.5%); sediment (4.2%); unknown (1.2%);compacted (<1%).

The second study involved the coordinatedeffort of biologists and geologists from NMFSPacific Fisheries Environmental Lab, Moss

Figure 2: Rock outcrop with an assemblage of adult vermilion (Sebastes miniatus) and widow (Sebastesentomelas) rockfishes, as viewed from the occupied submersible in the vicinity of Big Creek EcologicalReserve. Note the extremely warm water temperature (9.9° C) at 169-m water depth. Two glowing laser dots,20 cm apart, are visible in center of photograph.

Diver Disturbance inKelp ForestsRecreational SCUBA diving activity hasgreatly increased in the past twenty years,with the potential for causing disturbanceto subtidal reefs. While diver disturbanceon coral reefs has been assessed in anumber of studies, effects on kelp forestshave not been previously examined.

Researchers from Moss Landing MarineLaboratories estimated diver disturbancein southern Monterey Bay giant kelpforests by following forty-two divers insummer 1997 and recording disturbancesthey caused. During a one-half hour dive,the average diver contacted the bottomforty-three times, touched four animals,and detached two algal blades. It is estimated that over 60,000 divers usethese kelp forests every year.

The study’s initial results, released inearly 1998, suggest that the concentrationof large numbers of divers in local, usuallywave-protected kelp forests could lead toalterations in community structure. Sucheffects might be mitigated through moreenvironmentally aware diving promotion,better training, and designation of ecologi-cally resilient shore entry and exit pointsand underwater training areas. Of theserecommendations, the Sanctuary is pursuing, with local and national diveorganizations, the development of educa-tional programs and products to ensurethat diver effects within kelp forests arereasonably minimized.

-TIM M. SCHAEFFER AND MICHAEL S. FOSTER

MOSS LANDING MARINE LABORATORIES

Research on Rockfishes, Habitats, and the Fishery at Big Creek Ecological Reserve

Rocky Subtidal SystemsRocky Subtidal Systems

Figure 1: Substratum types of the BCER, as interpretedfrom acoustic data collected in May and June 1998.Gravel, sand, and rock-with-sand are represented by asingle color. Isobaths are 4 m intervals.

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Landing Marine Labs, and DFG. Twenty-eightresearch dives were made in water depthsfrom 30-270 m inside and outside BCERusing the Delta occupied submersible andR/V McGaw. Habitat type and associatedfishes were surveyed at about twelve sites inthe BCER study area. Several distinct assem-blages of fishes have been described in general. Large schools of young-of-the-year(YOY) rockfishes were documented in rockareas of 40-120 m depth; low relief fields ofcoarse sand and sea pens in about 70 m ofwater appeared to be a nursery ground forYOY stripetail rockfishes. Adult fishes ofsmall species were associated with sand, finesediments, and shell-hash substrata of lowrelief, while large species, especially rock-fishes, were closely associated with rockcrevices, small caves, and boulders/pinnacles(Figure 2).

Bottom types included: rock outcrops primarily in 40-70 m of water; isolated rockpinnacles and single boulders up to 20 m inheight and surrounded by sediment; steeprock walls in the head of submarine canyonsoutside BCER; fields of coarse sand and seapens; boulder fields; and soft sediment indeep water. With funding from the MBNMS,maps from the deep water study have beendeveloped and eventually will be mergedwith similar information from the shallowstudy into one comprehensive map of fishesand habitats of BCER.

In a third study, UC Santa Cruzresearchers have conducted interviews withlocal fishers, collected observational andarchival data on the relationship between thereserve and nearby fisheries, and begun toanalyze fishery-dependent data collected bylocal fishers in cooperation with the reservemanager (through their “hook-and-line sur-vey”). Preliminary analysis of shore-basedobservation of fishing activity north andsouth of the reserve and of Pacific FisheriesInformation Network data suggests that

fishing activity does not increase with prox-imity to the reserve, even though such anMPA “edge effect” might be expected. Datacollected through interviews and fromarchival sources are being used to developexplanations for the observed patterns ofactivity. The hook-and-line survey data -which have been collected since three yearsprior to the reserve’s legal establishment -together with interview data, are being usedto evaluate the local fishery, its interactionwith the reserve, and the potential value ofthe cooperative arrangement to resourcemanagement.

Results of these studies are important inthe resource assessment and management ofBCER, and will contribute to our understand-ing of the role that habitats within an MPAplay in maintaining populations of marine

fishes that are being harvested in unprotectedareas. From a social scientific perspective,monitoring the fisheries adjacent to BCERwill help us understand the dynamic relation-ship between MPAs and local fisheries. Inparticular, assessing the spatial and temporalpatterns of both the fishes and fisheries asso-ciated with MPAs will contribute to effectivedesign, management, and evaluation ofMPAs. The results of all three studies will beespecially valuable to the long-term charac-terization and monitoring of the natural andhuman resources of the Sanctuary.

-MARY YOKLAVICH

NMFS PACIFIC FISHERIES ENVIRONMENTAL LABORATORY

-DAVID VENTRESCA

CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME

-CAROLINE POMEROY

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ

Kelp forests provide habitat for many marine species.

Kelp HabitatThe rocky nearshore environment of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is characterized by forests of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) and bull kelp (Nereocystisleutkeana) that occur on rocky substrates at depths of two to over thirty meters. Theseforests are host to a rich mosaic of benthic algae and provide habitat for numerous fishand invertebrate species.

Although giant kelp is perennial, in Central California its populations exhibit seasonalpatterns of abundance, attaining maximum surface canopies in summer and minimumcanopies in winter. Increased water motion from winter storms, coupled with entangle-ment with drifting plants, appears to be the primary source of annual giant kelp mortalityalong much of its distribution. During 1997 and 1998, several local research programsexamined the effects of both natural and anthropogenic disturbances on CentralCalifornia’s kelp forest communities.

The 1997-98 El Niño event, one of the most severe in recent history, resulted in abnor-mally warm water and strong swell activity along much of California’s coast. Whereas themajority (up to 100 percent in many areas) of the adult giant kelp occurring south of PointConception was removed during this period, populations along Central California (includ-ing the Sanctuary) were relatively unaffected. The most dramatic reductions in kelp densi-ty in this region were observed along the Big Sur coast, where populations are less pro-tected from the large ocean swells. In this region, although giant kelp densities remainedfairly high, there appeared to be a shift in relative species abundance after the storms;giant kelp tended to decrease in abundance while bull kelp increased. A similar shift wasobserved after the 1982-1983 El Niño. The large disparity observed between southern andCentral California was most likely due to large-scale oceanographic differences betweenthe two regions. In southern California, unusually warm ocean temperatures and associat-ed low nutrients probably resulted in the giant kelp being in generally poor conditionwhen the large swells arrived, leading to extremely high kelp mortality. In contrast, thecooler ocean temperatures and higher nutrients along Central California may have allowedthe kelp to remain in comparatively better condition when the swells arrived, resulting inmuch higher survival.

Other research programs around the Sanctuary have examined additional factors thatmay potentially impact its kelp forest communities. For example, Moss Landing MarineLaboratories researchers are examining the effects of commercial kelp harvesting on thegiant kelp surface canopy along the Monterey Peninsula. Their study should elucidate thecomparative effects of kelp removal by anthropogenic and natural processes.

-MATTHEW S. EDWARDS

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ

(Note: kelp as a harvested resource is discussed on page 22.)

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The Year of the Ocean inaugurated an era ofexpanding research cooperation in theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.From partnerships forged between regionalinstitutions to international collaborations,interdisciplinary investigations revealeddetails of the complex physical, chemical, andbiological forces at work in the Sanctuary.

Researchers from the Naval PostgraduateSchool and Stennis Space Center used com-puter models to simulate water circulation inthe Monterey Bay region and MontereyCanyon, which features some of the steepestundersea topography anywhere. Other scien-tists at the University of California Santa Cruz(UCSC) and the U.S. Geological Survey inves-tigated the role of topography on the distribu-tion and transport of sediments in the centralregion of the Sanctuary.

The 1997-98 El Niño event, now recog-nized as the strongest of the century, proba-bly affected our Sanctuary ecosystems morethan any other single natural phenomenon.Studies of that event contributed to our

understanding of the biogeochemical effectsof El Niño in coastal ecosystems. TheCalifornia Current System, which dominatesthe circulation in the Sanctuary, normallyconveys upwelled nutrients such as nitrate,phosphate, and silicate to the sunlit sea sur-face from late winter to early spring. At thesurface, the nutrients support phytoplanktongrowth, also called primary productionbecause it is the primary basis ofmost ocean food webs. UCSC sci-entists demonstrated that iron iskey to this primary productivity,by adding iron to water samplesfrom the California Current andmeasuring the resulting increasein phytoplankton production.

Researchers from Moss LandingMarine Laboratories (MLML) andthe Monterey Bay AquariumResearch Institute (MBARI)measured iron concentrations inSanctuary waters during March of1997 and 1998. Conditions in1997 favored coastal upwelling:strong winds from the northwestpushed surface waters offshoreand allowed deeper nutrient-richwater to upwell. The scientists measured high coastal concentra-tions of nutrients, iron, and chlorophyll from plankton blooms. However,early 1998 - the peak of the El Niño event -revealed very different conditions. Windsfavorable to upwelling were rare; ocean surface waters were nearly 3° C warmer thanin 1997; and very low levels of iron, nutrients,and chlorophyll were measured near thecoast. The source of iron appears not to becoastal runoff, but rather, dissolved ironresuspended from sediments on the continen-tal shelf and then upwelled into surfacewaters. This raises the possibility that primary production in water that upwells over narrow shelf regions (or further offshoreat the shelf break and along jets and filaments) may be iron limited. Researchers at UCSC reported that primary production inwater from the Point Sur region, where theshelf is particularly narrow, is iron limited.

During late 1997 and in 1998 whenupwelling was greatly reduced, the extremelyhigh ocean temperatures and extremely lowlevels of nutrients, chlorophyll, and primaryproduction were the greatest anomalies everrecorded in MBARI’s ten-year records oncoastal water properties. Far from MontereyBay, along the equator, water temperatures

during mid-1998 changed from abnormallywarm to abnormally cold. Researchers expectthese conditions to spread to the CentralCalifornia coast beginning in 1999, resultingin the resumption of periodic high levels ofprimary production in the Sanctuary’s coastalwaters. Associated with this high productivitywe may see the recovery of typical fisheries ofthe region and the replenishment of marine

food webs on which the fishes and manymarine mammals depend. Also, there aresome indications that the climate oscillation is shifting the Pacific from the warm phasethat has prevailed since 1976 to a cold phase,which would enhance the return to more normal oceanographic conditions in CentralCalifornia’s coastal waters.

Harmful Algal BloomThe year marked the first recorded episode

of marine mammal illness and mortalitystrongly linked to a documented bloom ofPseudo-nitzschia australis and associated toxicpoisoning by domoic acid. During May 1998 abloom of P. australis, a pennate diatom thatproduces domoic acid, occurred in the watersof the Sanctuary. Researchers detected theorganism - using DNA-targeted molecular“probes” developed at MBARI - and trackedthe bloom in near real-time as it spread. Thetoxic diatoms were found in plankton and inthe stomachs of anchovies collected and dis-sected at the time of the bloom.

Coincident with the toxic algal bloom, sealions suffered from a neurological disorder,now attributed to domoic-acid poisoning.

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The ROV Ventana, which can be outfitted with a variety of equipmentdepending on its mission, is launched from the R/V Point Lobos.

Oceanographic Observations on the Sanctuary

Open Ocean and Deep Water SystemsOpen Ocean and Deep Water Systems

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Marine mammal rescue agencies reportedtreating seventy stranded sea lions, forty-seven of which died. This may represent onlya fraction of affected animals, as the victimswere collected only from accessible beaches;large stretches of coastline were unmonitoredand not all sick animals land on the beaches.Following the spread of the bloom inMonterey Bay, the National Marine FisheriesService conducted surveys from Half MoonBay south to Point Conception and detectedmore harmful organisms related to P. australis.In October a similar algal bloom occurred fur-ther offshore, and again a number of sea lionsdied from domoic-acid poisoning.

Midwater Explorations andDiscoveries

Researchers continued extensive midwatervideo surveys using MBARI’s remotely-oper-ated vehicles (ROVs) during 1998. These sys-tematic studies, conducted over the past fiveyears, have deepened scientific understandingof both individual species and the mesopelag-ic community of Monterey Bay. MBARI’s reg-ular research missions in Sanctuary watershave provided opportunities to observespecies and animal behaviors new to science.During the last year researchers discovered ahalf dozen undescribed varieties of lar-vaceans. These tadpole-like animals secretefilters of mucous that function to strain largerparticles from their watery surroundings. Ascientific description was published ofMesochordaeus erythrocephalus, the “red-headed” larvacean, which produces filteringstructures up to the size of a basketball andtypically populates waters 200-750 m deep.Midwater scientists also found an unusualnew doliolid (a tunicate) and a pair ofmedusae, likewise suspected to be newto science.

Using ROVs to observe residents of thedimly-lit midwaters over hundreds of hourshas allowed ecologists unprecedentedglimpses into their characteristic behaviors.One such behavior, witnessed in a variety ofmesopelagic animals - including certainmarine worms, eelpout fishes, and “house-less” larvaceans - is a curling of their elongatebodies into a circular shape when threatened.MBARI ecologists hypothesize that this actionrepresents protective mimicry, the imitation ofan unpalatable animal for the sake of escap-ing predation. By assuming a curled profile,elongate animals resemble round gelatinousanimals such as medusae, comb jellies, andsalps, which make poor meals for activepredators.

MBARI’s investigations have also revealednew information about the abundance of thesiphonophore Nanomia bijuga, the most com-monly observed of all the gelatinous animalsin the midwaters of Monterey Bay. This fragile

animal, ranging up to about one-third of ameter in length, turns out to be one of theBay’s most important predators, feeding onkrill and other zooplankton. Researchersdetermined that abundance of N. bijuga iscyclical, regularly occurring about threemonths after the onset of upwelling and theconsequent surge in primary production.

Deep-Sea Experiments onClathrate “Ice” Formation

The Sanctuary was also the setting fornovel field experiments on the behavior ofcarbon dioxide (CO2) in the deep ocean.During 1998 ROV-based experiments wereconducted in part to evaluate the potential for

eventual disposing of fossil-fuel CO2 in theocean as a way of curtailing its increase in theatmosphere. MBARI chemists injected severalliters of liquid CO2 into a glass laboratorybeaker on the Bay seafloor at a depth of 3,650meters. At this depth liquid CO2 becomesdenser than seawater, so the researchersexpected to see it form a stable pond with athin “skin” separating it from the seawater,like a layer of ice on a winter lake. Instead, tothe surprise of the scientists, who observedthe experiment via the ROV’s video camera,the CO2 appeared to expand in volume, thenoverflowed the container in huge droplets thatbounced to the seafloor and were carriedaway by the current. In fact the reactionbetween liquid CO2 and water had producedlarge volumes of clathrate “ice,” which sankto the bottom of the beaker and pushed theremaining liquid over the top. The chemistsare working with biologists to conduct furtherexperiments to determine whether the pres-ence of CO2 in this form has any measurableeffects on deep-sea animals.

New Perspectives on Monterey Bay Seismicity

Researchers from MBARI, UCSC, theUniversity of California Berkeley, Institut de Physique du Globe in Paris, and otherinstitutions continued the first-ever ROV

deployments of seismic instruments at fivesites in various parts of the Monterey Bayseafloor. During 1998, the second year of thismulti-year study, the sensitive, state-of-the-art sensors measured seismic waves for hun-dreds of earthquakes, both large and small,including many events not recorded by thepermanent onshore seismic network. To com-plement the seafloor array, other instrumentsloaned to UCSC by the Incorporated ResearchInstitutes for Seismology were installed atcoastal sites around the Bay. The researchersused data from all these stations to locateseismic events more accurately than was previously possible from land measurementsalone. These results have helped to derive anew model for the travel times of seismicwaves beneath the Central California seafloor,which has led to a better understanding ofthe structure of the offshore faults and theirassociated earthquake mechanisms. Usingthis information and historic seismic data,the collaborators reanalyzed earthquakesfrom the past seventy-two years, uncoveringstrong evidence that all major earthquakeactivity in the Bay occurs along the SanGregorio and Monterey Bay faults.

Discoveries on the Deep Seafloor

In spring 1998 surveys along part of thecontinental margin in Central California’s offshore waters were completed using a state-of-the-art multibeam sonar system.

In sonar images from the surveys, MBARIscientists saw what looked like areas of mineral deposits formed on the seafloor, possibly due to the seepage of sulfide- andmethane-rich fluids. Using an ROV to investi-gate, researchers discovered at 2,310 m anunderwater spring, or cold seep, they named“Tubeworm Slump.” Like the other cold seepsin Monterey Bay, it supports an oasis of life intotal darkness; in this location the prominentresidents are vestimentiferan worms, cousinsto the tubeworms of hydrothermal vents. Likehydrothermal-vent residents, most cold seepanimals depend on chemosynthesis - the conversion of fluid chemicals into nutrients -rather than photosynthesis, which requiressunlight. Tubeworms had previously beenfound at only one other site in the canyon,and with lengths of up to one-half meter,Tubeworm Slump’s worms are significantlylarger than those previously observed. Thiswas also the first discovery in the Bay ofbarite deposits. The researchers suspect thatfluids rich in barium from the underlying,organic-rich Monterey Formation are flushedthrough the sediments, where they mix with seawater containing sulfate and thenprecipitate out as barite at the seafloor.

-NOREEN PARKS AND JUDITH CONNOR

MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM RESEARCH INSTITUTE

An eelpout displays the curling behavior found to becommon of midwater animals trying to avoid predators.

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To help characterize the various benthichabitats of the Sanctuary continental shelf,a seafloor geologic map of the shelf is beingproduced from the interpretation of acousticswath-map imagery collected since 1995 bythe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). In thenorthern Monterey Bay, 100 kHz and 59 kHzside-scan mapping systems that produce 0.4m per pixel resolution have been used forthis work, in addition to the collection of ver-tical acoustic profiles of the sediment sectionto depths of about 50 m. These data werecollected using USGS’s R/V David Johnstonfor the inner shelf and NOAA’s R/V McArthurfor the outer shelf. On the southern MontereyBay shelf, two multibeam bathymetric surveys were carried out in 1996 and 1998respectively, resulting in coverage of bothacoustic backscatter (side-scan) and bathy-metric data at the 2.5 and 5-m per pixel resolution, respectively. The multibeambathymetric surveys employed the SimradEM-1000 and EM-300 systems. Most of theseimages are now available on a web browserat http://TerraWeb.wr.usgs.gov/TRS/projects/MontereySonar/.

Interpretation of this seafloor imagery interms of seafloor geology is now completeand comprises a layer in our GIS (geographicinformation system) for our Sanctuary pro-ject. The resulting maps (e.g., Figure 1) showthat rock outcrops occur predominantly onthe inner and outer shelves, whereas themid-shelf is covered with recent sediment.Coastal areas that are uplifting, such as thecoast around Santa Cruz, have rock outcropsat the seafloor that have been eroded bywave action in the surf zone. In contrast,coastal areas that are stable or subsiding,such as the central Monterey Bay around

Moss Landing, have only recent sands andother sediment at the seafloor. Around theMonterey Peninsula the granites that consti-tute the structural backbone of the Peninsulacrop out on the seafloor. Sedimentary rockswith distinctive acoustic signatures can berecognized and equated to the common rockformations around the Bay, principally theMonterey, the SantaCruz Mudstone, andthe PurisimaFormations, fromyoungest to oldestrespectively.

The PurisimaFormation is themost common rockoutcrop on the outershelf and it formsledges and hard-grounds for manybenthic species thatrequire a hard sub-strate. Outcrops onthe outer shelf aremost commonly theresult of relativelymore resistant cuestas of dipping rock stratathat were probably eroded down to their pre-sent relief at times of lowered sea level, thelast of which occurred prior to 15,000 yearsago. The outcrops of the Purisima formationon the outer shelf south of Año Nuevo arepopulated with vast fields of Brachiopods(mollusk-like animals), based on video tran-sects, and these presumably provide a majorfood source for fish and mammals of thearea.

In addition to rock outcrops, coarse sandbodies are prominently outlined by the

acoustic imagery and occur mostly in the 20-to 30-m depth range around the Bay. Thesesand bodies are in the form of shallow, 1-mdeep troughs floored by coarse sands moldedinto one-meter length waves. Such sandtroughs are most common in the offshoreformer Fort Ord area, and the deepest oneoccurs offshore of Seaside at a depth of 56 m.

The sand waves are successfully modeled asbeing produced by the oscillation of winter-storm-wave driven bottom water during timesof the largest waves over the shelf.

The seafloor imagery and interpreted geol-ogy will be published along with other stud-ies of the seafloor and water-column in aspecial volume of the journal Marine Geologyin summer or fall 1999.

-STEPHEN L. EITTREIM

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Seafloor Geologic Mapping

Physical Oceanographyin the Sanctuary

Through the efforts of the many marine science institutions around Monterey Bay,moored and remotely-sensed current observa-tions, ship-based hydrographic sampling, andcoastal modeling efforts have far exceededthose in most other parts of the country.Measurements, plans, and results related tophysical oceanography in the Sanctuary dur-ing 1998 have been many. Some examples,drawn primarily from programs at the NavalPostgraduate School (NPS), Monterey Bay

Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), andthe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) are out-lined in this section.

The USGS has deployed a moored currentand temperature array on a line offshore ofDavenport in water depths of 32 m, 70 m,and 120 m. Measurements span the last twoyears and include near-bottom currents andsediment data. During the first year, an addi-tional mooring was deployed at a depth ofabout 60 m off Santa Cruz. Across the

Davenport shelf, poleward currents dominatethe mid-depth and near-bottom flows, evenduring spring/summer when surface windsand surface currents are predominantly equa-torward. Results also suggest that suspendedsediment transport on the shelf is mainlystorm-driven and that Monterey Bay is theorigin of the suspended sediments. In addi-tion to the riverine sources entering MontereyBay (north of the Monterey Canyon), coastalcliff erosion is likely to play a role. These

The Physical EnvironmentThe Physical Environment

Figure 1: Portion of seafloor geologic map, here in gray-scale image, showing the south-eastern Monterey Bay shelf.

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Elkhorn Slough is an arm of the sea extend-ing seven miles inland at the apex of theMonterey Bay. Meandering through over2,500 acres of salt marsh and mud flats, it isthe second largest habitat of its kind remain-ing in California. Subject to the rise and fallof the tides each day and recipient of the sur-face water draining from 45,000 acres ofwatershed, this precious coastal resource isunder increasing pressure from human activi-ties. Numerous efforts are under way tounderstand the ecology of this region betterand to modify our activities to minimizedetrimental impacts.

The Elkhorn Slough Watershed Project, acollaborative effort of the Elkhorn SloughFoundation, the Resource ConservationDistrict of Monterey County, the USDA -Natural Resources Conservation Service, andthe Sanctuary, has been working closely withlocal farmers to prevent loss of topsoil. Inaddition to over 20,000 tons of soil that havebeen trapped in sediment basins installed on

farms throughout the watershed, recent testsof sediment samples indicate that agriculturalchemicals are also being successfully con-tained in these basins and prevented fromworking their way downstream into theSlough. A poignant event which illustratesthe importance of this work occurred in 1995when old pesticides buried in the sedimentsof the Pajaro and Salinas rivers were stirredup by the torrential rains and flooding,entered the food chain, and led to the col-lapse of a colony of Caspian Terns that wasbeing closely monitored. The terns had beenthriving on an island in a restored salt marshon NOAA’s Elkhorn Slough NationalEstuarine Research Reserve (ESNERR).Volunteers and researchers watched closelythis year and terns were seen but did notattempt to nest.

On a more encouraging note, the Reserveis home to a growing rookery of Great BlueHerons and Great Egrets. Volunteers are alsoadding their powers of observation to assist

scientists in monitor-ing this colony,which has grownfrom a single nestingpair of herons in1985 to fifteen heronnests and thirty-eightegret nests in 1998.Several pairs ofDouble-crestedCormorants haveadded their nests tothe Monterey Pinecanopies of thisrookery for the sec-ond year in a row.The Reserve has only

recently been surveyed for the presence andreproductive activity of the California red-legged frog. Observations indicate severalsites on the Reserve that are supporting aviable population of this threatened species.It is thought that small coastal drainages, likethe Elkhorn Slough watershed, are the onlyremaining regions in California where thered-legged frog can still be found in signifi-cant numbers. This year’s surveys indicatethat this is one of only four localities in thestate supporting populations of more than350 individuals. The water quality of thefresh water ponds that are being used bythe California red-legged frogs is now beingmonitored by volunteers to provide the datanecessary for proper management of thesehabitats.

This is the tenth year of the Reserve’s vol-unteer water quality monitoring program, acollaboration of ESNERR, the Elkhorn SloughFoundation, the Monterey County WaterResources Agency, and highly dedicated volunteers. Twenty-four sites throughout the

results, based on data from 1997, should beconsidered in the context of the El Niño con-ditions during that period. Observed tempera-tures show that the entire shelf down to adepth of 100 m was unusually warm, withtemperatures of greater than 15° C at depthsof 60 m in November and December 1997.During this time, unusually strong polewardcurrents throughout the water column of upto 40 cm per second were observed, particu-larly at mid-water depths. The currents shift-ed abruptly equatorward in early 1998 at theouter-shelf mooring. Near the end of Feb-ruary 1998, temperatures at depth on the

shelf and sea level off Davenport droppedover a relatively short period of several days,during a time of both strong equatorwardwinds and currents at mid-water depths. TheUSGS efforts are summarized online at:http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/docs/projects/mbms/.

A cooperative program between MBARIand NPS has been underway during 1997 and1998 to monitor this critical El Niño periodand the return to “normal” conditions.Fourteen hydrographic cruises crossing theSanctuary along CalCOFI (CaliforniaCooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations)

line 67 - a survey line that intersects thecoast at Monterey Bay - have been carriedout between January 1997 and November1998 with five additional sections plannedover the following year. A strong El Niñosignal was clearly present in the subsurfacetemperatures from mid- to late 1997. Physicaloceanographic conditions at the thermoclinedepths offshore returned to near normal bythe time of the 1998 spring upwelling season.

-JEFFREY D. PADUAN

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL

Wetlands and WatershedsWetlands and Watersheds

Elkhorn Slough

Old pesticides stirred up by flooding in 1995 led to the collapse of a colony ofCaspian Terns in Elkhorn Slough. (Adults and chicks shown here.)

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The Central Coast Regional Water QualityControl Board initiated several elements of itsCentral Coast Ambient Monitoring Program(CCAMP) in 1998. Development of a regionalmonitoring program was one of the key earlyrecommendations of the Sanctuary’s WaterQuality Protection Program, and much of theeffort in the past year was focused within thewatersheds draining to the Sanctuary. Datawere collected and/or analyzed from a Pajarowatershed monitoring project, a coastal estuaries sediment screening project, and the Bay Protection and Toxic Hot SpotCleanup Program (BPTCP).

WatershedCharacterizationMonitoring

The Pajaro River was the target ofa pilot effort for watershed monitor-ing. This was accomplished in collab-oration with the Association ofMonterey Bay Area Governments(AMBAG), with much laboratoryanalysis conducted by the CaliforniaDepartment of Fish and Game andGranite Canyon Marine Laboratories.Data were collected for conventionalwater quality parameters (dissolvedoxygen, pH, temperature, turbidity,coliform, nutrients) on a monthlybasis at seventeen sites in the watershed.State Mussel Watch funds were used to placefreshwater clams at a number of locations inthe watershed to assess bioaccumulation.Samples were collected for sediment andwater column chemistry (metals and organ-ics), and sediment toxicity. Benthic inverte-brate sampling was conducted at eight sitesto assess instream ecological conditions. Datafrom the project are being analyzed and willbe summarized in AMBAG’s PajaroWatershed Management Plan and CCAMP’sWatershed Characterization Report.

Initial results show some very highconcentrations of nutrients, coliform, and

sediment at a number of sites in the water-shed. At some sites high nutrient levels wereaccompanied by excessive algal growth andreductions in dissolved oxygen, indicatingimpairment of stream habitat. Llagas Creekconsistently had the highest levels of nitratesin the watershed, with the lower Pajaro alsoquite elevated. Tres Pinos Creek and the SanBenito River had very elevated levels of sedi-ment, turbidity, and at times total phospho-rus. Tequisquita Slough was particularly highin ammonia and orthophosphate, and low indissolved oxygen. High levels of zinc, copper,

and lead were found in water at two sites (onthe San Benito and the Pajaro rivers). Benthicinvertebrate assemblages showed a widerange of variability in species composition.Assemblages on lower Llagas and Salsipuedescreeks were particularly impaired.

Coastal EstuariesMonitoring

Unexpected laboratory funds allowed for aone-time sampling of sediment for metalsand organic chemicals in each of the majorcoastal estuaries in Region 3 (extending fromsouthern San Mateo County to northern

Ventura County). The highest concentrationsin the Region of some organochlorine pesti-cides were found in Watsonville andTembladero sloughs. These included endosul-phan, DDT, dieldrin, and gamma-BHC. Highconcentrations of mercury were found at theSanta Rosa Creek lagoon near the southernboundary of the Sanctuary.

Bay Protection and ToxicCleanup Program

Sediment chemistry and toxicity data col-lected by this program, combinedwith bioaccumulation data collectedby the State Mussel Watch Program,supported the listing of MossLanding and its tributary watershedsas a high priority toxic hot spotthrough the BPTCP. The toxic hotspot cleanup plan for the area isbeing finalized and includes budgetary and remediation recom-mendations. Though the BayProtection Program is scheduled toend in 1999, one of the final tasks ofthe program is to prepare aStatewide Consolidated Clean UpPlan which will include funding andimplementation strategies.

Final reports for each of thethree studies will be available in

1999. Also in 1999, the CCAMP will focus oncharacterization monitoring of the Salinaswatershed. Major ocean dischargers fromwithin the Sanctuary and elsewhere in theRegion will be meeting with Regional Boardstaff early in 1999 to reexamine receivingwater monitoring efforts. The goal of thisprocess will be to make better use ofresources, to detect impacts resulting fromdischarges more effectively, and to incorpo-rate an ambient ocean monitoring componentinto the overall study design.

-KAREN WORCESTER

REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD

Water Quality Monitoring Programs

watershed have been sampled monthly fortemperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, pH,turbidity, nitrate, ammonium, and dissolvedinorganic phosphate. This is the only long-term data set on water quality in this region,and has been essential in documenting someof the highest inputs of nitrates into theSlough from the lower Salinas River and theold Salinas River Channel.

While work is being done to contain topsoils in the uplands of the watershed, anothertype of erosion caused by the daily tidal currents is deepening the main channel ofthe Slough and contributing to the loss of saltmarsh. Researchers continue to gather theinformation necessary to make decisionsabout which of several proposed hydrody-namic modifications will be the most effective in slowing this trend.

From oak woodlands to salt marsh, fromsediment movement to nesting birds, collaborations of federal, state, and localagencies/organizations, scientists, and community volunteers are helping us toappreciate and manage this rich and sensitive coastal region better.

-KENTON PARKER

EDUCATION COORDINATOR,ELKHORN SLOUGH NATIONAL ESTUARINE RESEARCH RESERVE

A portion of the Pajaro River watershed, where the river meets the ocean.

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A large proportion (72 percent) of theCalifornia population of sea otters (Enhydralutris nereis) is found within the boundariesof the Monterey Bay National MarineSanctuary. Small populations of otters alsoexist at San Nicolas and San Miguel Islandsoff Southern California. For the past tenyears, the mainland range has been well-established between Año Nuevo Island at thenorth end and Purisima Point at the south.Through the years, individual otters haveoccasionally been seen as far north asBodega Bay. Within just the last year, ottersalso for several months occupied Cojo Bay tothe south of the established range, in a groupoften numbering over 100 animals.

In 1911, otters were protected under theInternational Fur Seal Treaty from fur hunt-ing. Additional protection was afforded viathe federal Endangered Species Act (ESA),under which the species has been listed as

“threatened” since 1977, and bythe Marine Mammal ProtectionAct, where otters are listed as“depleted.” With these protec-tions, the population has slowlygrown in size and range.However, the population remainssmall relative to historic levels,and is vulnerable to impactsfrom oil spills, point- and non-point water pollution, accidentalcapture in some types of fishinggear, and other human-relatedactivities. Despite the ease withwhich sea otters can be observedand studied, the individual andcollective role each real or poten-tial impact can play remains diffi-

cult to isolate and quantify.Reversing what had been a generally slow

but positive growth trend, the California otterpopulation began an apparent decline in 1994that persists in 1998. (See Figure 1.)

Survey counts can fluctuate from year toyear without providing proof that the popula-tion is actually declining. However, there hasbeen an overall decline of 11 percent betweenthe Spring 1995 and Spring 1998 counts, adownward trend that has persisted for threeyears and appears real. If this rate of declinecontinues, the California sea otter populationmay qualify for an “endangered” listingunder the ESA as early as the year 2000.

Hand in hand with the decreased numbersfrom the surveys, and supporting the sensethat the decline is indeed real, has been anincrease in the number of dead otters recov-ered each year since around 1991 (shown in

Figure 1: Survey data of sea otter population off California.

Endangered and Threatened SpeciesEndangered and Threatened Species

Sea Otters in the Sanctuary

Sea Otter Survey Data

An apparent decline in the California sea otter population which beganin 1994 persists in 1998.

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Sea Otter Researchand ConservationProgramIn a cooperative project headed by theMarine Wildlife Veterinary Care andResearch Center in Santa Cruz and theWildlife Health Center at the University ofCalifornia at Davis, with assistance fromthe U.S. Geological Survey BiologicalResources Division and the Monterey BayAquarium, thirty otters were captured fromMonterey, Moss Landing, and Santa Cruzas part of an ongoing effort to assess thehealth status of the southern sea otter population. During a short holding period,project participants tagged the animals foridentification purposes, and collectedblood to monitor baseline hematologicalparameters and to test for the prevalenceof Brucella, Leptospira, canine distemper,calicivirus, and Coccidioides immitis infree-ranging and rehabilitated southern sea otters.Plans are underway by this same group tostudy behavior and causes of mortality injuvenile southern sea otters, to examinecontaminant levels in sea otters andcoastal invertebrate species, to monitoraccidental drownings of sea otters thatbecome entrapped in gear used for coastalfin-fish fisheries and gillnet fisheries inMonterey Bay, and to reinitiate field stud-ies on basic behavioral and demographicparameters, all in an effort to understandand mitigate the causes of the currentsouthern sea otter population decline better.On another note: at least three boat-strikedeaths occurred in Elkhorn Slough in1998, including an otter successfully raisedand reintroduced through the Aquarium’s rehabilitation program. Another boat-strikevictim, rescued from Monterey harbor,required orthopedic surgery to repair abroken ankle, but was eventually returnedto the wild.

-ANDREW B. JOHNSON

MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM,SEA OTTER RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION PROGRAM

Figure 1 as a proportion of total otters count-ed the previous spring).

Sources of mortality among otters rangefrom the natural to the unexpected. Theunexpected finding of the past few years,from studies by the National Wildlife HealthCenter, has been that infectious diseaseaccounts for 40 percent of the sea otterdeaths, a level five times higher than that typ-ically seen in wild, free-ranging populations

of other animals known to or studied by theCenter. These diseases are encountered byotters in food or water; there is no knownincidence of these diseases being communica-ble to other otters, other marine animals, orhumans.

Some of these diseases may have been pre-sent in the otter population for decades butgone undetected until recently, when moreexacting post-mortem examinations were

made. In others cases, the presence of somediseases are apparent on even a gross exami-nation of the dead otter, and changes in infec-tion rates indicate a change within the otterenvironment or with an otter’s physiologicaland immunological ability to ward off theinfection.

Increased susceptibility to disease can be caused by the presence of environmentalcontaminants. Sea otters are exposed to various environmental contaminants throughpoint- and non-point sources and through the nearshore food web, which includes manyspecies of filter-feeding shellfish that concen-trate contaminants before they are eaten byotters, seabirds, or humans. Our understand-ing of the role played by these contaminantsis still astoundingly incomplete.

Our knowledge of the role played bynearshore fisheries is also still incomplete.Resource users - particularly those in com-mercial sea urchin and abalone shellfisheries- are watching closely to see how recent sea otter survey and mortality informationaffects sea otter population recovery andmanagement decisions, and potentially, thelivelihood and survival of key fisheries.Likewise, concerns over possible sea otterentrapment in fish and shellfish traps havegrown over the past year, as has renewedawareness of possible continued entangle-ment in coastal gill nets. A clearer under-standing of the impact of fisheries on seaotters, and of otters on fisheries, is critical to guiding future conservation managementdecisions. Other California coastal resourceuses, such as oil extraction and transport,local kelp harvest activities, and human recre-ational activities, also contribute to possible impacts on otters and their habitat.

Sea otters serve as an “indicator” speciesof ecosystem change, and perhaps moretelling, an indication of how well we can useour collective creative intelligence to resolve

Endangered Species Snapshot:Sanctuary Salmon and Steelhead Populations• Warm ocean temperatures associated with El Niño harmed southern Coho salmon popu-

lations. Adults arriving in the fall and early winter, when the temperatures were highest,were most affected; because of the warm temperatures early females produced eggs withno nucleus. Even in March-April (with cooler water), where 80-90 percent fertility is com-mon, fertility was in the 60-70 percent range.

• Very high winter and spring river flows destroyed both Coho food (aquatic insects) andtheir nests. The good news: in the summer the tremendous flows continued, sopopulations were in better shape, in that regard, than they’ve been in past drought years.

• Angling regulations changed significantly in 1998. The San Lorenzo River is now the onlyriver where one can catch and keep steelhead; all others are “catch and release.” In thatriver one can keep hatchery fish only. The Carmel River was opened for “catch andrelease” of steelhead in winter 1998 for the first time in ten years.

• Sea lions’ fondness for salmon continued to create conflicts between sea lions and fish-ers. However, this year saw an increased cooperative effort between conservation groups,fishers, and scientists to address this issue.

• The California Department of Fish and Game allotted significant funds in 1998 to water-shed restoration. (These include, by county: Marin - $40,881; San Francisco - $0; SanMateo - $136,684; Santa Cruz - $241,188; Monterey - $117,271; San Luis Obispo -$65,000.*) It also completed a draft restoration plan for Coho salmon in Santa Cruz andSan Mateo Counties.

* These figures represent funds allocated by the end of the calendar year; additional 1998funds will be distributed in 1999.

-JENNY CARLESS

EDITOR

The California Brown Pelican is an example of an endangered species making a comeback.

Southern sea otter

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The Sanctuary is home to many endangeredand threatened species. The Sanctuary’s legis-lation works in concert with the EndangeredSpecies Act (ESA) and other laws to protectthe marine environment.

A species is listed as “endangered” if it is

in danger of extinction throughout all or asignificant portion of its range, or “threat-ened” if it is likely to become endangered inthe foreseeable future. The chart below high-lights some of the listed species found in theSanctuary.

Right Whale SightingOne of the world’s most endangeredbaleen whales, the right whale, wassighted off the Big Sur coast in early1998. For marine scientists and whalebiologists, this particular event wasextraordinary not only because of therarity of such sightings, but because itwas a unique observation of two differ-ent types of baleen whales interacting.

Sanctuary Superintendent Bill Dourosand NOAA pilot Matt Pickett lookeddown from their plane during aerial sur-veys and saw a large black whale beingchased by several gray whales. Dourosestimates that there were twelve graywhales in an area of about a quartersquare mile near the right whale,although only two were obviously inter-acting with the right whale.

The fifty-foot right whales were hunt-ed to the brink of extinction near theturn of the century. They are very rarealong the California coast.

Nineteenth century whaling recordsshow that right whales were once abun-dant along all major continents in thetemperate waters of the northern andsouthern hemispheres, although theirnumbers may have been much loweralong the Central Coast. In the easternNorth Pacific, they could once be seenfrom central Baja California to the BeringSea in Alaska. Today, such sightings arefew and very scattered. During the pastfifteen years, only four verified sightingshave been recorded in the eastern NorthPacific, yet now three of these werewithin the boundaries of the Sanctuary.

Some experts estimate that as few asfifty to 100 right whales are left in theeastern North Pacific. (Please see Spring1998 newsletter for further details on thissighting and on right whales.)

-KIP EVANS

MONTEREY BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

Compiled by Kip Evans, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Examples of Endangered and Threatened Species of theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Organism Federal Status State Status

CetaceansBlue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) Endangered NoneHumpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) Endangered NoneFin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) Endangered NoneSperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) Endangered NoneRight whale (Eubalaena glacialis) Endangered NoneSei whale (Balaenoptera borealis) Endangered None

PinnipedsGuadalupe fur seal (Arctocephalus townsendi) Threatened ThreatenedSteller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) Threatened None

BirdsCalifornia Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) Endangered EndangeredCalifornia Least Tern (Sterna antillarum browni) Endangered EndangeredCalifornia Snowy Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) Species of Special Concern ThreatenedMarbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) Threatened Endangered

FissipedSouthern sea otter (Enhydra lutris) Endangered None

TurtlesGreen sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) Threatened NoneLeatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) Endangered NonePacific ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) Threatened NoneLoggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) Threatened None

Anadromous FishesChinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) - spring Candidate for Endangered Listing ThreatenedChinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) - winter Endangered EndangeredCoho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) - Central CA Threatened EndangeredSteelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) Threatened None

issues of sea otter and nearshore ecosystemrecovery, protection, and future manage-ment. The Sanctuary provides not only criti-cal habitat to 70 percent of the population ofthis species, it will serve a catalytic role inaddressing issues related to its health, recovery, and management.

-ELLEN FAUROT-DANIELS

ENERGY, OCEAN RESOURCES, AND TECHNICAL SERVICES DIV.,CALIFORNIA COASTAL COMMISSION

Endangered humpback whales are regular visitors to the Sanctuary.

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El Niño, Krill, and Endangered Whales in the Sanctuary

There is widespread agreement among scien-tists that marine ecosystems are profoundlyaffected by global climatic events. In thePacific Ocean, climatic events are naturalphenomena, and they are known to causechanges in both the short-term (5-7 year ElNiño events) and long-term (50-60 year cold-to-warm water regime shifts). For example,the 1982-83 El Niño event caused declines in

nutrient upwelling, phytoplankton growth,zooplankton, and larval fish productivity;decreases in seabird and marine mammalabundance and reproduction; and abruptdeclines in commercial fish landings inMonterey Bay. It is important to point outthat these “natural” global climate events areprobably our best opportunity to understandthe impacts of human-caused global climatechange such as global warming on theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary’smarine ecosystem.

The world’s most productive fisheries andmarine mammal foraging areas are located incoastal upwelling centers, and are responsiblefor approximately 95 percent of the annualglobal marine productivity. Monterey Bay isone such center where during the spring innormal years, northwest winds blow alongthe coast between Año Nuevo andDavenport. These winds bring cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface, which feeds anexplosive growth of phytoplankton, providingthe base of a food chain that ultimately leadsto dependably high concentrations of feedingblue and humpback whales in the summer.

For the past three years we have beenstudying the impacts of the1997-98 El Niño on the linksbetween coastal upwelling, pri-mary production, krill produc-tion, and the distribution andabundance of marine mammalsand seabirds in the Sanctuaryupwelling system. Our dataprior to the 1997-98 El Niñoevent established that in normalyears krill are the most abun-dant phytoplankton grazers inthe Monterey Bay upwelling sys-tem. Most marine predators inthe Bay (including humans) areonly one or two links in the foodchain away from krill, and krill is the primaryprey of seven of the ten most important com-mercial fishes on the Central California coast.Because whales cannot eat phytoplanktondirectly, krill form a key food link for whales.Our research has shown that over 95 percentof the diet of endangered blue and fin whalesconsists of krill.

The recent 1997-98 El Niño event providedus with the opportunity to understand howshort-term climate change affects theupwelling ecosystem of the Monterey Bay.

Preliminary analyses have shown us:• The recent El Niño event led to remarkable

declines in coastal upwelling, phytoplank-ton growth, and krill abundance inMonterey Bay. This is consistent with whathas been seen in past El Niño events.

• Paradoxically, whale populations inMonterey Bay during the summer of 1998were the highest we have ever recorded.What could account for this? During “nor-

mal” years a large proportion of the whalepopulation feeds on scattered schools of krillmany miles offshore on the edge of theCalifornia Current. Dr. Francisco Chavez atthe Monterey Bay Aquarium ResearchInstitute has indicated that during this recentEl Niño event, offshore productivity was verylow, and these offshore krill swarms likelydidn’t develop. We believe that the bulk ofthe whale population moved into the coastalupwelling zone in search of what little krillwas available - these centers became the onlyfood source available. An additional observa-tion supports this hypothesis: more finwhales were spotted in the Bay in the sum-mer of 1998 than had ever been seen before.Normally, fin whales do most of their forag-

ing offshore. This species, too, likely came insearch of krill.

Our studies of the 1997-98 El Niño eventhave served to underline the importance ofcoastal upwelling centers such as MontereyBay to marine productivity. Hopefully in thenot too distant future we can use our studiesto help predict the effects of global warmingon productivity in the Monterey Bay.

-DONALD A. CROLL1, BALDO MARINOVIC1, SCOTT BENSON2

1UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ2MOSS LANDING MARINE LABORATORIES

Marine mammalsMarine Mammals

A blue whale diving for krill.

Gray Whale Calf Census Data*Year Calves Est. % of total pop.

1998** 1,316

1997 1,439 6.5

1996 1,141 5.1

1995 601 2.6

1994 1,000 4.5*Preliminary results; data gathered from shore-basedsighting surveys of northbound migrating gray whalecalves passing Piedras Blancas.**EstimatePlease note: these results are preliminary and stillunpublished; they are not to be cited without the permission of the author.-PROVIDED BY WAYNE PERRYMAN

SOUTHWEST FISHERIES SCIENCE CENTER

Elephant Seal PopulationsPiedras Blancas:Year Births* High Count**1998: 1,650 5,0001997: 1,200 5,000* approximate number of births** high count occurs during the spring molt, and consists primarily of juveniles and adult females(approximate number)

-Unpublished data, provided by Brian Hatfield,USGS, Piedras Blancas Field Station

Año Nuevo:Year Births* High Count**1998: 2,797 4,5881997: 2,684 5,358* estimated production (95% of all females)** high counts occurred in April of 1998 and Februaryof 1997-Data provided by Pat Morris and Guy Oliver,University of California Santa Cruz

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The Sanctuary has one of the most diversepinniped communities in the world.Researchers continue to study their popula-tion dynamics, foraging behavior, and physi-ology. Most relevant this year is the responseof Sanctuary pinnipeds to the profound ElNiño event that occurred earlier in the year.

California sea lion, Zalophus californianus.California sea lions are the most commonpinnipeds in the Sanctuary, and their num-bers continue to increase. Possibly inresponse to El Niño, we observed more sealions (3,000-8,000) at Año Nuevo Island thanever before. We also observed a dramaticincrease in the number of pups born there.Typically, a small number are born every year(about twelve), but this year there were atleast 160 pups, eighty of which were aliveseveral weeks after birth.Northern sea lion, Eumatopias jubatus. AñoNuevo Island is the southern limit of thisspecies’ breeding range. The population hasbeen in decline over most of its range. DuringJuly the National Marine Fisheries Serviceconducted an aerial survey of the Island andcounted forty-two adult males, 137 adultfemales and/or juveniles, and 186 pups.These data indicate a continuing decline inpup production of about 6 percent a year(209 pups in 1997). At least six adult femalesea lions were observed with salmon flashers(attractants attached to fishing hooks) hang-ing from their mouths.Harbor seal, Phoca vitulina. Work by MossLanding Marine Laboratories (MLML)researchers on the foraging behavior and pop-ulation dynamics indicates that the local pop-ulation is healthy and growing steadily, witha large increase in the number of seals andpups using Elkhorn Slough. Seals fromthroughout the Sanctuary appear to forage

offshore at the edges of the Monterey canyonbreaks, and have an extremely diverse diet,consisting mainly of non-commercial preyspecies. Investigators from UCSC, theMonterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute,and MLML, using acoustic tracking, underwa-ter video, and molecular DNA techniques,

have demonstrated behavioral and acousticdifferences between seals in Monterey andElkhorn Slough, and have also revealed thatanimals move between these areas. Researchhas revealed that although young pups candive at birth they are not physiologicallymature until at least one year of age. Thispast year many of the pups born were under-weight and still had their neonatal pelage,which suggests that younger age classes were

negatively impacted by the El Niño event.Aerial survey and tracking work has indicatedthat once weaned, pups are highly mobileand can move out of the Sanctuary.Northern elephant seal, Mirounga angustirostris. UCSC researchers have shownthat females forage across a wide area of thenortheastern Pacific, from Central Californiato Alaska and west five degrees across theInternational Date Line, diving nearly continuously to mean depths in the range of400-700 m. Given their deep diving and spatial distribution, we would expect El Niñoevents to have less impact on northern ele-phant seals than other more coastal pin-nipeds. We tested the response of elephantseals to the 1998 El Niño by deploying a com-bination of ARGOS-linked satellite tags andtime-depth recorders. During 1998 rates ofmass gain were the lowest ever measured(0.29 ± 0.36 kg/day), with one female losingmass at a rate of 0.44 kg/day. In both the1982-83 and 1997-98 El Niño events, femaleseals appeared to compensate for low forag-ing success by increasing trip duration. In1998, females spent more time at sea, butthey went to the same general locations.However, the diving depths and the pattern-ing of the dives were different (Figure 1).This demonstrates the strong effect of the1998 El Niño event on the foraging behaviorof elephant seals. We also studied the impactof the 1998 El Niño event on elephant sealsduring the breeding season. Births in 1998(2,893) were similar to those of other years;however, pup mortality on the Island was thethird highest ever measured, due to the highstorm surf that accompanied El Niño.

-DANIEL P. COSTA, DAN CROCKER, PAT MORRIS,JEN BURNS, AND BURNEY LEBOEUF

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ

Pinniped Research

Figure 1: This shows the annual rate of mass gained by females over a foraging trip and the length of the post-lactation foraging trip. Notice the two El Niño years had the longest trip durations and the lowest mass gain. l: mass gain rate; m: trip durations.

All California breeding colonies of elephant seals are protected by National Marine Sanctuaries. A young male isshown here.

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Seabirds and El NiñoBecause this most recent El Niño event wasforecast well in advance of its spread to tem-perate northern Pacific realms, biologists hada chance to prepare specific studies forassessment of ecosystem response to chang-ing marine conditions. Researchers studyingmarine birds in the central and southern por-tions of the California Current marine ecosys-tem knew from previous El Niños and otherbasin-scale events that birds can serve asstand-ins for more difficult-to-study marineorganisms, and that certain reproductive andpopulation parameters can be used as timelybio-indicators of both physical and biologicaloceanographic change. Partners for theseinvestigations in the Central California regionincluded: NOAA/Environmental ResearchLaboratory, U.S. Fish and WildlifeService/San Francisco Bay National WildlifeRefuge, National Park Service/ChannelIslands National Park, National Fish andWildlife Foundation, and Friends of PointReyes Bird Observatory.

In Central California, we studied theresponse of seabirds to El Niño at SoutheastFarallon (SEFI) and Año Nuevo islands(ANI). ANI is home to the Rhinoceros Auklet,a relative of puffins, and a species whichnests in underground burrows and approach-es the colony only under the protective cloakof darkness. SEFI is located about 90 kmnorth of ANI, beyond the boundaries of theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.This colony supports core populations ofBrandt’s and Pelagic Cormorants, WesternGulls, Common Murres, Cassin’s Auklets, andPigeon Guillemots in Central California.During the non-breeding season, individualsdisperse to the north and south, thus bring-ing SEFI birds into the Monterey Bay region.

While seabird breeding at these sites in1997 was relatively unaffected by El Niño, itwas apparent early on that things would bedifferent in 1998. (See Figure 1 for examples.)From March to June, mean sea surface

temperatures at SEFI were 1 - 2.5° C higherthan long-term (27-year) averages. By Julyand August, however, temperatures haddropped to average values. Warmer than normal winter and spring ocean tempera-tures, and the corresponding drop in oceanproductivity (i.e., prey for birds) resulted inmoderate to substantial delays in egg-laying.For example, the mean Common Murre andCassin’s Auklet egg-laying dates were delayedby two and eight weeks, respectively.Breeding populations were also much reduced.Again, considering the murre and auklet: theSEFI murre population was about 20 percentlower than in 1997, while the auklet popula-tion was almost 65 percent smaller. Similarly,numbers of breeding Pigeon Guillemotdeclined by over 75 percent, Brandt’sCormorant by about 35 percent, and PelagicCormorant by roughly 50 percent. For thosethat attempted reproduction, success wasvery poor. Pelagic Cormorant and PigeonGuillemot experienced near total reproductivefailure. The reproductive performance ofBrandt’s Cormorant was 30 percent of the 27- year mean, whereas for the murre, thisvalue was 52 percent, and for RhinocerosAuklet it was 22 percent.

The only species which demonstrated nearnormal productivity was Cassin’s Auklet, inwhich the value for 1998 exceeded the long-term mean by 16 percent. However, giventhat very few Cassin’s Auklets attempted tobreed, island-wide offspring production wasextremely low. In short, these observationswere quite similar, with slight variations, toobservations made on the Farallon seabirdcommunity in other severe El Niño years.

Our time series for Rhinoceros Auklets onANI is considerably more limited, and effortsto enhance this population by providing habitat (nest boxes) may complicate interpre-tations. Nevertheless, El Niño’s influence wasapparent there as well. While the auklet population increased 98 percent from 1993 to

1997 (due to management efforts), it declinedby 18 percent in 1998. Mean productivity forpairs in nest boxes also increased from 0.33to 0.64 young/pair between 1993 and 1997,yet dropped to 0.47 young/pair in 1998. Innatural burrows, productivity dropped froman average of 0.83 young/pair to 0.55young/pair. Lastly, we noted a major changein the chick diet for Rhinoceros Auklets onANI. In past years, northern anchovies com-posed the vast majority of the prey itemsbrought to developing offspring, whereas in1998 Pacific saury made up most of the diet.Saury generally occur further offshore thananchovies, requiring greater foraging effort byadults. This mechanism may help explainreduced productivity in this species on ANIin 1998.

El Niño, and its counterpart, La Niña, generally persist on time scales of one to twoyears; however, the biological effects of ElNiño may be further complicated by oceano-graphic change which operates on longertime scales. In particular, the 1998 El Niñohas come at the end of a period of generalocean warming. Thus, while El Niño servesto illustrate one endpoint in the natural rangeof variation, it is only applicable to the cli-mate regime under which observations areobtained. Few El Niños studied by marineornithologists occurred during a cool-waterclimate regime. This highlights the need forcontinuing long-term observations to evaluateEl Niño/La Niña effects under both warmand cold water climate regimes. As highly-visible upper trophic level predators, birdscan be used as accurate and immediategauges to the timing and intensity of bothrelatively short and longer-term oceano-graphic anomalies.

-WILLIAM J. SYDEMAN

DIRECTOR OF FARALLON/MARINE STUDIES,POINT REYES BIRD OBSERVATORY

Bird PopulationsBird Populations

Common Murre Cassin’s Auklet Rhinoceros Auklet

Figure 1: Inter-annual variability in productivity for three species: Common Murre, Cassin's Auklet, and Rhinoceros Auklet in the Sanctuary.

In May 1997 the Sanctuary established amonitoring study of beachcast birds andmammals in the Monterey Bay region. Duringmonthly surveys, trained volunteers systemat-ically search 49 km of sandy beaches alongMonterey and Carmel Bays. The primary goalof the program, designated Beach COMBERS(Coastal Ocean Mammal / Bird Educationand Research Surveys), is to obtain informa-tion on rates of stranding for all species ofmarine birds and mammals in Monterey Bay.

Preliminary results: January-August 1998SEABIRDS:

The results outlined below refer only tonewly-deposited birds. Beachcast depositionof marine birds from January to August 1998was extremely variable. A low beachcastdeposition was recorded in February and highdeposition was recorded during April.Beachcast deposition remained high fromearly April through early July. The amount ofdeposition was greater at all beachesthroughout the study area from May throughJuly, compared to the same period in 1997.The causes of this elevated deposition during1998 are not clear. Many foraging guildsseem to have been affected and overallspecies diversity was greater in 1998,although Common Murres dominated thecomposition of seabird carcasses encoun-tered. In particular, overwintering and resi-dent seabirds were more frequently foundbeachcast during the May - July 1998 surveyscompared to the same period in 1997.Although no comparable data exist for April1997, deposition rates of overwintering andresident birds for April 1998 were also high.The extended period of high beachcast indicates that resource limitations (perhapscaused by El Niño) may have been a factor

contributing to elevated seabird mortalityfrom March through early July. Seabird depo-sition recorded during August was muchlower than the four previous months andremained low through the fall.

Among individual seabird species, SurfScoters and Cassin’s Auklets exhibited thegreatest difference between years andCommon Murre carcasses were found threemonths earlier than the previous year. Thecauses for these differences are not known;however, several necropsied Surf Scotersexhibited a high parasite load of banjo worm,and the Cassin’s Auklet, a small planktivore,may have been more susceptible to El Niño-

enhanced storms than larger fish-eatingspecies.

MARINE MAMMALS:In contrast with seabirds, marine mammal

carcasses could not be reliably marked ateach survey, and therefore the results out-lined below include all carcasses found,regardless of residence time. Marine mammaldeposition was relatively constant fromJanuary through early May of 1998, and theMay 1998 count was nearly identical to thenumber encountered during May 1997. Alarge (four-fold) increase in the deposition ofmarine mammals occurred between the May1998 and June 1998 samples, with the June1998 sample being nearly three times as highas the June 1997 sample. The most frequent-ly encountered species was the California sealion.

The increase in marine mammal deposi-tion during May and early June 1998 mayhave been caused by the unusual presence offemale California sea lions in Monterey Bayduring late spring/early summer. Normally,these animals would be expected to be atbreeding rookeries off Southern California;however, El Niño conditions may have forcedthem to move north in search of resources.Although the causes of the increase in marinemammal mortality are not known with cer-tainty, it is suspected that a toxic diatombloom during May (Pseudo-nitzschia aus-tralis) was partly responsible. The number ofmarine mammal carcasses encounteredremained high during July and August, butthese were likely the same carcasses as thosecounted during the June survey.

-SCOTT R. BENSON1, ANDREW DEVOGELAERE2,AND JAMES T. HARVEY1

1MOSS LANDING MARINE LABORATORIES2MONTEREY BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

Deposition of Marine Birds and Mammals on Monterey Bay Beaches

In 1998 Moss Landing Marine Laboratoriesand the University of California Santa Cruzcontinued a third year of ship-board surveys(partially funded by the Sanctuary), whichwere designed to examine marine mammaland seabird habitats in Monterey Bay. A setof transect lines, spaced at three-mile inter-vals, spanned the Bay from Santa Cruz to

Cypress Point and extended approximatelyfifteen miles offshore. Surveys were con-ducted monthly between May andNovember 1998, typically spanning two consecutive days.

A total of 402 marine mammal sightingsencompassing seventeen species were madeduring the seven surveys. The California sea

lion was the most frequently encounteredmarine mammal. Pacific white-sided dol-phins and humpback whales were the mostfrequently-encountered toothed cetaceanand baleen whale, respectively. Commondolphins were numerically the most abun-dant cetacean, because this species wasseen in large groups.

Marine mammal and Bird SurveysMarine Mammal and Bird Surveys

Pelagic Cormorants can be found in the Sanctuary year-round.

Monterey Bay Marine Mammaland Seabird Surveys

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Fish and Invertebrate ResourcesThe ocean environment in the Monterey Bayregion is very dynamic and greatly influencesresident fish populations. This variabilitymakes estimating the “health” of marine fishand invertebrate populations difficult usingone year as a basis for discussion.Additionally, most of the information used toestimate the size of fish populations isderived from commercial and recre-ational fisheries. Catch rates are usedas an index of abundance, and longterm data sets are usually needed tomodel or estimate trends in the abun-dance of fish stocks effectively. Evenwith these long term data sets, it isoften difficult to determine if changesin fish populations are the result ofsocietal activities, such as fishing orcoastal development, or due to envi-ronmental changes.

Events occurring in 1998, however,can be placed in a longer term frame-work to provide an indication of thecurrent status of marine fish andinvertebrate resources. This reportprovides a brief summary of the statusof fish stocks in the Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary from 1980-95 as described in Fishery Resources of theMonterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary,and discusses the main events affecting fish-ery resources in 1998.

About 200 species are typically caught incommercial and recreational fisheries in theSanctuary. From 1980-95, reported commer-cial catches increased or were stable forabout 17 percent of the species frequentlyharvested in this region. Reported catchesdeclined for about 10 percent of the frequent-ly harvested species. Catches and thus popu-

lation status of other species are eitherunknown or highly variable. Invertebratespecies most frequently harvested commer-cially include spot prawn, pink shrimp,Dungeness crab, rock crab, and market squid.Harvests of spot prawn, Dungeness crab, androck crab all increased from 1980-95. Pinkshrimp populations declined throughout

much of the late 1980s, then increased from1994-95. The market squid population waslow during the El Niño years of 1983-84,reached record levels in 1994-97, thendeclined dramatically with the onset of the1997-98 El Niño.

Shark and ray species are no longer har-vested in large numbers in the Sanctuary.There is, however, evidence to suggest thatthe population sizes of some shark and rayspecies are lower now than they were before1980. Chinook, or “king,” salmon is the most

common anadromous species caught in theSanctuary. Reported catches of Chinooksalmon have been high in the last few years.Scientific stock assessments indicate that thefall run Chinook salmon of the SacramentoRiver is in good shape, but that populationsof Coho salmon and winter and spring runChinook salmon are severely depressed.

Steelhead populations are extremelydepressed in this area, due primarilyto degraded stream habitats.

Abundances of most pelagic speciesare greatly determined by large scaleenvironmental phenomena. Northernanchovy and Pacific sardine are thepredominant nearshore pelagic fishescaught in the Sanctuary. Anchovyspawning biomass in CentralCalifornia declined after 1985, butexperienced a substantial increasefrom 1994-95. Pacific sardine popula-tions are also increasing rapidlythroughout their range after nearly dis-appearing from the region in the1950s. In 1998 the commercial fishersreported seeing large numbers of small(young) sardines. The population ofPacific albacore, another common

pelagic species, is currently thought to be sta-ble or increasing.

Biological and fishery data indicate thatlingcod may be overfished in much of theirrange. In 1998 the Pacific Fishery Manage-ment Council’s stock assessments indicatethat lingcod abundance is at approximately 9percent of the estimated unfished biomass offWashington and Oregon. This caused theCouncil to reduce recreational harvest quotasand begin to develop a rebuilding plan.Similarly, sablefish have been heavily fished

A total of 2,359 sightings of 9,994 seabirdswere made while the ship was on transect.Species composition varied from month tomonth. The most abundant families ofseabirds were the shearwaters and alcids (80percent and 11 percent of all birds seen,respectively). Species composition was similar from May through September, butchanged notably in October and November,with fewer Sooty Shearwaters and CommonMurres, and an increased number of Buller’sShearwaters, Black-vented Shearwaters, andRhinoceros Auklets.

Preliminary results indicate that El Niñoconditions likely affected the number andtypes of marine mammals encountered during the surveys. Dall’s porpoises wereseen less frequently than in previous years,whereas common dolphins were morenumerous. In 1998 California sea lions wereunusually abundant in early summer, whenthey normally would be expected to be atbreeding rookeries off Southern California.The number of baleen whale sightings was greater in 1998 than 1997, and peakabundance was observed later in the season(August vs. May-June). The observed pattern

of abundance was similar for zooplankton,the whales’ primary prey. Seabird assem-blages were roughly similar to those seen in 1997, but abundances of several specieswere notably lower (e.g., Common Murres,Cassin’s Auklets, and Brandt’s Cormorants).Furthermore, a large number of Storm Petrelswas seen in September 1998, whereas thisgroup of species was rare on all previous1996-97 surveys.

-SCOTT R. BENSON1, DONALD A. CROLL2,AND BALDO MARINOVIC2

1MOSS LANDING MARINE LABORATORIES2UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ

Harvested SpeciesHarvested Species

Rockfishes are the most diverse group of fishes living in Sanctuary waters.

in California waters. Sablefish catches in theSanctuary have been decreasing since 1980,but data from recent surveys suggest the pop-ulation may be increasing. Pacific hake arevery abundant seasonally in the Sanctuary asthey migrate from Mexican to Canadianwaters. Pacific hake catches were high offCentral California throughout most of the1980s.

Rockfishes are the most diverse group offishes living in Sanctuary waters. Sufficientdata are available to show stable or increas-ing trends in abundance for some rockfishessuch as bank, chilipepper, shortbelly, widow,and splitnose. Other rockfish species such asbocaccio, yellowtail, canary, and Pacificocean perch have exhibited decreasing trendsin abundance along the U.S. West Coast.Many of these depleted rockfishes are deepwater species that are slow growing, longlived, or have experienced high exploitationrates. Fishery managers are concerned aboutthe capability of some of these species torecover from high harvest rates and in 1998continued to reduce harvest guidelines formany rockfish species.

Several species of fishes that occur in kelpforests and other nearshore habitats areunder high fishing pressure from both com-mercial and sport anglers. In the late 1980s,fishers started transporting fish alive torestaurants. This type of fishery became verylucrative and fishing pressure increasedrapidly. Landings of live fish in CentralCalifornia increased from 15,000 pounds in1989 to 536,000 pounds in 1997. The resultof this interest in live fish for the restaurantmarket was an increase in the harvest of

immature fish, a major resource conservationproblem. There are already signs that somenearshore species such as cabezon are rapid-ly becoming depleted from the high fishingpressure. New legislation was enacted in1998 that placed size limits on manynearshore fishes and directed the CaliforniaDepartment of Fish and Game to develop spe-cific fishery management plans for nearshorespecies. California AB 1241 also provided afundamental change in the way that fisheriesmanagement will take place in California inthe future. It requires the state to managefisheries proactively for sustainability, insteadof for short-term profits. It also transfersmuch of the responsibility for managementfrom the legislature to the Fish and GameCommission.

Surfperches represent a diverse group ofnearshore fishes in the Sanctuary waters.Historical catch data show that surfperch

populations have declined, due to a numberof factors including environmental variation,lower production caused by smaller fish,habitat degradation, and increased fishingpressure. In contrast, landing data and stockassessments suggest that populations of mostspecies of flatfishes are robust and couldwithstand increased levels of harvest.

In addition to population changes broughtabout by fishing activities, broad scale envi-ronmental changes affected marine resourcesin 1998. Most notably, marine habitats andspecies were affected by strong El Niño con-ditions. The marine environment experiencedhigh inflows of fresh water, sediments, andnutrients from winter floods. Northwestwinds were lighter than normal, causing poorupwelling conditions. These poor upwellingconditions have been shown to be detrimen-tal to survival of juveniles of many localspecies, such as rockfishes. Water tempera-tures were also 2 - 4° C above normal, proba-bly causing poor survival of many species,but notably juvenile market squid. The strong

Kelp HarvestingMany activities, consumptive and non-consumptive, could have an effect on akelp forest and its ecology. In the interestof resource protection, the Sanctuary collaborates with researchers, kelp harvesters, and other interests to deter-mine if the effects of kelp harvesting areecologically important.

South of Monterey Bay, kelp is harvest-ed primarily by large vessels and is usedas a processed food additive. Kelco, asubsidiary of Monsanto, is the major kelpharvester south of Monterey Bay. WhileKelco's operations are mostly in southernCalifornia, it occasionally cuts kelp in theSanctuary in late summer and early fall.In fall 1998, for one day, a Kelco boat cutkelp as far north as Carmel Bay.

Kelp on and north of the MontereyPeninsula is primarily hand-harvested,and fed to abalone in mariculture farmsand used as substrate for herring roespawnings (exported for sushi). FromCypress Point to the Monterey CoastGuard Wharf, kelp harvesters removed571 and 683 tons in 1996 and 1997,respectively, according to the CaliforniaDepartment of Fish and Game (DFG). Thelong-term average of kelp harvestedaround the peninsula is higher than this,due to occasional visits from Kelco's ship.While many biologists believe this level isnot environmentally detrimental to thekelp plants, increased harvesting has led to "use-conflicts" with non-consump-tive users (divers, kayakers, hoteliers,conservationists).

Since 1996 the Sanctuary has beenworking with DFG, local kelp harvesters,and non-consumptive use interests todevelop a non-regulatory solution to kelp"use-conflicts" along the Monterey andPacific Grove coasts. These efforts havepartially paid off: in September 1998 allthe kelp harvesters who use that areasigned an agreement to work amongthemselves and with other non-consump-tive users for the benefit of all interests,and to ensure sustainable kelp harvestingin that area. Additionally, in 1998 thecities of Monterey and Pacific Groveissued resolutions designating this areaas being of special environmental signifi-cance.

The Sanctuary retains authority underits Management Plan to regulate kelp harvesting, and is interested in furtheringthe scientific understanding of kelp har-vesting impacts. To this end, in 1998 wefunded some research on the effects ofkelp harvesting on kelp canopy cover, andwill expand that work in the next year.

-AARON KING

MONTEREY BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

“Of course, El Niño was the big story in 1998. For example, it affected the

migration patterns of salmon and squid,which looked for colder water so were

less plentiful here. Conversely, albacore came in more because

of the warm waters.”-DAVE DANBOM, MOSS LANDING

FISHING INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVE,SANCTUARY ADVISORY COUNCIL

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“This was a good year for albacore,which attracts a lot of fishermen.

However, fishing for rockfish, the ‘breadand butter species,’ was dismal. Our

Cambria sports fishing club catch wasdown this year, except for blue bass.”

-DR. MAL STOCK,FISHER, CAMBRIA

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“This year was a disaster for squid fishermen - literally. The disasterpeople came and made loans, but thefishermen are still feeling the effects. A few were able to switch and fish sardines, but even that hasn’t been very good - the sardines have been

very small. Only about fifteen tons ofsquid were caught on the whole

Central Coast this year, whereas thetypical catch is around 7-8,000 tons,

and as high as 15,000 tons,for a season.”

-DAVE CRABBE

FISHER, MONTEREY

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The people of California’s Central Coast can’t help but interact with the Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary. We surf and swimin its waters and walk along its shores - evendispose of our sewage within its boundaries.People from around the country and theworld also come into contact with theSanctuary as tidepool visitors, recreationalfishers, and travelers aboard vessels transitingthe California coast.

This section illustrates some of the manyhuman/Sanctuary interactions that occurevery year. It is by no means a completeaccounting; we have simply compiled someexamples and - where possible - givenrelevant statistics for 1998. (For example,Fitzgerald Marine Reserve is only oneexample of many tidepool locations withinthe Sanctuary, and Monterey Bay Kayaks represents only one of many kayak rentalcompanies.) Footnotes describe the limita-tions of, and sources for, these statistics.

Some of these interactions are generallyconsidered harmful (such as oil spills oreffluent discharge) and some are beneficial(beach cleanups, docents). However, often theline is not clear-cut; many of these interac-tions could have a positive or negative effect,depending on the behavior of those involved.

water mass flow from the south and corre-sponding warm water brought many speciesto this area that are not typically seen here.Species that occurred in the Sanctuary in1998 that are typically not seen in large num-bers included albacore, sheephead, marlin,swordfish, pelagic red crabs, and jumbosquid.

The Sanctuary’s enabling legislationexcludes fishery management from thepurview of its regulations. The Sanctuarycharge is to protect resources, however, andthere is much the Sanctuary program can doto improve fishery management. More scien-tific information is needed to optimize

catches from fisheries without depleting fishpopulations. Information is needed not onlyon population abundance and critical life his-tory stages, but on the interactions betweenspecies, the effect of harvest activities onmarine habitats, and the effect of environ-mental change on marine fishes. Increasedresearch is also needed to evaluate the designand effectiveness of current methodologies,as well as to develop new, more efficientmanagement strategies.

-RICHARD M. STARR

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SEA GRANT EXTENSION PROGRAM

“This summer on the ocean we saw a northern shift in the

salmon population, with smaller fish being caught here and the largerfish in Oregon. This happened in the1992 El Niño as well. Some remnants

of this El Niño were still evident at the end of summer, with barracuda

and giant squid being caught, both of which are usually

found farther south.”-DUNCAN MCLEAN,

FISHER, EL GRANADA

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QACTIVITY DETAILS

Tidepoolers Visitors to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve - approximately 110,0001

Whale Watchers Monterey Bay Whale Watch - 8,145 people2 (see article p. 25)Kayak Trips Monterey Bay Kayaks - 15,400 kayak trips (via rentals)

(from Monterey and Elkhorn Slough)Divers Southern Monterey Bay giant kelp forests - over 60,000+ divers/year.3

Of the above total, Pt. Lobos - 3,720 divers4

Fishers Commercial Fishing Licenses, by county5:

Marin - 196San Francisco - 204San Mateo - 308Santa Clara - 44Santa Cruz - 209Monterey - 648San Luis Obispo - 574

Charter Boats Charter Boats Licenses, by county6:(Recreational fishing) Marin - 11

San Francisco - 25San Mateo - 9Santa Clara - 6Santa Cruz - 16Monterey - 9San Luis Obispo - 17

Great American Fish Total Locations - 20Count (5th Annual) Total Bottom Time - 95:57 hrs

Total Species Counted - 81Total Surveys Completed - 127(For more details, see p. 3.)

1998 Coastal Cleanup Coastal Cleanup Beach Debris Collected, by county7:

Marin - 17,263 lbs trash; 3,597 lbs recyclables; 1,181 volunteersSan Francisco - 5,492 lbs trash; 792 lbs recyclables; 2,718 volunteersSan Mateo - 32,902 lbs trash; 3,190 lbs recyclables; 1,546 volunteersSanta Cruz - 5,020 lbs trash; 1,750 lbs recyclables; 1,850 volunteersMonterey - 12,902 lbs trash; 2,521 recyclables; 2,665 volunteersSan Luis Obispo - 4,741 lbs trash; 730 lbs recyclables; 760 volunteers

Volunteer Docents Contacts with the public:

Save Our Shores Sanctuary Stewards - 45,000(Santa Cruz and San Mateo Chapters)BAY NET - 23,000(Santa Cruz and Monterey Peninsula)Friends of the Elephant Seal/BAY NET* - 60,000+(San Luis Obispo County)

*Friends of the Elephant Seal was created from over 60 volunteers trained initially by BAY NET.The two programs worked closely in San Luis Obispo County during much of 1998.

Wastewater Treatment Both the Santa Cruz and Watsonville wastewater treatment plants were upgraded to secondary treatment level in 1998.

Human InteractionsHuman Interactions

SUN

IEL

THO

MAS

Save Our Shores’ Sanctuary Stewards organize beachclean-ups like this one.

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ACTIVITY DETAILS

Volume of Permitted Effluent National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permits - 65Average dry weather flow from these discharges: approx. 1.77 billion gallons/dayState Waste Discharge Requirement (WDR) Permits - 220Maximum design flow for these discharges: 91.4 million gallons/day

Sanitary Exceedances and Sanitary Exceedances and Unauthorized Discharges, by county8:Unauthorized Discharges

San Mateo (Mid Coastside WWTP): 54 reported violations, either effluent exceedances or overflows/bypasses, directly to the SanctuarySanta Cruz:Effluent exceedances in watershed - 14Effluent exceedances w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 6Unauthorized discharges in watershed - 2Unauthorized discharges w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 5Monterey:Effluent exceedances in watershed - 31Effluent exceedances w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 4Unauthorized discharges in watershed - 3Unauthorized discharges w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 1San Luis Obispo:Effluent exceedances in watershed - 10Effluent exceedances w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 2Unauthorized discharges in watershed - 0Unauthorized discharges w/direct discharges to Sanctuary - 0

Beach Closures Beach Closures, by county9:

Marin: Not available.San Mateo: 19 beaches closed for a total of 278 daysSanta Cruz: 6 beach closures for approx. 3 days each and 1 closure for 1 day, for an approximate total of 19 days

Monterey: 2 beach closures for a total of 14 days

San Luis Obispo: 1 beach closed for 3 days (outside Sanctuary boundaries); advisories posted at all beaches during big storm events

Shipwrecks 1) The Vaya Con Dios was wrecked north of San Pedro Point (technically outof the Monterey Bay Sanctuary boundary, in the exclusion zone off SanFrancisco) in June. The wreck was eventually removed. Four crew died inthe accident.2) The Lovely Day sank and washed ashore north of Point Joe (PebbleBeach) on the Monterey Peninsula in mid-December. Both crew membersaboard died. No oil or petroleum products were observed on the ocean’s surface.

Oil Spill Responses 1) Pt. Reyes Tarball incident, Nov. 97 to Feb. 98. Most activities occurredoutside of the Monterey Bay Sanctuary, in the Gulf of the FarallonesSanctuary. (See p. 2 for details.)2) San Mateo Coast Oil Spill, Sept.-Oct. 98. Fifty to 100 barrels of anunknown oil product were spilled west of Half Moon Bay. The Coast Guardtracked down a possible responsible party. (See p. 2 for details.)

Enforcement Actions -Three fines were issued: two for harassment of marine mammals; one forunder the Marine operation of a jet ski out of prescribed zones. (Fines ranged from $200 toSanctuaries Act $750 dollars.)

-A homeowner and builder were issued official warnings for constructing aseawall without authorization from the Sanctuary.-Several verbal warnings were issued to jet ski operators operating in unauthorized areas.

Notes:1 - This number is low (1996 was 135,000, for example) because the Reserve’s sign was destroyed in a traffic accident.2 - This is thought to be a low number for the average operator, because this company includes interpretation in its trips, and so takes

fewer than average trips.3 - Saunders, R., Okey, T.A. and Sobel, J. 1997. Recommendation for the establishment of the Edward F. Ricketts Marine Park. Center

for Marine Conservation, San Francisco, 17 pp.4 - Estimates, provided by Judy Pollack, Point Lobos State Reserve5 - Source: California Department of Fish and Game6 - Source: California Department of Fish and Game. These are not necessarily exclusively doing sport fishing; they may also do whale

watching tours, marine mammal tours, etc.7 - Source: California Coastal Commission8 - Sources: San Luis Obispo Regional Water Quality Control Board (for Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Luis Obispo counties). Data

were not available from the Oakland RWQCB, which includes Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo counties; Pat Cotter (MontereyBay National Marine Sanctuary) provided details from Mid Coastside Waste Water Treatment Plant in San Mateo County.

9 - Sources: County Environmental Health Departments. Note that all counties except Santa Cruz test weekly, so that in those counties abeach, once closed, usually remains closed for seven days. In Santa Cruz County, a closed beach will normally be tested every dayuntil it is safe and opened again.

Human Interactions Statistics compiled by Lisa de Marignac, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, andJenny Carless.

Friends of theElephant SealFriends of the Elephant Seal (FES) wasformed and incorporated in March 1998by concerned members of the Cambriacommunity. These activists formed FES under the guidance of the Centerfor Marine Conservation’s BAY NET program to establish and operate an elephant seal docent program on theCentral Coast. There is a large andgrowing colony of northern elephantseals located in the Piedras Blancas areajust north of Cambria. Over the years,the colony - which is easily viewed fromHighway 1 - has become an attractionfor tourists and nature lovers. Unfort-unately, many of the people who cameto view the elephant seals unwittinglyharassed or interfered with the seals’natural activities.

By posting trained docents at the ele-phant seal viewing areas, FES has beenable to educate thousands of people onthe natural history of the elephant sealand how to view and enjoy them with-out disturbing their environment. Oversixty volunteer docents also provide thepublic with information on the seals’habitat and the other marine mammals,such as gray whales, harbors seals, sealions, and sea otters, which frequent thearea. The program has been instrumen-tal in preventing incidents of harassmentto the seals through its educational programs and presence on the beaches.

Since the program first began postingdocents in November 1997, docentshave contacted over 60,000 people whostopped at the viewing areas alongHighway 1. The visitors are local resi-dents, tourists from around the world,tour groups, and school children. FES isnow expanding its efforts by developinga portable educational program to be taken to public schools and otherinterested groups.

-WILLIAM RAVER

FRIENDS OF THE ELEPHANT SEAL

Windsurfing is popular in parts of the Sanctuary.

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Whale Watching

Whale watching is becoming a commonmeans for the average person to experiencethe Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.Monterey Bay Whale Watch conducted year-round trips during 1998 to observe the diver-sity of marine life within the Sanctuary. Ourbiologists documented all marine mammalspecies including location, group size, andbehavior. We also photo-identified individualhumpback whales, blue whales, and killerwhales, and contributed that documentationto scientists working on these species.

The year started off with the southernmigration of the gray whale, which was a bitdelayed due to El Niño conditions. Themigration peaked off Monterey between thesecond and third week of January with overfifty whales sighted per 3-hour trip, withwhale group sizes ranging from ten to fifteen.The highlight of the season was our observa-tion of a gray whale giving birth to her calfinside the Bay off Pacific Grove.

For unexplained reasons the northernmigration of the gray whale was early, withthe first northbounders observed during thesecond week of February. As the main migra-tion of adult and juvenile whales passed usby early April, the migration of mothers with

calves was just beginning in our area. This isa time of danger for the young calves, askiller whales prefer to hunt them in MontereyBay as they cross the deep canyon and areaway from the protection of shore. Althoughthis is an unpredictable event, we observedthree full attacks and the end of a fourth.The killer whales generally work as a groupto tire the gray whales, separate the motherfrom calf, and eventually kill the calf.

Spring marked the beginning of theupwelling season, coinciding with the arrivalof humpback and blue whales to feed on theabundance of fish and krill in the MontereyBay region and along the Central Coast. Mayand June offered incredible opportunities towatch multi-species feeding aggregations inthe Bay involving humpback whales, thou-sands of long beaked common dolphins,hundreds of California sea lions, and up to10,000 seabirds - mostly Sooty Shearwaters.

Both humpback and blue whales wereconsistently sighted through the summer andfall. An abundance of sardines and krill wasthe mainstay for these whales. As during thewinter and spring, common dolphins - bothlong beaked and short beaked species - werethe most abundant dolphin in the Bay

through the end of fall, often encountered ingroups of over 2,000. They displaced the nor-mally abundant and frequently-sighted Pacificwhite-sided dolphin, which was still occa-sionally present but in smaller group sizes.Baird’s beaked whales were sighted severaltimes during October, as in past years. Killerwhales were sighted two to five times permonth, with peaks in spring and fall. Octobermarked above-average sightings and numbers(1,000 per group) of Risso’s dolphins, oftenin the company of northern right whale dolphins.

Another late burst of upwelling in Octobercreated huge krill concentrations off the coastbetween Point Pinos and south of PointLobos, near the canyon edge, lasting throughmost of November. This late season krillbrought, on some days, up to 100 whales tothe area, including humpback, blue, and finwhales. Fin whales are not commonly seen inmost years, but were a consistent presenceduring October and November.

-NANCY BLACK

MONTEREY BAY WHALE WATCH

Boaters/Harbors:Monterey Moss Landing Santa Cruz Pillar Point

Number of berths 413 625 1,140 371Number of moorings 200 0 0 30(permanent)% Commercial *34 50 5 60% Recreational *66 50 95 40Ratio of recreational *50/50 Not avail. 65/35 50/50sail/powerVisitors/night/year(transients) 10,000 Not avail. 12,000 7,952Launches/year 8,000 9,000 15,000 10,976

*except for those boats moored in the lee of Wharf #2 (approximately 40), where 100 percent are recreational, with a breakdown of sail/power at 75/25.Sources: Harbormasters

Sanctuary Vessel Traffic at a GlanceNumber and type- Approximately 4,000 large vessels (>300 gross

tons) traverse the Sanctuary each year- 500 - 750 are tankers- the majority of the remainder are large

container ships and bulk product carriers

Distance from shore- Most U.S. crude oil tankers voluntarily travel

50+ nm* from shore- Large container ships and bulk product carriers

usually travel 2.5 to 15 nm from shore

*nm: nautical miles(Note: for further information on Sanctuary vesseltraffic, see page 2.)

25

Intertidal SystemsDoyle, William T. and Pearse, John S. 1972.Intertidal transect studies of northern Monterey Bay;four quarterly reports submitted to the Associationof Monterey Bay Area Governments (on file at theHopkins Marine Station library).

Pearse, John S. 1998. Biodiversity of the rocky inter-tidal zone in the Monterey Bay National MarineSanctuary: A 24-year comparison. In: Report ofCompleted Projects 1994-1997, pp. 57-60. CaliforniaSea Grant College System, La Jolla, California.

Stanford University Hopkins Marine Station. 1970.Sewage pollution. Final papers Biology 170h(unpublished manuscripts on file at Hopkins MarineStation library).

Turner, Teresa. 1985. Stability of rocky intertidalsurfgrass beds: Persistence, preemption, andrecovery. Ecology 66:83-92.

Wyllie-Echeverria, S. and Phillips, R. C. 1994.Seagrasses of the North Pacific. In: Seagrass Scienceand Policy in the Pacific Northwest, S. Wyllie-Echeverria, A. M. Olson, and M. J. Hershman, eds.,63pp. (EPA 910/R-94-004).

Kelp Forests

Dayton, P. K., M. J. Tegner, P. E. Parnell, and P. B.Edwards. 1992. Temporal and spatial patterns of dis-turbance and recovery in a kelp forest community.Ecological Monographs 62(3): 421-445.

Foster, M. S. 1982. The regulation of macroalgalassociations in kelp forests. Pages 185-203 inSynthetic and Degrative Processes in MarineMacrophytes. Walter de Gruyter & Co.

Foster, M. S. and D. R. Schiel. 1985. The ecology ofgiant kelp forests in California: a community profile.U.S. Fish and Wildlife Biological Report. 85. 152 pp.

Open Ocean and Deep WaterSystemshttp:/www.mbari.org/rd/

http://www.oc.nps.navy.mil/local.html

A Natural History of the Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary. The Monterey Bay Aquarium andNOAA. 1997.

Chavez, F. P. and C. A. Collins, eds., Studies of theCalifornia Current System Part 1. Deep-Sea ResearchPart II. Topical Studies in Oceanography. Volume 45,NO. 8-9. (1998) Ed.

Robison, B. and J. Connor. The Deep Sea. TheMonterey Bay Aquarium. 1999.

Wetlands and WatershedsCaffrey, J.M., S. Shaw, M. Silberstein, A. DeVogelaere and M. White. 1997. Water QualityMonitoring in Elkhorn Slough: a summary of results1988-1997. (1998 data in preparation.) ElkhornSlough Foundation and Elkhorn Slough NationalEstuarine Research Reserve Report.

Parkin, J.L. 1998. Ecology of breeding CaspianTerns, Stena caspia, in Elkhorn Slough, California.M.S. Thesis. San Jose State University, San Jose,California.

Reis, D. 1999. Distribution and habitat study ofCalifornia Red-legged Frogs (Rana aurora draytonii)and Pacific Tree Frogs (Hyla regilla) at ElkhornSlough National Estuarine Research Reserve.ESNERR report.

Endangered andThreatened SpeciesJarman, W.M., C.E. Bacon, J.A. Estes, M. Simonand R.J. Norstrom. 1996. Organochlorine contami-nants in sea otters: The sea otter as a bio-indicator.Endangered Species UPDATE 13(2): 20-22.

Riedman, M.L. and J.A. Estes. 1990. The sea otter(Enhydra lutris): Behavior, Ecology and NaturalHistory. U.S. Dept. of Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildl.Service, Biological Report 90(14).

Thomas, N.J., and R.A. Cole. 1996. The risk of dis-ease and threats to the wild population. EndangeredSpecies UPDATE 13(12): 23-27.

Bird PopulationsAinley, D.G., W.J. Sydeman, and J. Norton. Uppertrophic level predators indicate interannual positiveand negative anomalies in the California Currentfood web. Marine Ecology Progress Series 118:69-79.

El Niño in the North Pacific, by William J.Sydeman. Point Reyes Bird Observatory Observer112, Winter 1997-1998.

Where Sea Meets the Sky, by Sharon Levy. NewScientist 3 October 1998.

Marine Mammal andBird SurveysBeachCOMBERS

Ainley, D.G., R.E. Jones, G.W. Page, D.J. Long, L.T.Jones, L.E. Stenzel, R.L. LeValley, and L.B. Spear.1994. Beached marine birds and mammals of theNorth American West Coast: A revised guide to theircensus and identification, with supplemental keys tobeached sea turtles, sharks and rays.NOAA/GFNMS. 236 pp.

Bodkin, J.L. and R.J. Jameson. 1991. Patterns ofseabird and marine mammal deposition along theCentral California coast, 1980-1986. Can. J. Zool.69: 1149-1155.

Stenzel, L.E., G.W. Page, H.R. Carter, and D.G.Ainley. 1988. Seabird mortality as witnessedthrough 14 years of beached bird censuses. PointReyes Bird Observatory report for the Gulf of theFarallones Marine Sanctuary. 183 pp.

Bird and Marine Mammal SurveysAinley, D.G. and R.J. Boekelheide. 1990. Seabirds ofthe Farallon Islands: ecology, dynamics and struc-ture of an upwelling-system community. StanfordUniv. Press, Stanford, CA 450 pp.

Briggs, K.T. and E.W. Chu. 1986. Sooty Shearwatersoff California: distribution, abundance, and habitatuse. Condor 88:355-364.

Croll, D. A. 1989. Physical and biological determi-nants of the distribution, abundance, and diet of theCommon Murre in Monterey Bay, California. Studiesin Avian Biology 14:139-148.

Harvey, J.T. and S.R. Benson. 1997. Marine bird andmammal distribution and abundance in MontereyBay, during 1996. Final report to the Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary. Moss Landing MarineLaboratories Technical Publication 97-02.

Schoenherr, J. R. 1991. Blue whales feeding on highconcentrations of euphausiids around Monterey Baysubmarine canyon. Can. J. Zoo. 69:583-594.

Harvested SpeciesFoster, Michael and Michael Donnellan, in prep,Giant kelp surface canopy dynamics and small-scalekelp harvesting in the Ed Ricketts Underwater Parkregion, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, MossLanding, CA. 95039

Karpov, K.A., D.P. Albin, and W.H. Van Buskirk.1995. The marine recreational fishery in northernand central California, a historical comparison(1958-86), status of stocks (1980-86), and effects ofchanges in the California current.

Leet, W.S., Dewees, C.M., and C. W. Haugen. 1992.California’s living marine resources. University ofCalifornia Sea Grant, Davis, CA. 257 pp.

Love, R.M. 1991. Probably more than you everwanted to know about the fishes of the Pacificcoast. Really Big Press, Santa Barbara, CA. 215 pp.

Pacific Fishery Management Council. 1998. PacificFishery Management Council Newsletters. PacificFishery Management Council, Portland, OR. Website: www.pcouncil.org

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. 1997.Commercial and recreational fisheries statistics pub-lished on Internet. Pacific States Marine FisheriesCommission, Portland, OR 97201. Web site:www.psmfc.org/

Starr, R.M., K.A. Johnson, N. Laman, and G.M.Cailliet. 1998. Fishery Resources of the MontereyBay National Marine Sanctuary. California Sea GrantCollege System Publication No. T-042, 101 pp.

VenTresca, D.A., J.L. Houk, M.J. Paddack, M.L.Gingras, N.L. Crane, and S.D. Short. 1996. Earlylife-history studies of nearshore rockfishes and ling-cod off central California, 1987-92. CaliforniaDepartment of Fish & Game, Marine ResourcesDivision Administrative Report 96-4. 77 pp.

Yoklavich, M. (ed.). 1998. Marine harvest refugia forWest Coast rockfish: a workshop. NOAA, NMFSTech. Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-255. 159 pp.

The following sources have been suggested by the authors of each section, for readers who are interested in learning moreabout the specific topics discussed in this report. (Note: this is NOT a comprehensive bibliography about Sanctuary resources.)

A general reference for all Sanctuary resources is the Site Characterization and its bibliography,on the Sanctuary’s web page, at http://www.mbnms.nos.noaa.gov/sitechar/

Further ReadingFurther Reading

26

Managing Editor - Jenny Carless

Graphic Designer - Judy Anderson

Production Artist - Chris Benzel

Copy Editors - Jenny Carless, Daphne White

Photographer - Kip Evans (except as noted)

Illustrator - Keelin Sabel(except as noted below)

Illustrations - pp. 2 (bottom), 10, 14, 17, 18 — Valerie Kells/Monterey Bay Aquarium

Illustration - p. 25 — Kathy Kopp/Monterey Bay Aquarium

© Illustrations and photos copyright - all rights reserved. Illustrations and photos may not be reprinted or repro-duced without written permission.

National Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration

Monterey Bay National MarineSanctuary299 Foam Street Monterey, CA 93940(831) 647-4201http://www.mbnms.nos.noaa.gov/

We welcome comments, which shouldbe sent to Liz Love at the above address.

Unless specifically stated, the viewsexpressed in this issue do not necessarilyreflect the opinions of the Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary, the NationalMarine Sanctuary Program, or NOAA.

The Sanctuary thanks the Monterey BayAquarium and an anonymous donor forproviding financial assistance for thisreport.

PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER.

We also thank the following individuals for contributing their timeand effort to this publication - as writers, reviewers, and advisers:

Alan Baldridge, Head LibrarianEmeritus, Hopkins Marine Station,Stanford University

Scott R. Benson, Moss Landing MarineLaboratories

Nancy Black, Monterey Bay Whale Watch

Mary Brawner, California Department ofFish and Game

Bob Breen, Fitzgerald Marine Reserve

Taylor Bucci, Save Our Shores

Gregor M. Cailliet, Moss LandingMarine Laboratories

Judith Connor, Monterey Bay AquariumResearch Institute

Daniel P. Costa, University of CaliforniaSanta Cruz

Patrick Cotter, Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary

Pat Coulston, California Department ofFish and Game

Dave Crabbe, Fisher, Monterey

Donald A. Croll, University of CaliforniaSanta Cruz

Dave Danbom, Fishing Representative,Sanctuary Advisory Council

Lisa de Marignac, Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary

Andrew DeVogelaere, Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary

Mike Doherty, San Luis Obispo CountyEnvironmental Health Department

Mike Donnellan, California Departmentof Fish and Game

William Douros, Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary

Matthew S. Edwards, University ofCalifornia Santa Cruz

Stephen L. Eittreim, U.S. GeologicalSurvey

Kip Evans, Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary

Ellen Faurot-Daniels, CaliforniaCoastal Commission

Chet Forrest, At-Large Representative,Sanctuary Advisory Council

Brian Foss, Santa Cruz Harbor

Michael S. Foster, Moss Landing MarineLaboratories

Peter Grenell, Pillar Point Harbor

James T. Harvey, Moss Landing MarineLaboratories

Brian Hatfield, U.S. Geological Survey,Piedras Blancas Field Station

Corinne Huckaby, San Luis ObispoRegional Water Quality Control Board

Andrew B. Johnson, Monterey BayAquarium

Aaron King, Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary

Dave Lewis, Pillar Point Harbor

Liz Love, Monterey Bay National MarineSanctuary

Duncan McLean, Fisher, El Granada

Donna Meyers, Coastal WatershedCouncil

Pat Morris, University of CaliforniaSanta Cruz

Guy Oliver, University of CaliforniaSanta Cruz

Jennifer Olson, California Departmentof Fish and Game

Jeffrey D. Paduan, Naval PostgraduateSchool

Kenton Parker, Elkhorn Slough NationalEstuarine Research Reserve

Noreen Parks, Monterey Bay AquariumResearch Institute

John Pearse, Professor Emeritus of Biology, University of California Santa Cruz

Wayne Perryman, Southwest FisheriesScience Center

Steve Peters, Santa Cruz CountyEnvironmental Health Department

Judy Pollack, Point Lobos State Reserve

Caroline Pomeroy, University ofCalifornia Santa Cruz

Holly Price, Monterey Bay NationalMarine Sanctuary

William Raver, Friends of the Elephant Seal

Bruce Richmond, U.S. GeologicalSurvey

Rachel Saunders, BAY NET

Tim M. Schaeffer, Moss Landing MarineLaboratories

Steve Scheiblauer, Monterey Harbor

Cass Schrock, Monterey Bay Kayaks

Maris Sidenstecker, Monterey BayNational Marine Sanctuary

Richard M. Starr, University ofCalifornia Sea Grant Extension Program

Becky Steckler, California CoastalCommission

Jim Stillwell, Moss Landing Harbor

Mal Stock, Fisher, Cambria

Dave Streig, Monterey Bay Salmon/Trout Project

William J. Sydeman, Point Reyes Bird Observatory

David VenTresca, California Departmentof Fish and Game

Steven Webster, Monterey BayAquarium; Chair, Sanctuary AdvisoryCouncil

Bruce Welden, Monterey CountyEnvironmental Health Department

Lorraine White, San Mateo CountyEnvironmental Health Department

Karen Worcester, Regional WaterQuality Control Board

Mary Yoklavich, Pacific FisheriesEnvironmental Group, NOAA/NMFS

CreditsCredits