Featured Scientist: Meet Jason!

Today's featured scientist is Jason Mostowy - read on for more about his cruise and future goals!

My name is Jason, I graduated from the University of  Miami in 2015 with a B.S. in Biology/Marine Science, and I've been working as a research tech in the FORCES Lab since 2013.

Larval lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles)
Image credit: FORCES

My main work for the lab involves processing the zooplankton samples we collect on cruises like this one - meticulously removing fish larvae and other target organisms, fitting the results into our considerable database, and dissecting larval fish for otoliths (earstones, used for ageing studies), gut contents, or genetic analysis projects. I'm also currently working on a project to characterize the larval distribution of the highly invasive Indo-Pacific lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles) in the tropical western Atlantic. Gaining a better understanding of the early life ecology of this harmful species will help scientists better predict levels of lionfish population replenishment, which in turn can be used to determine where and how often lionfish removal efforts should be performed.

Jason sorts through plankton search for tunas

Jason rinses down the Bongo-90 with
Sarah and Lulu during night shift

This is my third year sailing aboard the Foster. I love working in the field, especially the many perks that come with going to sea - the chances to practice and expand my scientific skill set, the opportunities to get to know other scientists from a variety of disciplines, the stewards rescuing me from my unfortunate cooking for a few weeks, etc. It's been a long cruise for me; I first embarked way back on April 13th, and by the time we reach port on June 2nd I'll have spend 35 of the last 48 days at sea!

This fall - after what I hope will be a commensurately long and relaxing stint on solid ground over the summer - I plan to start graduate school where I will continue to study the factors that mediate the distribution and survival of larval fish in the GOM and Caribbean.

Featured Scientist: Tom Kelly

Today we learn about Tom who shares his insights into the infamous sediment trap! Here is his blog post. (Read previous guest posts here!)

Tom and the incubation system

My name is Thomas Kelly and I am a PhD Candidate at Florida State University in the Plankton Ecology and Biogeochemistry Lab. One of the principal tools that I use in my research is called a sediment trap. A sediment trap collects marine particles and organisms as they sink through the water column. You can think of a sediment trap as an underwater rain gauge that collects sinking plankton instead of falling rain drops.

Since most of the biological growth occurs where light is plentiful (i.e. photosynthesis), the majority of marine organisms live within the surface layers of the oceans. But as these organisms die, get broken up, or defecate, particles settle out of the surface layer and into the deeper ocean. Our sediment traps are placed in between these layers and can tell us about what kind and how quickly carbon, nutrients, and other material leaves the surface ecosystem.

Tom and Mike deploy the sediment trap

The deployment of the sediment trap is really quite straightforward and will typically take a bit over an hour. The whole assembly consists of a long rope that extends from the surface all the way down to the depth of the last sediment trap frame (Pictured to the left), about 650 (210m) feet. At the bottom we place 60 lbs (27 kg) of weights and at the top a set of buoys. For the Bluefin Tuna Cruise the sediment trap frames are placed at approximately 150, 400, and 600ft (50, 120, and 200m) of water depth so that we can measure how the sinking of particles changes with depth.

Onto the frame we attach a set of tubes filled with extra salty seawater so that any particles that sink into them will stay in the tube rather than being mixed out again (the denser fluid will stay inside the tube just like a glass of water will stay inside a cup). Besides that, the tubes are also spiked with formaldehyde to kill anything that tries to eat the sinking material and a baffle at the top to reduce turbulence around the top of the tube.

Tom plots his next filtration experiment

After 3-5 days of drifting, the sediment trap is ready to come aboard and be processed. In general, each of the sampling tubes is filtered and frozen for later processing on land where we can look at such things as the carbon and nitrogen content. Some of the specialized aspects that we can look at from the sediment traps include the size classes of the particles collected, the source of the material collected, and the quantity of various metals and nutrients within the material. Ultimately the sediment trap provides invaluable information about how the ecosystem looses energy and material to the deeper water column.

Featured Scientist: Jose Quintanilla

Our annual surveys would not be possible without our wonderful collaborators from around the world. We'll dedicate several future blog posts to highlight these individuals, so that you can learn more about them, their research, and the valuable contributions they make to the survey. You can find previous posts here. Today we feature Jose Quintanilla from IEO!

Deploying the Bongo-90 in the GOM

My name is Jose Mª Quintanilla Hervás. I am one of the scientists in the Larval Ecology Group belonging to the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO), which is the public organization that carries out research in the oceans of Spain. For the last decade, my research has been focused on larval growth of different species in the Mediterranean sea (such as sardines, anchovy, bluefin tuna) and how it is influenced by environmental and trophic variables.

Jose searches for the elusive bluefin tuna in the plankton sample

Dr. Quintanilla fractions mesozooplankton in the wetlab

This is my first time in this survey in the GOM. I'm very pleased to take part in it and to have the opportunity to continue the collaboration with our colleges from NOAA in order to improve our knowledge of bluefin tuna larval ecology from a multidisciplinary point of view in the framework of ECOLATUN project. One of my main interests is to establish a robust criteria for age reading of bluefin tuna larvae in order to be able to compare growth patterns of populations from Mediterranean and GOM and try to the determine the most important factors related with different growth rates in both areas taking into account that growth is one of the most important factors in larval survival and, therefore, in the recruitment and viability of the species.

Jose discusses his otolith research back in the Malaga, Spain

Nowadays, our group is interested in the study of the potential effect of larvae feeding behaviour on their growth based on Stable Isotope Analysis (SIA) and Compound Specific Isotope Analysis (CSIA)

Outreach & Education: Nancy Opens her doors during our Progreso Open House

The ship Nancy Foster arrived for the first time to Progreso in Yucatán on May 19. On Saturday, May 20, we held an Open House event to explain the scientific research activities we carried out in the Gulf of Mexico. On this occasion we were accompanied by Dr. Mario González Espinosa, Director of ECOSUR, Dr. Magda Estela Domínguez Machín, Assistant Director of Fisheries Resources in the Atlantic of INAPESCA, Dr. Josefina del Carmen Santos Valencia, Chief of CRIP Yucalpetén, and Dr. Alvaro Hernández Flores, Professor-Researcher at MARISTA University, together with Doctorate students in Fisheries and Aquaculture Bioeconomics at the university. The students of Marine Biology (UADY), led by Dr. Alfonso Aguilar Perera, Professor-Researcher of UADY Marine Biology Faculty, were present as well as Mr. Manuel Sánchez González, President of the Yucatán Shipowners Union.

Mike Stukel explains the sediment traps to local fishers

Student explores plankton in the microscope!

While everyone explored the ship, scientists explained the main activities carried out during our campaign in the different laboratories. In the “wetlab,” everyone got an opportunity to see the many organisms that make up the plankton using microscopes. 

The wetlab is also where each sample is carefully examined to search for tuna larvae and multiple filtrations of seawater take place. In the “dry lab” all the controls for deployment and recovery of of equipment take place. On the back deck, we saw the equipment used to ascertain nitrogen sources in relation to the plankton food-web dynamics in the habitats of the BFT. 

Scientists examine specimens under the microscope

Chief Sci Estrella Malca discusses the project goals

This is novel and exciting because, despite its importance, these research activities are being conducted for the first time in the Gulf of Mexico! Finally, on the bridge, the NOAA Corps officers showed us the state of the art navigation equipment and instruments utilized to safely and accurately lead the ship to and from our sampling locations.

Mexico and US collaborators

Students and researchers asked questions about our various activities and were surprised by the great diversity of organisms observed in the microscope and those captured on the computer screen during this survey. We would like to thank everyone for participating and to all of the port agents, the scientists, crew and officers for making this a fun and well organized event!

Featured Scientist: Meet Jennifer!

Today's featured scientist is a recent graduate from University of California - San Diego, Jennifer Beatty! She is a research assistant at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Read on to find out her goals for this survey in her own words!

Jennifer fixes a sample collected in the GOM

"The lab I'm involved with studies the interaction of phytoplankton and zooplankton, which are the lowest levels of marine food webs. Phytoplankton are essentially the plants of the sea, while zooplankton are the animal plankton that eat them. The way these two interact changes in different parts of the ocean, which impacts the dynamics of organisms further up the food web, including bluefin tuna larvae! During this cruise, we are hoping to get an idea of what is happening at these lower food web levels to illuminate what conditions are optimal for larval bluefin tuna.

Processing the ring net in the wetlab

"My primary goal for this cruise is to gain field experience at sea. I've worked with samples in the lab, but I wanted to see where they come from and how they are collected. Additionally, I wanted to taste what research at sea is like because I plan to pursue a graduate degree in marine science. Before I head there, I'd like to have a better idea if I prefer research dependent on field work or prefer to stay in the lab."

Featured Scientist: Meet Mike!

This year's voyage is the first of two annual research surveys in the Gulf of Mexico for the NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program. Our project, "Research, observation, and monitoring to support long-term sustainability in the GoM ecosystem, including fish stocks, fish habitat, and fishing industries," is in collaboration with some new partners to the FORCES Lab. Read on and get introduced to the project's PI from Florida State University, Mike Stukel!

Mike prepares sample bottles to be loaded into the sediment trap

My name is Mike Stukel, and I am an assistant professor at Florida State University. I am a plankton ecologist and biogeochemist in the FSU Plankton Ecology and Biochemistry Lab. I study the role that some of the smallest organisms in the ocean play in the global carbon cycle and their role in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. On this cruise, I am studying the role that different nutrients play in limiting the primary production of phytoplankton. These tiny algae are responsible for half of the world’s photosynthesis and half of the oxygen that you breathe. Their photosynthesis also supports the entire marine ecosystem of the open ocean Gulf of Mexico. One of my goals in this project is to quantify the food web pathways that partition this phytoplankton production between either the biological pump (which transports atmospheric CO2 into the deep ocean where it can be stored for centuries) or higher trophic levels including larval tuna. 

Mike and Tom (R) with their double-decker water filtrations!

My goal for this cruise is to understand the base of the food web that supports larval tuna.  In particular, I am interested in whether the algae responsible for photosynthesis are ultimately getting their nutrients from upwelling that brings nutrient-rich deep water into the sunlit surface zone or whether special phytoplankton (called Nitrogen-fixers) are creating their own nutrients from the nitrogen gas that is abundant in the atmosphere and ocean.  Answering this question is important to understanding whether or not total productivity in the Gulf of Mexico will decrease due to climate change.

Mike deploys the drifter array in the wee hours of the morning

Featured Scientist: Meet Kiana!

Meet Kiana, who just finished her first semester as an undergraduate student intern at the SEFSC FORCES Lab! Read about her goals for her first research cruise in her own words...

Kiana (R) helps Sr. Survey Tech Samantha retrieve the CTD

Hi everyone, my name is Kiana and I'm a sophomore undergrad at the University of Miami. As an undergrad intern, my main role is helping the senior researchers accomplish all the tasks needed on the ship. Some of my tasks include deploying nets, containing and logging samples, and inputting data.

As of now, I don't know exactly what I want to do in the future but I am excited to begin work on my senior thesis, which will be looking at lobster abundance in and around MPAs near Cuba. My biggest goals for this cruise are to learn the ins and outs of accomplishing an experiment at sea, in addition to learning valuable scientific skills that I can apply at school and in the future.

Kiana soaks up some sun on the back deck after a hard shift's work!

Besides participating in this cruise I will also be journeying to Saudi Arabia in late July to participate in research on the Red Sea, where I will be able to use many of the skills I learned aboard the Nancy Foster.