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The Pipefish Project: An Interview with Ramona de Graaf,
working in Eelgrass

Eelgrass stewardship at
Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre

Over the past few years, the Bamfield Eelgrass Stewardship Project was busy doing research, mapping, and developing educational programs. Bamfield residents, Huu-Ay-Aht youth, high school work experience students, BMSC summer students and GIS experts, together have contributed 400 volunteer hours to the project.

Research

Do local Bamfield eelgrass beds have wasting disease?

This disease is caused by a slime mold called Labyrinthula sp. and led to the nearly catastrophic decline in eelgrass of North Atlantic coasts in 1931 and 1932. Labyrinthula was isolated on eelgrass from around Bamfield.

Eelgrass wasting disease index key. The disease causes black patches to appear on eelgrass leaves. Volunteer monitors can use the index to estimate the disease's presence on the leaves (Burdick et al, 1993)

Eelgrass beds as protection -

Are eelgrass beds used by the brittlestars, Amphiodia urtica and Amphipholis squamata as a refuge from predators? This project was done by a BMSC summer student. She concluded that A.squamata has a strong association with eelgrass beds, however, A.urtica was found both inside and outside of eelgrass beds. Further research would paint a better picture of how A.squamata is linked to eelgrass beds.

Use of eelgrass beds by juvenile fish -

A team of BMSC summer students undertook this project. Beach seining, rod and line, minnow traps, and snorkel surveys were used to survey juvenile salmonids.

Mapping

Mapping of eelgrass beds is crucial in order to locate important fish habitat. Under Canadian government legislation it is illegal to destroy fish habitat. If it must be destroyed, it has to be replaced in twice the quantity.

The Bamfield Eelgrass Stewardship Project has surveyed approximately 6.5 by 8 Km square area and all known eelgrass beds have been mapped. Surveys were done from boats and kayaks, as well as snorkeling, walking, and wading around known eelgrass areas. The areas that have eelgrass beds include: Bamfield and Grappler Inlets, Roquefeuil Bay, and the Deer Group Islands from Haines to Fleming (Check out the interactive map!).

In addition to mapping the eelgrass beds, the shoot density (the number of plants in 0.25m squared) and bed size has been quantified. Measuring the shoot density and size of bed is important to detect change over time. Shoot density can change in response to environmental changes that are natural or human-made. Detecting change over time is called monitoring. Next summer we will measure shoot density and bed size at the same sites to monitor the eelgrass beds.

This is an example of an eelgrass bed that has high shoot density, and healthy eelgrass, providing habitat and food for many a high diversity of organisms. This eelgrass bed is located in one of the study sites of the Bamfield Eelgrass Stewardship Project

Volunteers

None of this work could be done without volunteers. Four hundred volunteer hours have been logged by 13 adults and 30 youth, including high school and unversity graduates, and Huu-ay-aht youth. THANK YOU EVERYBODY!

References

Burdick, D. M., F. T. Short, and J. Wolf. 1993. An index to asses and monitor the progression of wasting disease in eelgrass Zostera marina. MEPS 94: 83-90.

Precision Identification. 2002. Field methods for mapping and monitoring eelgrass habitat in British Columbia.

Rasmussen E., The wasting disease of eelgrass (Zostera marina) and its effects on environmental factors and fauna. In: Seagrass Ecosystems, Marine Science vol 4. Eds: C.Peter McRoy and Carla Helfferich. 1977. Marcel Dekker, Inc.

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