Message from the Dean

Last week the CFOS Advisory Council held a virtual meeting to discuss needs and priorities of the college, including updates on our academic and research programs and major facility operations. Discussion also focused on agenda items for the next meeting, which will take place in person in Fairbanks for a full day. Stay tuned for details.

Since 2015 the state of Alaska has provided $500,000 annually to support research and education programs conducted by UAF-based researchers and collaborators aboard R/V Sikuliaq. As operator of Sikuliaq, CFOS facilitates the allocation of these state funds through the Alaska Sikuliaq Program. The deadline for the CY2024 proposal submission is Friday, March 31.

I hope everyone enjoys a relaxing and safe spring break this week.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for the OOI Coastal Endurance Array project, led by Ed Dever and Jon Fram from Oregon State University. The project, funded by NSF Ocean Observatory Initiative, will recover and deploy oceanographic surface moorings, profilers, and gliders off the coast of Oregon and Washington.

Activities and Accomplishments

Jaide Phelps won third place for student poster presentation at the International Seaweed Symposium in Hobart, Tasmania.

CFOS hosted the 26th annual Alaska Tsunami Bowl on March 3–5 in Seward. The Free Radicals from Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé took first place among a dozen teams in the statewide ocean sciences competition. A big thank-you to our donors, volunteers and all those who helped to ensure a successful competition.

Graduate student Alex Sletten was invited to present her work on microplastics in spotted seals on March 1 at the Ice Seal Committee annual meeting in Anchorage.

CFOS in the News

UAF News published a story about research on using drones to survey tidewater glacier habitat, quoting graduate student Court Pegus and Shannon Atkinson. The story was also picked up by KINY radio.

Anchorage Daily News published an opinion piece coauthored by graduate student Katja Berghaus about the UAF graduate students’ unionization efforts.

Alaska Native News highlighted a research partnership led by Tyler Hennon that will provide fishermen with instruments to collect sea water samples in Southeast Alaska.

Seth Danielson was quoted in an Arctic Sounder article about federal funding through AOOS that will pay for ocean monitoring equipment in the Arctic Ocean.

Publications

Cheng, M.L.H., C.J. Rodgeveller, J.A. Langan, and C.J. Cunningham. 2023. Standardizing fishery-dependent catch-rate information across gears and data collection programs for Alaska sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria). ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsad037

Marchenko, A., and Z. Kowalik. 2023. Tidal wave–elliptic island interaction above the critical latitude. Journal of Physical Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-22-0018.1

Grants and Awards for February 2023

Awards receiving incremental funding:

• Grant G-12804 "Coastal Marine Institute Program Administration 2019-2024" - Jennifer Reynolds - BOEM - Mod 6 - $20,627.00 (May 1, 2019)
• Grant G-14395 "Enhancing ocean color remote sensing tools to better constrain fisheries forecasting models in a critical subarctic system" - Thomas Kelly - NASA - Mod 2 - $344,941.00 (August 23, 2021)

Message from the Dean

With the election of CFOS department chairs now concluded, it is a pleasure to convey that Lara Horstmann will continue to serve as chair of the Department of Marine Biology, Russ Hopcroft will continue as chair of the Department of Oceanography, and Franz Mueter will start a two-year term as chair of the Department of Fisheries. I am grateful to Lara, Russ and Franz for their willingness to lead their respective academic departments, and to outgoing fisheries chair Andy Seitz for three years of outstanding departmental service.

It is a pleasure to announce that Demian Schane has accepted UAF Chancellor Dan White’s invitation to serve on the CFOS Advisory Council for a three-year term, effective March 1, 2023. Demian is Chief of the Alaska Section of the NOAA General Counsel Office in Juneau, and already has a connection to CFOS by co-developing and co-teaching with Keith Criddle our Law and Fisheries course (Fish 672). He brings tremendous experience in fisheries law and policy, which is timely given the new CFOS-UAS Master of Marine Policy degree.

CFOS recruitment coordinator Kyle Rivera has tendered his resignation effective June 2. It is a pleasure to thank Kyle for his dedicated service over the past three years, helping with our student recruitment and advising during a challenging period due to the pandemic. Please join me in wishing Kyle all the best in his future endeavors.

Last, I am pleased to convey that Jennifer Reynolds has agreed to serve as our associate dean for research. I want to express my gratitude to Jennifer for having served in this capacity on an interim basis for the past year and half, and for her willingness to continue to help support our research enterprise.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Robert Cowen’s (Oregon State University) plankton size spectra project, which is funded by the NSF Division of Ocean Sciences.

Activities and Accomplishments

Tamamta fellow Kimberly Kivvaq Pikok was honored by the Explorers Club as one of “50 People Changing the World that the World Needs to Know About” for her research on seasonal changes in Utqiagvik’s spring whaling season.

CFOS graduate student Jaide Phelps received the Robert and Judy Belous Global Change Research award from the UAF graduate school.

The Alaska Blue Economy Center has formed a partnership with Erlingur Gudleifsson, a seafood processing innovator from Iceland. The collaboration includes a memorandum of understanding to promote the transfer of scientific and technical knowledge in fisheries, energy and innovation between Iceland and Alaska.

The 26th annual CFOS Student Symposium was held on Friday, February 24, with 24 undergraduate, master and Ph.D. students presenting their research. Notable presentations included Austin Flanigan (best long talk), Carter Johnson (best short talk), Will Samuel (runner-up for best long talk) and Matt Cheng (best short talk).

CFOS in the News

An AOOS press release noted significant funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law awarded to CFOS for gliders, HF radars and ecosystem moorings.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner published an article coauthored by Alexei Pinchuk about the future of the Bering Sea ecosystem.

Brenda Konar was quoted in an Alaska Beacon article about the decline of sunflower sea stars, which could lead to their protection under the Endangered Species Act.

A photograph of R/V Sikuliaq was selected for the cover of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission’s Goals and Objectives for Arctic Research report for 2023–2024.

Alaska Beacon coverage of University of Alaska President Pat Pitney’s State of the University address included recognition of CFOS for boosting the mariculture industry. Pitney said the state’s $100 million goal for the industry “is within reach.”

The Times of London cited Professor Emeritus Gordon Kruse in an interview about the plight of snow crabs in the eastern Bering Sea.

UAF News announced the 2023 UAF honorary degree and service award recipients, which included former CFOS interim dean Joan Braddock as recipient of a Meritorious Service Award.

Publications

Huang, M., K.R. Robbins, Y. Li, S. Umanzor, M. Marty-Rivera, D. Bailey, M. Aydlett, J. Schmutz, J. Grimwood, C. Yarish, S. Lindell, and J.-L. Jannink. 2023. Genomic selection in algae with biphasic lifecycles: A Saccharina latissima (sugar kelp) case study. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2023.1040979

Yang, B. T.L. Hawthorne, L. Aoki, D.S. Beatty, T. Copeland, L.K. Domke, G.L. Eckert, C.P. Gomes, O.J. Graham, C.D. Harvell, K.A. Hovel, M. Hessing-Lewis, L. Harper, R.S. Mueller, B. Rappazzo, L. Reshitnyk, J.J. Stachowicz, F. Tomas, and J.E. Duffy. 2022. Low-altitude UAV imaging accurately quantifies eelgrass wasting disease from Alaska to California. Geophysical Research Letters. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL101985

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that Steven Dykstra has accepted the position of tenure-track assistant professor in the Department of Oceanography. Steve completed his Ph.D. in Marine Science at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab and is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of South Carolina. His research focuses on understanding the interconnection of the coastal ocean and rivers, combining oceanography with hydrologic and geologic sciences to address climate effects and direct human impacts on local to global scales. Steve will be based at the Fairbanks campus, and his start date is August 13, 2023. Steve can be reached by email at sdykstra@alaska.edu. Please join me in welcoming Steve to CFOS!

This will conclude the oceanography faculty search. I would like to thank search chair Mark Johnson and committee members Ana Agular-Islas, Seth Danielson, Gwenn Hennon, Brenda Konar and Franz Mueter for their time and effort on this successful search.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Newport, Oregon, preparing for the first research project of 2023: Robert Cowen’s (Oregon State University) Plankton Size Spectra project, funded by the NSF Division of Ocean Sciences.

Activities and Accomplishments

Brenda Konar, Justin Sternberg and other UAF speakers were part of a panel at the Alaska Forum on the Environment held February 6–10, 2023.

On February 8–9, several CFOS faculty and students attended an NSF EPSCoR meeting at the Alyeska Resort to discuss research highlights and opportunities to increase collaboration, and to meet with EPSCoR section head Sandra Richardson.

Seth Danielson and Lara Horstmann led science presentations at the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission's annual convention in Utqiagvik on February 1–2, 2023.

CFOS in the News

Schery Umanzor was mentioned in an Anthropocene article about kelp farms doubling as pollution clean-up sites.

Tyler Hennon was quoted in a National Fishermen article about the benefits of using commercial fishing vessels to collect research data.

Research by CFOS graduate student Sonia Kumar was cited in an Alaska Beacon article about the declining Cook Inlet beluga whale population.

Fishermen’s News covered a presentation from Gordon Kruse at the Alaska Marine Science Symposium. Kruse and fellow researcher Scott Goodman highlighted efforts to better understand the recent Bering Sea crab collapse.

The Alaska Beacon also quoted Kruse in an article about the collapse of the eastern Bering Sea snow crab stock and the potential role that high temperatures and high crab densities may have played in the decline.

Publications

Kimmel, D.G., L.B. Eisner, and A.I. Pinchuk. 2023. The northern Bering Sea zooplankton community response to variability in sea ice: evidence from a series of warm and cold periods. Marine Ecology Progress Series. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14237

Amiraux, R., C.J. Mundy, M. Pierrejean, A. Niemi, [...], K. Iken, et al. 2023. Tracing carbon flow and trophic structure of a coastal Arctic marine food web using highly branched isoprenoids and carbon, nitrogen and sulfur stable isotopes. Ecological Indicators. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.109938

Décima, M., M.R. Stukel, S.D. Nodder, A. Gutiérrez-Rodríguez, [...], T.B. Kelly, et al. 2023. Salp blooms drive strong increases in passive carbon export in the Southern Ocean. Nature Communications. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-35204-6

Orrell, D.L., J.M. Questel, C.A. Smoot, T. Simpson, and N.E. Hussey. 2023. Alebion carchariae (Copepod: Caligidae) host plasticity and distribution: a new host and locality record from Ascension Island. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025315422001060

Message from the Dean

The annual Alaska Marine Science Symposium held last week featured numerous presentations by CFOS students, staff and faculty. The CFOS booth organized by Jeff Richardson showcased our programs, facilities and activities, as did the booth organized by Jennifer Elhard and Brian Mullaly in support of the 2023 Tsunami Bowl. There was a strong appearance by our students, who presented numerous talks and posters (see also Accomplishments). Congratulations to all CFOS students, staff and faculty for their excellent work.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq remains moored in Seattle for winter repairs. In the second week of February, the ship is scheduled to transit to Newport, Oregon, to support the first research project of 2023.

Activities and Accomplishments

Professor Emeritus Gordon Kruse gave a keynote address, titled "Eastern Bering Sea crab fishery disasters—a tale of two crabs," and was interviewed by Fox Alaska News, at the Alaska Marine Science Symposium held in Anchorage, Alaska.

Several CFOS students were recognized last week at AMSS. Each received a $250 prize for their presentations.

• Emily Stidham (MS), "Two decades of observations on pelagic tunicates and pelagic snails in the Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGA)"
• Tristan Sebens (MS), "Estimating abundance trends by integrating data from multiple fishery-independent surveys"
• Megan Brauner (PhD), "Co-occurrence networks of marine microbes in the Northern Gulf of Alaska"

CFOS in the News

The Food & Environment Reporting Network quoted postdoctoral fellow Krista Oke in an article about ongoing changes in salmon size and biodiversity.

Numerous outlets published articles about research by Schery Umanzor on the potential for kelp farms to clean marine pollution in coastal areas.

Alaska Beacon published an interview with CFOS graduate student Alex Sletten about her project tracking microplastics found in Bering Strait–area spotted seals.

Publications

Atkinson, S., T.A. Branch, A.A. Pack, J.M. Straley, J.R. Moran, C. Gabriele, K.L. Mashburn, K. Cates, and S. Yin. 2023. Pregnancy rate and reproductive hormones in humpback whale blubber: Dominant form of progesterone differs during pregnancy. General and Comparative Endocrinology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ygc.2022.114151

Atkinson, S., K.L. Mashburn, D. Vos, T.A. Romano, and B. Mahoney. 2022. Hormone profiles from Cook Inlet, Bristol Bay and aquarium beluga whales. Polar Research. https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v41.5525

Cypher, A.D., H. Statscewich, R. Campbell, , J. Eiler, and MS.L. Danielson.A. Bishop. 2023. Detection efficiency of an autonomous underwater glider carrying an integrated acoustic receiver for acoustically tagged Pacific herring. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsac241

Dokai, W.K., P.D. Barry, D.T. Zanatta, K.M. Gruenthal, M.V. McPhee, P.B. McIntyre, and W.A. Larson. 2023. Two for the price of one: eDNA metabarcoding reveals temporal and spatial variability of mussel and fish co-distributions in Michigan riverine systems. Environmental DNA. https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.390

Hudson, K., M.J. Oliver, J. Kohut, M.S. Dinniman, J.M. Klinck, M.A. Cimino, K.S. Bernard, H. Statscewich, and W. Fraser. 2022. A subsurface eddy associated with a submarine canyon increases availability and delivery of simulated Antarctic krill to penguin foraging regions. Marine Ecology Progress Series. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14211

Montenegro, J., A.G. Collings, R.R. Hopcroft, J.M. Questel, E.V. Thuesen, T.S. Bachtel, L.A. Bergman, M.N. Sangekar, J.C. Drazen, and D.J. Lindsay. 2023. Heterogeneity in diagnostic characters across ecoregions: A case study with Botrynema (Hydrozoa: Trachylina: Halicreatidae). Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.1101699

Pegus, C., S. Atkinson, T. Quinn, and S. Pyare. 2022. Evaluating the accuracy of unmanned aerial systems to quantify glacial ice habitats of harbor seals in Alaska. Ecosphere. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4287

Planas, J.V., C.N. Rooper, and G.H. Kruse. 2023. Integrating biological research, fisheries science and management of Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis) across the North Pacific Ocean. Fisheries Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2022.106559

Message from the Dean

With the start of the spring 2023 semester this week, we welcome back our current and new CFOS students. As always, our faculty and staff are here to support you, and we wish you great success.

It is a pleasure to convey that Dr. Kay McMonigal has accepted our offer of a tenure-track assistant professor position in the Department of Oceanography. Kay completed his Ph.D. in meteorology and physical oceanography at the University of Miami and is currently a postdoctoral scholar at North Carolina State University. His primary research interest is the impact of ocean circulation on climate variability, using observations and models to improve understanding of ocean circulation variability and dynamics. Kay will be based at the Fairbanks campus, and his start date is August 13, 2023. Kay can be reached by email at ktmcmonigal@alaska.edu. Please join me in welcoming Kay to CFOS.

Next week, we look forward to many interesting presentations by our students and faculty at the 2023 Alaska Marine Science Symposium in Anchorage, and please note that Professor Emeritus Gordon Kruse will deliver a keynote presentation on Monday afternoon. During the poster sessions, CFOS will have a booth with plenty of swag and another booth in support of this year’s Tsunami Bowl, so please stop by and check them out.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored at the University of Washington pier in Seattle for winter repairs through the second week of February, when the ship is scheduled to transit to Newport, Oregon, for the first research project of 2023.

CFOS in the News

Peter Westley and graduate student Elizabeth Mik’aq Lindley were quoted in an Arctic Sounder article about the expansion of Pacific salmon into Arctic waters.

Publications

Charrier, B.R., S.L. Danielson, and S.L. Mincks. 2023. Trait-based assessment of polychaete assemblages distinguishes macrofaunal community structure among four distinct benthic eco-regions on a shallow Arctic shelf. Deep-Sea Research II. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105240

Kowalik, Z. 2022. Arctic Ocean tidal constituents. Arctic Data Center. https://doi.org/10.18739/A2F47GV7M

Kowalik, Z., and A. Marchenko. 2023. Tidal motion enhancement on Spitsbergen Bank, Barents Sea. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JC018539

Umanzor, S., and T. Stephens. 2023. Nitrogen and carbon removal capacity by farmed kelp Alaria marginata and Saccharina latissima varies by species. Aquaculture Journal. https://doi.org/10.3390/aquacj3010001

Grants and Awards for December 2022

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-15223 "Planning: Connecting Inupiaq and Veterinary Knowledge about Wildlife Diseases and Food Safety" - Tuula Hollmen - NSF - $99,767.00 (December 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15261 "University of Alaska-Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Instrumentation 2023" - Ethan Roth - NSF - $1,397,646.00 (December 15, 2022)

Awards controlled by another department:

• Grant G-14571 "CICOES Postdoc Fellowships at the University of Alaska Fairbanks" - University of Washington - IARC - Michael Stekoll - $96,294.00 (December 1, 2021)
• Grant G-13850 "Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies (CICOES)" - University of Washington - IARC (July 1, 2020)
  • YR3-R19-I11 - Jessica Glass - $109,414.00
  • YR3-R24-II - Jessica Glass - $99,759.00
  • YR3-R25-II - Jessica Glass - $99,759.00
  • YR3-R26-II - Jessica Glass - $50,204.00
  • YR3-R31-II - Schery Umanzor - $127,654.00

Awards receiving incremental funding:

• Grant G-2865 "Meek Lecturers" - Andy Seitz - UA Foundation - $100,000.00 (October 1, 2005)

Message from the Dean

Happy New Year! It is a pleasure to wish everyone a warm welcome after winter break—and here is to a safe and productive 2023.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle for winter maintenance and repairs.

Activities and Accomplishments

On December 12–14, the First Alaskans Institute hosted an in-person racial equity dialogue in Fairbanks for the Tamamta program and the CFOS Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion committee. Participants included CFOS faculty, researchers and students and Alaska Native and related organizations. The Tamamta program will publish a report on the event.

CFOS in the News

Ed deCastro, port captain at the Seward Marine Center, was profiled in the UAF December Rural Staff Spotlight.

CFOS alum Mandy Keogh (Ph.D. Marine Biology, 2011) was featured in a NOAA news article about the Alaska region’s NOAA stranding response team.

Heidi Pearson was interviewed about new research on how whales can serve as carbon sinks in the ocean ecosystem. Her overview of the study was featured on The Naked Scientists website.

CFOS Ph.D. student Hannah Myers was quoted in a Mother Jones story about the declining North Atlantic right whale population. The article analyzed a controversial connection between whale entanglements and the Maine lobster fishery.

Publications

Chapman, Z.M., F.J. Mueter, B.L. Norcross, and D.S. Oxman. 2023. Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida) hatching season and growth rates in the Bering, Chukchi and Beaufort seas. Deep Sea Research II. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105226

Message from the Dean

As we wind up 2022, it is a pleasure to express my sincere appreciation to our students, staff and faculty, and to our captain and crew in ensuring the safe and successful operation of R/V Sikuliaq. Thank you for all your good work, CFOS!

Happy holidays and best wishes for the New Year!

Fall 2022 graduates

Kari Fenski. Ph.D. Fisheries, Advisor: Curry Cunningham
Christopher Sergeant. Ph.D. Fisheries, Advisor: Jeffrey Falke
Lauren Sutton. Ph.D. Marine Biology, Advisor: Katrin Iken
Brian Ulaski. Ph.D. Marine Biology, Advisor: Brenda Konar
Alexis Walker. Ph.D. Marine Biology, Advisors: Sarah Mincks and Mary Beth Leigh (IAB)
Jacob Cohen. MS Oceanography, Advisor: Gwenn Hennon
Elizabeth Hasan. MS Marine Biology, Advisor: Brenda Konar
Drew Porter. MS Marine Biology, Advisors: Matthew Wooller and Benjamin Barst (INE)
Michelle Trifari. MS Marine Biology, Advisor: Matthew Wooller and Benjamin Barst (INE)
Kortney Birch. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Ocean Sciences

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle for winter maintenance and repairs.

Activities and Accomplishments

Tamamta Fellows Elizabeth Mik'aq Lindley and Kimberly Pikok, along with Peter Westley, facilitated the first Alaska Arctic Salmon Workshop in Anchorage on December 1–2, funded by Alaska Sea Grant and SalmonNet. Twenty-two Western scientists and community members from Kotzebue to Kaktovik came together to co-create questions surrounding the increasing occurrences of Pacific salmon in the Arctic.

CFOS in the News

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner highlighted work by Natalie Monacci as part of a roundup of UAF research at the American Geophysical Union fall 2022 conference. Natalie’s presentation focused on the need for better monitoring as oceans are increasingly used to store atmospheric carbon.

Publications

Dahle, G., B. Sainte-Marie, S.L. Mincks, E. Farestveit, K.E. Jørstad, A.M. Hjelset, and A.-L. Agnalt. 2022. Genetic analysis of the exploited snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) in the Barents Sea—possibilities of origin. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsac172

Walker, A.M., M.B. Leigh, and S.L. Mincks. 2023. Benthic bacteria and archaea in the North American Arctic reflect food supply regimes and impacts of coastal and riverine inputs. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105224

Grants and Awards for November 2022

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-15185 "Cook Inlet Physical Oceanography Data Curation, Visualization and Analyses" - Tyler Hennon - BOEM - $500,000.00 (September 12, 2022)
• Grant G-15186 "Collaborative Fisheries Education Across the Bering Sea" - Megan McPhee - US Russia Foundation - $66,618.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15195 "A Sea-scale Effort to Assess Sensitivity to Change in Nutrients and Ecosystems within the Pacific Arctic" - Thomas Kelly - NPRB - $281,855.00 (October 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15221 "Exploring pelagic biodiversity of the Gulf of Alaska and the impact of its seamounts" - Russ Hocroft - NOAA/CMDL - $749,771.00 (July 1, 2022)

Awards controlled by another department:

• Grant G-15211 "Satellite ocean color remote sensing of water mass dynamics in Cook Inlet" - Mark Johnson - BOEM - IARC - $48,478.00 (September 22, 2022)

Awards receiving incremental funding:

• G-11616 "LTER: Beaufort Sea Lagoons: An Arctic Coastal Ecosystem in Transition" - Katrin Iken - University of Texas at Austin - Mod 5 - $112,957.00 (August 1, 2017)
• G-14399 "AccelNet-Implementation: Crustal Ocean Biosphere Research Accelerator (COBRA)" - Geoff Wheat - Bigelow Labs - Mod 2 - $20,000.00 (October 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

Next week, I will join ocean science leaders from across the country at the Fall AGU meeting to discuss future advocacy efforts in support of national priorities in ocean science research and education. This will be an important discussion following the recent dissolution of the Consortium for Ocean Leadership and transfer of its long-standing programs, including the National Ocean Sciences Bowl, to the new Center for Ocean Leadership within the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. Now more than ever, we need strong and united leadership to address the most pressing ocean challenges facing Alaska, the nation and the world.

Along these lines, CFOS has committed to host this year's regional Alaska Tsunami Bowl (part of NOSB, which is on hiatus during this transition year). As in prior years, high school students and teachers from across the state will meet in Seward to engage in a spirited competition; the theme of this year’s competition is mariculture. CFOS has been successful in garnering additional funding for this event from several generous supporters—thank you!

The search for a new assistant professor in marine policy has advanced through the internal UA process and will soon be advertised broadly. Please help spread the word for this important new position, and contact search committee chair Keith Criddle if you require any further information.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seward after a successful CY2022 field season. Following crew rotation, fueling and securing gear, Sikuliaq will depart for Seattle for maintenance and repairs.

Activities and Accomplishments

Ginny Eckert’s lab members won accolades for presentations at recent scientific conferences. Graduate student Courtney Hart won best student oral presentation at the U.S. Symposium on Harmful Algae in Albany, New York. Ginny Eckert and graduate student Johnson Domke coauthored a poster on kelp with UAS undergraduate student Jessica Whitney that won the award for best undergraduate poster at the https://www.wsn-online.org/ annual conference in Oxnard, California.

CFOS in the News

UAF News mentioned that CFOS partner Alaska Blue Economy Center has hired Tommy Sheridan as its associate director. Sheridan has a background in fisheries and has worked with nonprofit groups, public service organizations and seafood processors.

CFOS research staff member Hank Statscewich was a featured guest on The Ocean News and Technology Magazine's SeaState podcast, where he spoke on the use of UAF's underwater gliders for fishery research.

Trent Sutton gave an interview to KYUK Public Media on the Arctic lamprey subsistence fishery in the Kuskokwim River.

Publications

Fang, Y.C., M. Janout, Y. Kawaguchi, and H. Statscewich. 2022. Semidiurnal internal tides observed on the eastern flank of Hanna Shoal in the northeastern Chukchi Sea. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JC018232

Kite-Powell, H.L., E. Ask, S. Augyte, D. Bailey, J. Decker, C.A. Goudey, G. Grebe, Y. Li, S. Lindell, D. Manganelli, M. Marty-Rivera, C. Ng, L. Roberson, M. Stekoll, S. Umanzor and C. Yarish. 2022. Estimating production cost for large-scale seaweed farms. Applied Phycology. https://doi.org/10.1080/26388081.2022.2111271

Wheat, C.G., M.J. Mottl, A.T. Fisher, and S. Hulme. 2022. Formation waters delineate diverse hydrogeologic conditions at a plate scale: eastern flank of the Juan de Fuca ridge. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GC010665

Ulaski, B.P., E.O. Otis, and B. Konar. 2022. How landscape variables influence the relative abundance, composition, and reproductive viability of macroalgal wrack in a high latitude glacial estuary. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2022.108169

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that the 2022 CFOS annual report is now complete and available online. A big thank-you to Alice Bailey for leading this effort, to Jeff Richardson, Sam Bishop and Carol Kaynor for expert editing and attention to detail, and to Molly Putman for final layout and production. Well done, team!

Wishing everyone a safe and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday season.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is in the Beaufort Sea in support of Bob Pickart’s (WHOI) Monitoring Mooring project, which is part of the NSF-funded Arctic Observing Network. Sikuliaq is scheduled to return to Seward on Saturday, December 3.

Activities and Accomplishments

Several CFOS faculty, including Brenda Konar, Gwenn Hennon, and Jessica Glass, as well as students and staff, attended the 27th NSF EPSCOR National Conference last week, hosted by the University of Maine.

CFOS in the News

AP News mentioned Peter Westley among the 10 finalists for the 2022 edX Prize for Exceptional Contributions in Online Teaching and Learning. His free online edX course, Salmon, People and Place, explores the relationships between salmon and people, with an emphasis on the special ties between salmon and Indigenous peoples.

Seth Danielson was interviewed on KNOM’s Ocean Knowledge program to discuss findings of the Arctic Integrated Ecosystem Research Program, which studied changes in the northern Bering and Chukchi seas from 2016 to 2021.

Fortune magazine quoted Schery Umanzor in a story about the “seaweed superfood revolution,” which looks at seaweed’s potential as a food source and climate change mitigator.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror quoted Brenda Konar in a story about ochre sea stars migrating to Kodiak waters.

Publications

Friedlingstein, P., [...], N.M. Monacci, et al. 2022. Global carbon budget 2022. Earth System Science Data. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4811-2022

Mottl, M.J., T.M. McCollom, C.G. Wheat, and P. Fryer. 2022. Chemistry of springs across the Mariana forearc: Carbon flux from the subducting plate triggered by the lawsonite-to-epidote transition? Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2022.10.029

Rabault, J., [...], M. Johnson, et al. 2022. OpenMetBuoy-v2021: An easy-to-build, affordable, customizable, open-source instrument for oceanographic measurements of drift and waves in sea ice and the open ocean. Geosciences. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12030110

Walsh, J.E., H. Eicken, K. Redilla, and M. Johnson. 2022. Sea ice breakup and freeze-up indicators for users of the Arctic coastal environment. The Cryosphere. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4617-2022

Message from the Dean

The position description for the new assistant professor of marine policy has been drafted. We anticipate that this faculty search will be advertised in the coming weeks. This new search and the ongoing oceanography faculty search are important steps in advancing the mission of the college. A big thank you to those faculty stepping up to serve on these search committees.

This Friday is Veteran’s Day. Please take a moment to reflect on and honor the military veterans who served our country.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the Beaufort Sea for Bob Pickart’s (WHOI) Monitoring Mooring project, which is part of the NSF funded Arctic Observing Network. The project aims to quantify upwelling along the Beaufort slope, which appears to be increasing with warming climate.

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS graduate student Emily Stidham took second place in the UAF second annual Three Minute Thesis finals held on November 3, 2022.

At the US Arctic Research Commission (USARC) 115th meeting held at UAF October 25–26, Bradley Moran gave a talk on the Community and Environmental Compliance Standard Operating Procedures for R/V Sikuliaq and Peter Westley talked about Yukon river salmon.

CFOS in the News

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and the UAF alumni magazine, Aurora, published “Diving into Alaska’s DNA,” which mentioned CFOS faculty and students working in genomics.

UAF News wrote about a new seamounts exhibit at the University of Alaska Museum of the North with support from the North Pacific Research Board. The exhibit showcases artist Nicholas Bezio's work done in collaboration with Jennifer Questel and other researchers on a 2019 research cruise aboard R/V Sikuliaq, funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Brenda Konar was interviewed by the Kodiak Daily Mirror for a story on ochre sea star wasting disease.

The Juneau Empire covered the ninth annual underwater pumpkin-carving event in Juneau, where graduate student Carter Johnson and several other CFOS students participated in the dive to carve jack-o-lanterns underwater.

UAF eCampus released a new video showcasing the CFOS online Fisheries and Marine Sciences undergraduate program.

Local Juneau broadcasting station KTOO aired a piece on the radio about Heidi Pearson’s study on whale stressors.

Publications

Sandy, S.J., S.L. Danielson, and A.R. Mahoney. Automating the acoustic detection and characterization of sea ice and surface waves. 2022. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10111577

Grants and Awards for October 2022

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-15115 "Collaborative Research: Zooplankton restarts in a high-latitude marine ecosystem: species-specific recruitment and development in early spring" - Russ Hopcroft - NSF - $335,949.00 (October 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15143 "Oceanographic influences on spotted seal foraging in the Bering and Chukchi seas" - Steve Okkonen - Alaska Department of Fish & Game - $10,739.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15157 "Arctic High-Frequency Radar FCC Compliance (HFR Operators)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $19,170.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15161 "AMBON - linking biodiversity observations in the Arctic" - Katrin Iken - NASA - $410,000.00 (September 1, 2022)

Awards receiving incremental funding:

• Grant G-12127 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Technical Support - Year 1 of 5" - Ethan Roth - NSF - Mod 11 - $232,667.00 (June 15, 2018)
• Grant G-12511 "RCN-UBE: The Research of STEM Education Network: Improving Research Inclusivity through a Grassroots Culture of Scientific Teaching" - Trent Sutton - University of Alabama Birmingham - Mod 4 - $14,393.00 (August 1, 2018)
• Grant G-14468 "Demonstrating operational readiness of AUV-based ecosystem monitoring through a field program supporting the International Year of the Salmon (OMAO Glider)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 2 - $45,877.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14485 "National Ocean Acidification Observing Network (NOA-ON) Stations: Gulf of Alaska (GAKOA) and Bering Sea (M2) moorings (M2 & GAK Moorings)" - Natalie Monacci - AOOS - $161,905.00 (July 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

In support of the new Master of Marine Policy degree offered jointly by CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast, it is a pleasure to convey that CFOS will begin a search for a new tenure-track faculty in fisheries and marine policy. Keith Criddle has kindly agreed to serve as search chair, along with CFOS committee members Jessica Glass, Russ Hopcroft, Lara Horstmann, and Andy Seitz, as well as Kasia Polanska from UAS. The committee is currently drafting the position description for approval by the Provost. We anticipate the search to be advertised later this semester, with a projected hire in spring and a start date next academic year.

On Tuesday and Wednesday this week, the US Arctic Research Commission will hold its 115th meeting at the UAF campus. This in-person meeting will include a number of high-level government officials, senior university leaders, scientists, and speakers from across the university. Peter Westley will discuss the declining population of Yukon River salmon, Justin Sternberg will provide an update on the Alaska Blue Economy Center, and I will present the Community and Environmental Compliance Standard Operating Procedures (CESCOP) for Sikuliaq operations. It is a pleasure to thank USARC Chair Mike Sfraga and Executive Director John Farrell (who is former chair of the CFOS Visiting Expert Committee) for the invitation to participate in this meeting.

With snow now on the ground, the ski season is just around the corner.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq remains in the Beaufort Sea for Luc Rainville’s (UW/APL) Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS) project, funded by the Office of Naval Research Arctic Program, which has thus far serviced four ice stations over 22 days.

CFOS in the News

The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) released a short documentary film about Sonia Ibarra and the co-developed sea otter research she and Tribes led in Southeast Alaska from 2012 to 2020, which led to her receipt of the 2022 AISES Indigenous Excellence Award.

Publications

Bellmore, J.R., C.J. Sergeant, R.A. Bellmore, J.A. Falke, and J.B. Fellman. 2022. Modeling coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) population response to streamflow and water temperature extremes. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2022-0129

Cheng, M.L.H., S.G. Hinch, F. Juanes, S.J. Healy, A.G. Lotto, S.J. Mapley, and N.B. Furey. 2022. Acoustic imaging observes predator–prey interactions between bull trout and migrating sockeye salmon smolts. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10833

McKinney, G.J., P.D. Barry, C. Pascal, J.E. Seeb, L.W. Seeb, and M.V. McPhee. 2022. A new genotyping-in-thousands-by-sequencing single nucleotide polymorphism panel for mixed-stock analysis of chum salmon from coastal western Alaska. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10805

Singh, R.K., A. Vader, C.J. Mundy, J.E. Søreide, K. Iken, K.H. Dunton, L. Castro de la Guardia, M.K. Sejr, and S. Bélanger. Satellite-derived photosynthetically available radiation at the coastal Arctic seafloor. 2022. Remote Sensing. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14205180

Message from the Dean

Today is Indigenous Peoples' Day, when we honor Alaska Native people, culture, and knowledge. Please note that the University of Alaska Fairbanks will celebrate this important day by hosting a number of celebrations and activities.

One of the goals identified at the January 2022 all-hands faculty retreat was to recruit research faculty in our college. In this regard, Ellen Chenoweth has accepted an appointment as research assistant professor in the Department of Marine Biology. A CFOS alum (Ph.D., 2018), Ellen’s research expertise is in marine foraging ecology with a focus on marine mammals. Ellen will begin her appointment at CFOS in the coming weeks, and will be physically located at the UAS Sitka campus where she will continue her funded research while strengthening our connection to rural Alaska. She can be reached by email at emchenoweth@alaska.edu. Please join me in welcoming Ellen to CFOS!

Next Tuesday, we will host a virtual meeting with the CFOS Advisory Council to discuss priorities and needs of the college. The meeting agenda includes an update on our academic and research programs, diversity and inclusivity efforts, and the Seward Marine Center. I look forward to an engaging meeting with our Council members.

The 2022 CFOS Annual Report has been drafted and edited and is moving on to layout. Kudos to Alice Bailey for producing what promises to be another very nice showcase of some of our instruction, research, and service activities.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is in the Beaufort Sea ice in support of Luc Rainville’s (UW/APL) Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS) project, which is expected to run for 45 days.

Activities and Accomplishments

Seth Danielson, graduate student Savannah Sandy, and Peter Shipton reached the North Pole aboard USCGC Healy on September 30, 2022, as part of the NSF Synoptic Arctic Survey research expedition and in support of the AOOS/NPRB–funded turnaround of the Chukchi Ecosystem Observatory mooring. Also aboard were UAF alumni Jackie Grebmeier and Lee Cooper.

Sonia Ibarra received the prestigious 2022 Indigenous Excellence Award from the American Indian Science and Engineering Society for her effort in advancing programs and opportunities for Indigenous students and professionals.

Brenda Konar was an invited speaker, and the Alaskan representative, at the Eastern Pacific Kelp Forest Restoration Workshop organized by The Nature Conservancy on September 3–4, 2022.

CFOS in the News

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) published an article about a recent Q&A session with Courtney Carothers and Jessica Black that discussed supporting Alaska’s next generation of Indigenous scientists.

Too Big To Ignore published an article by graduate student Isaac Nyameke on his reflections on attending the recent UN-FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) 35 meeting held last month in Italy.

The Arctic Marine Biodiversity Observing Network (AMBON) project led by Katrin Iken was mentioned in an Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) article as one of five projects funded by NOAA and partner agencies.

Graduate student Hannah Meyers spoke with Atlas Obscura about killer whale cultural behaviors.

Publications

Jellison, B.M., S.C. Bacus, and B. Gaylord. 2022. Variation in the behavioral tolerance of congeneric marine snails to low-pH exposure. Marine Ecology Progress Series. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14144

Kiko, R., M. Picheral, D. Antoine, [...], R.M. Lekanoff, [...], A. McDonnell, D. Niemeyer, M. Noyon, S. O'Daly, M. Ohman, J.L. Pretty, et al. 2022. A global marine particle size distribution dataset obtained with the Underwater Vision Profiler 5. Earth System Science Data. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4315-2022

Rode, K.D., B.D. Taras, C.A. Stricker, T.C. Atwood, N.P. Boucher, G.M. Durner, A.E. Derocher, E.S. Richardson, S.G. Cherry, L. Quakenbush, L. Horstmann, and J.F. Bromaghin. 2022. Diet energy density estimated from isotopes in predator hair associated with survival, habitat, and population dynamics. Ecological Applications. https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/eap.2751

Umanzor, S., M. Good, T. Bobrycki, J.K. Kim, and C. Yarish. 2022. Building community capacity in the determination of nutrient removal through kelp farming. World Aquaculture Magazine.

Grants and Awards for September 2022

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-15034 "To Provide Personnel to Assist With Oceanographic Data Processing and Analysis-Elson Lagoon Moorings" - Steve Okkonen - North Slope Borough - $24,298.00 (June 14, 2022)
• Grant G-15037 "Distribution, Habitat Use, and Life History of Pacific Lamprey in the Susitna River Drainage, Alaska" - Trent Sutton - US Fish & Wildlife Service - $25,000.00 (August 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15041 "Genetic composition of Bering Sea Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) aggregations" - Andres Lopez - UA Foundation PCCRC - $69,935.00 (August 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15047 "Tamamta (All of Us): Transforming Western and Indigenous Fisheries and Marine Sciences Together" - Courtney Carothers - UA Foundation - $9,500.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15056 "Steller's eider (Polysticta stelleri) foraging habitat in Izembek Lagoon, Alaska" - Anastasia Maliguine (Tuula Holmen) - $14,965.00 (April 22, 2022)
• Grant G-15074 "AMBON - linking biodiversity observation in the Arctic" - Katrin Iken - ONR - $500,000.00 (September 1, 2022) Grant G-15078 "Influence of an environmental cascade on high-latitude intertidal communities'' - Madeline McArthur (Brenda Konar) - Oil Spill Recovery Institute - $15,892.00 (April 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15087 "Port Valdez PAH Sediment Research Paper" - Arny Blanchard - Alyeska Pipeline Service Company - $12,000.00 (September 15, 2022) Grant G-15110 "Pelagic-benthic decoupling? Ecosystem restructuring in the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas" - Katrin Iken - NPRB - $92,615.00 (July 1, 2022)

Awards set up on assumption:

• Grant G-15079 "Measuring the pulse of the Gulf of Alaska: Oceanographic observations along the Seward Line: 2019-2024" - Russ Hopcroft - NPRB - $256,572.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15104 "Investigating impacts of Alaskan shellfish and finfish mariculture on soft sediment benthic ecosystems" - Sarah Mincks - NOAA - $119,962.00 (August 1, 2022)

Awards controlled by other departments:

• Grant G-15015 "Shifting patterns in phytoplankton blooms" - Seth Danielson - IARC - NPRB - $16,407.00 (September 1, 2022)
• Grant G-15020 "FY23 State Economic Development Mariculture R&D" - Schery Umanzor - Alaska State Legislature Senate Finance Committee - $500,000.00 (July 1, 2022)

Awards receiving incremental funding:

• Grant G-3163 "Ted Stevens Distinguished Professor of Marine Policy" - Keith Criddle - UA Foundation - $216,000.00 (April 1, 2006)
• Grant G-9796 "Ladd Macaulay Fisheries Research Fellowship" - Andy Sietz - UA Foundation - $62,000.00 (September 1, 2014)
• Grant G-11709 "LTER: Resilience in the Environmental Mosaic of the Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGA) Shelf Ecosystem" - Russ Hopcorft - NSF - Mod 6 - $1,126,927.00 (September 1, 2017)
• Grant G-13041 "Collaborative Oceanographic Monitoring in Southeast Alaska Parks" - Seth Danielson - National Park Service - $110,000.00 (September 25, 2019)
• Grant G-13193 "CY2019 Navy-funded cruises on R/V Sikuliaq" - Doug Baird - ONR - Mod 4 and Mod 5 - $1,400,000.00 and $1,299,339.00 (August 5, 2019)
• Grant G-13543 "NASA IPA August 2020 - July 2022" - Geoff Wheat - NASA - MOd 2 - $77,281.60 (August 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13683 "NRT: NNA: Tamamta (All of Us): Transforming Western and Indigenous Fisheries and Marine Sciences" - Courtney Carothers - NSF - $300,000.00 (September 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13911 "Advancing Remote Sensing Insight into Coastal Sea Ice Ecosystems" Steve Okkonen - Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute - Mod 1 - $52,321.00 (July 20, 2020)
• Grant G-14378 "Collaborative Research: Elucidating Brine-Dominated, Segment-Scale Hydrothermal Discharge Along The Cleft Segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge" - Geoff Wheat - NSF - Mod 2 - $153,741.00 (September 15, 2021)

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that Jeff Richardson has accepted the position of CFOS Public Information Office/Sikuliaq Science Liaison. Jeff brings a wealth of experience from his prior work as a news reporter and currently as PIO at UAF University Relations, as well as his work with Alaska communities. Jeff’s first day at CFOS will be October 26, 2022. He will be based at the Dean’s Office in Fairbanks. Jeff can be reached by email at jarichardson6@alaska.edu. Please join me in welcoming Jeff to CFOS!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the Beaufort Sea for Luc Rainville’s (UW/APL) Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS) project to service the autonomous, moored, and ice-based sensors. The AMOS project is looking to develop a year-round observing system for better forecasting in the Arctic environment.

Earlier this month, Sikuliaq wrapped up a unique staffing experiment: CFOS/SMC signed a secondment agreement with Oregon State University to have crew from the recently retired R/V Oceanus work aboard Sikuliaq as relief crew. This effort has benefited both parties—Sikuliaq benefited from an experienced relief crew, and the Oceanus crew had the opportunity to upgrade their Merchant Marine Credentials (MMC) by sailing aboard an unlimited horsepower and unlimited tonnage vessel.

Activities and Accomplishments

Keith Criddle co-convened a theme session titled Operationalizing Resilience For Climate Change Impacts at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) 2022 Annual Science Conference in Dublin, Ireland.

CFOS in the News

A UAF News press release mentioned the contributions made by Russell Hopcroft and R/V Sikuliaq in a recently released report about the effects of climate change at dozens of long-term research sites around the world.

Franz Mueter appeared on Ocean Knowledge, a new series on KNOM Mission Radio hosted by Megan Onders from the Alaska Ocean Observing System (AOOS) that seeks to promote ocean stewardship.

Matthew Wooller was among the researchers mentioned in an Alaska Native News article about the storm that hit St. Paul Island in the Bering Sea last week.

Publications

Copeman, L.A., C.D. Salant, M.A. Stowell, M.L. Spencer, D.G. Kimmel, A.I. Pinchuk, and B.J. Laurel. 2022. Annual and spatial variation in the condition and lipid storage of juvenile Chukchi Sea gadids during a recent period of environmental warming (2012 to 2019). Deep Sea Research II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105180

Pickett, B.D., J.R. Glass, T. P. Johnson, P.G. Ridge, and J.S.K. Kauwe. 2022. The genome of a giant (trevally): Caranx ignobilis. Gigabyte. https://doi.org/10.46471/gigabyte.67

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that active searches for the Sikuliaq Science Liaison/Public Information Officer position and new tenure-track oceanography faculty are progressing well. My thanks to both search committees for their time and effort in helping to advance the mission of the college.

I hope you take some time to enjoy the wonderful fall colors—winter is now just around the corner.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored at the Port of Nome preparing for Luc Rainville’s (UW/APL) Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS) project to service autonomous, moored, and ice-based sensors. As part of AMOS, a year-round observing system will be deployed to improve forecasting of the Arctic environment. Sikuliaq is scheduled to get underway on September 14 for the 45-day cruise.

Activities and Accomplishments

Over a two-week period in August, R/V Nanuq hosted Golder, a consulting firm investigating mine tailings from the Beatson Mine on Latouche Island in Prince William Sound.

CFOS graduate student Genoa Sullaway was selected for the 2022 National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship.

CFOS graduate students James Currie, Karen Grosskreutz, Drew Porter, and Michelle Trifari were selected as 2022–2023 Alaska Sea Grant Fellows—congratulations!

CFOS graduate student Taylor Cubbage was awarded the John E. Skinner Memorial Fund Award and Best Student Paper Award at the annual 2022 meeting of the American Fisheries Society.

Schery Umanzor received the 2021–2022 Inspiration Award for her “Mariculture Site Assessment Toolkit” as part of the UAF Innovative Disclosures and Entrepreneurial Activities (IDEAs) awards.

CFOS in the News

CFOS graduate student Drew Porter was featured in an Alaska Native News article on copper toxicity in the Bristol Bay watershed and its effects on Alaska salmon.

A new project led by CFOS faculty Matthew Wooller was covered by UAF news.

Publications

Horst, A.M., A.P. Hill, and K.B. Gorman. 2022. Palmer Archipelago penguins data in the palmerpenguins R Package - an alternative to Anderson’s Irises. The R Journal. https://doi.org/10.32614/RJ-2022-020

Schaefer, A.L., K.B. Gorman, and M.A. Bishop. 2022. Light-level geolocation reveals the short-distance non-breeding movements and distribution of tufted puffins throughout the Northeast Pacific Ocean. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.999461

Message from the Dean

Today marks the first day of classes; wishing our students a warm welcome back and a successful semester. In that regard, please mark your calendars for CFOS meet and greet events in Fairbanks and Juneau to welcome back students, faculty and staff. The Fairbanks Meet & Greet BBQ will take place on Wednesday, September 7, from 3 to 5 pm, and the Juneau Meet & Greet BBQ will be held on Thursday, September 8, starting at 5:30 pm at the Auke Recreation Raven Shelter. Additional details will follow.

Last week, Katrin Iken, Courtney Carothers, Keith Criddle and Seth Danielson were invited to present some highlights of CFOS research and education activities in marine biology, fisheries, marine policy and oceanography to NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad; and ABEC director Justin Sternberg provided an overview of current and future activities related to Alaska’s Blue Economy. That evening, I had the pleasure of hosting Rick for dinner to discuss regional and national ocean priorities. What a treat to have been invited to meet with such a thoughtful ocean leader—a big thank you to Rick and his team!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the western Gulf of Alaska to support Glenn Sasagawa’s (UCSD/SIO) Aleutian project to recover transponders near the Shumagin Islands. The transponders were deployed two years ago to measure the motion of the seafloor near the Aleutian Trench and help assess the risk of seismic events leading to tsunamis.

Activities and Accomplishments

Brenda Konar gave an invited talk, entitled "Glacial influence on nearshore communities in high latitude estuaries,” at the Ecological Society of America meeting in Montreal, Canada.

Last week, the Tamamta program held a retreat for faculty, students and invited guests at the Howard Luke Gaalee’ya Spirit Camp on the Tanana River.

CFOS in the News

Alaska Business majngazine and the American Fisheries Society Alaska Chapter summer 2022 newsletter mentioned the Master of Marine Policy degree offered jointly by CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast.

Anchorage Daily News published an op-ed by CFOS undergraduate student Rachel Heimke on how kelp farming contributes to Alaska’s economic independence and food security.

CFOS professor Shannon Atkinson was quoted in a New York Times article titled “Revelry and unease in Alaska as cruises return.”

Publications

Hugh D., M. Cimino, K.H. Dunton, W.R. Fraser, R.R. Hopcroft, R. Ji, A.J. Miller, M.D. Ohman, and H.M. Sosik. 2022. Marine pelagic ecosystem responses to climate variability and change. BioScience. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biac050

Holleman, W., G. Gouws, J.R. Glass, and B.Q. Mann. 2022. Resurrection of Lethrinus scoparius Gilchrist & Thompson, 1908 (Perciformes: Lethrinidae), from South African waters. Zootaxa. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5174.5.4

Godfrey, G.L., L. Horstmann, J. Snyder, and S.J. Trumble. 2022. Toxic and essential trace element concentrations in Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) skeletal muscle varies by location and reproductive status. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-022-03069-6

Danielson, S.L., T.D. Hennon, D.H. Monson, R.M. Suryan, R.W. Campbell, S.J. Baird, K. Holderied, and T.J. Weingartner. 2022. Temperature variations in the northern Gulf of Alaska across synoptic to century-long time scales. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105155

Hennon, T.D., S.L. Danielson, R.A. Woodgate, B. Irving, D.A. Stockwell, and C.W. Mordy. Mooring measurements of Anadyr Current nitrate, phosphate, and silicate enable updated Bering Strait nutrient flux estimates. Geophysical Research Letters. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL098908

Li, Y., S. Umanzor, C. Ng, M. Huang, M. Marty-Rivera, D. Bailey, M. Aydlett, J. Jannink, S. Lindell, and C. Yarish. 2022. Skinny kelp (Saccharina angustissima) provides valuable genetics for the biomass improvement of farmed sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima). Journal of Applied Phycology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-022-02811-1

Message from the Dean

Today marks the beginning of the new academic year—welcome back everyone! As we kick-off the fall semester, there are many exciting research, academic and outreach activities that are actively being advanced by our outstanding faculty, staff and students.

On that note, and to highlight just a few items, this semester marks the official start of the new Masters of Marine Policy degree program which, as noted previously, is being offered jointly by CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast. We are moving forward with our search to hire several oceanography faculty, with on-campus interviews expected to take place in September and October. We look forward to hosting the next CFOS Advisory Council meeting in the coming weeks. And, on August 22 and 23, CFOS will be part of a larger UAF group hosting Dr. Rick Spinrad, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator (and, as many will recall, a former CFOS keynote speaker). Once again, welcome back and thank you for all your good work CFOS!

Congratulations to our summer 2022 graduates:
Taylor Cubbage. M.S. Fisheries, Major Advisor: Jeffrey Falke
Carolyn Hamman. M.S. Fisheries, Major Advisor: Trent Sutton
Molly Payne. M.S. Fisheries, Major Advisor: Peter Westley
Mary Spanos. M.S. Fisheries, Major Advisor: Trent Sutton
Amy Kirkham. Ph.D. Fisheries, Major Advisor: Shannon Atkinson DeMaster
James Currie. M.S. Marine Biology, Major Advisor: Amanda Kelley
James Schloemer. M.S. Marine Biology, Major Advisor: Katrin Iken
Josianne Haag. M.S. Oceanography, Major Advisor: Amanda Kelley
Anthony Jaster. B.A. Fisheries, Concentration in Fisheries Business and Social Sciences
Roger Maldonado. B.S. Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration in Fisheries Science
McKenna Slivensky. B.A. Fisheries, Concentration in Fisheries Business and Social Sciences

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in support of Jeff Donnelly’s (WHOI) Bering Sea Storms project, collecting data near the central Aleutian Islands.

Activities and Accomplishments

Jennifer Tusten, an undergraduate student in fisheries, was awarded an URSA Student Research Grant for the Fall 2022 semester.

CFOS in the News

Jessica Glass’ research article on the feasibility of seafood labeling programs in Small Island Developing States, originally published in Frontiers of Marine Science, was picked up by the Seychelles News Agency.

The new Master of Marine Policy degree program was featured by the Juneau Empire and Pacific Fishing.

CFOS’s fully online asynchronous Bachelor of Science in Fisheries and Marine Sciences degree program was featured in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

Alaska Native News and Phys.org picked up the Geophysical Institute story about R/V Sikuliaq underway in the Bering Sea.

CFOS researcher Hank Statscewich was a guest speaker in Teledyne Marine’s podcast Marine Tech Talk.

Publications

Beatty, D.S., L.R. Aoki, B. Rappazzo, C. Bergman, L.K. Domke, J.E. Duffy, K. Dubois, G.L. Eckert, et al. 2022. Predictable changes in eelgrass microbiomes with increasing wasting disease prevalence across 23° Latitude in the Northeastern Pacific. mSystems. https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msystems.00224-22

Grants and Awards

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14833 "Second-generation consequences of hatchery enhancement of sockeye salmon in Auke Creek, Alaska, Year 2" - Megan McPhee - Pacific Salmon Commission - $10,910.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14854 "Adaptive Behaviors of Juvenile Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in Rapidly Changing Estuarine Rearing" - Andrew Rothenberger (Andy Seitz) - UA Foundation NGOA Award - $5,000.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14862 "Comparison of Beluga Acoustic Presence in Critical River Foraging Habitat Between Years of Diminished Commercial Fishing Zones" - Sonia Kumar (Lara Horstmann) - UA Foundation NGOA Award - $5,000.00 (July 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14950 "The Early Spring Zooplankton Communities in the Northwestern Alaska Gyre Project" - Alexei Pinchuk - North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission - $7,719.00 (July 5, 2022)
• Grant G-14930 "The Seward Line: Marine Ecosystem monitoring in the Northern Gulf of Alaska" - Russ Hopcroft - Prince William Sound Science Center - $216,613.00 (June 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14947 "Oceanographic Station GAK1 Long Term Monitoring of the Alaska Coastal Current" - Seth Danielson - Prince William Sound Science Center - $125,080.00 (June 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14948 "Pacific herring and pink salmon trophic interactions in Prince William Sound, Alaska" - Kristen Gorman - $30,360.00 (June 1, 2022)

Grant that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-14378 "Collaborative Research: Elucidating Brine-Dominated, Segment-Scale Hydrothermal Discharge Along The Cleft Segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge" - Geoff Wheat - NSF - $153,991.00 (September 15, 2021)

Message from the Dean

With the start of fall semester just weeks away, we will soon welcome back many new and current students to our college. We can take pride that enrollment has been strong over the past few years, and we anticipate another solid enrollment for the coming academic year. We also welcome our most recent tenure-track faculty, Kristen Gorman, who will start her first academic year in the Department of Marine Biology.

Thank you all for your continued dedication to our mission to deliver excellence in fisheries and ocean sciences research, education and outreach for the benefit of Alaska and the nation.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the Bering Sea for Dr. Jeff Donnelly’s (WHOI) Bering Sea Storms project.

Activities and Accomplishments

MS Marine Biology student, Lindsey Stadler (advisor Katrin Iken), was selected for the 2023 John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Program.

CFOS in the News

The University of Alaska’s new Masters of Marine Policy program was featured by the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

CFOS’s fully online Bachelors of Science in Fisheries and Marine Sciences was announced by UAF News.

R/V Sikuliaq was featured in the UNOLS July 2022 newsletter.

R/V Sikuliaq was mentioned in a UAF News press release about an upcoming cruise with UAF researchers studying Bering Sea storms.

Alaska Public Media featured the study coauthored by Chris Sergeant and Megan McPhee about the impacts of mining on salmonid species.

Publications

Ghezelayagh, A., R.C. Harrington, E.D. Burress, M.A. Campbell, J.C. Buckner, P. Chakrabarty, J.R. Glass, W.T. McCraney, C.E. Thacker, M.E. Alfaro, S.T. Friedman, W.B. Ludt, P.F. Cowman, M. Friedman, S.A. Price, A. Dornburg, B.C. Faircloth, P.C. Wainwright, and T.J. Near. 2022. Prolonged morphological expansion of spiny-rayed fishes following the end-Cretaceous. Nature Ecology & Evolution. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-022-01801-3

Glass, J.R., K. Belle, G. Berke, N. Bodin, A. J. Burt, M. I. Duncan, S. K. Morgan, P. Pillay, and S. Talma. 2022. Evaluating the feasibility of sustainable seafood labelling programmes in Small Island Developing States: A pilot study of artisanal fisheries in Seychelles. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.931407

Gerard, T., J. T. Lamkin, T. B. Kelly, A. N. Knapp, R. Laiz-Carrión, E. Malca, K. E. Selph, A. Shiroza, T. A. Shropshire, M. R. Stukel, R. Swalethorp, N. Yingling, M. R. Landry. 2022. Bluefin Larvae in Oligotrophic Ocean Foodwebs, investigations of nutrients to zooplankton: overview of the BLOOFINZ-Gulf of Mexico program. Journal of Plankton Research. https://doi.org/10.1093/plankt/fbac038

Message from the Dean

In November 2020, the CFOS Diversity Committee was established to promote a diverse, equitable, inclusive and accessible community for our students, faculty and staff. Building on that committee's work, this fall we will kick-off a new strategic planning process focused on inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA) for the college. This is an important opportunity for our community to set the direction for IDEA efforts. Further details will soon follow.

Alice Bailey has tendered her resignation as the Sikuliaq Science Liaison and CFOS Public Information Officer, effective November 4, 2022. Over the past three years, Alice contributed many wonderful news articles on our research, education and outreach activities, produced the CFOS Annual Reports, and worked closely with the National Science Foundation and partners to revise the Community and Environmental Compliance Standard Operating Procedures (CECSOP) for Sikuliaq science operations. Please join me in thanking Alice for all her good work in support of CFOS, and wishing her the very best in her new role at the Alaska Ocean Observing System.

Please note the email address to submit information to C-Notes is now cnotes@cfos.uaf.edu.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the Gulf of Alaska for the second leg of the 2022 Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research project, with Seth Danielson (UAF/CFOS) as chief scientist.

Activities and Accomplishments

Reed Mariculture recently licensed the Site Assessment Toolkit for kelp farming, which was developed by Schery Umanzor and funded by UAF’s Center for Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship.

CFOS in the News

A study coauthored by Chris Sergeant and Megan McPhee about the impacts of mining on salmonid species gained international attention from media outlets including The Globe and Mail, Canadian Mining Journal, Sciencemag.com, Science Daily, yahoo!news, phys.org the Environmental News Network, earth.com, and Nature World News. Alaskan coverage included the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, KTOO, Peninsula Clarion, and SIT News.

The University of Alaska’s new Master of Marine Policy program was featured by UAF News, KINY radio and Tom Gemmell’s Alaska Fish Notes.

Publications

Han, S., J.S. Park, S. Umanzor, et al. 2022. Effects of extraction methods for a new source of biostimulant from Sargassum horneri on the growth of economically important red algae, Neopyropia yezoensis. Scientific Reports. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-16197-0

Traiger, S.B., J.L. Bodkin, H.A. Coletti, B. Ballachey, T. Dean, D. Esler, K. Iken, B. Konar, M.R. Lindeberg, D. Monson, B. Robinson, R.M. Suryan and B.P. Weitzman. 2022. Evidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting. Marine Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/maec.12715

Message from the Dean

As we have now closed out the first half of the year, it is worth reflecting on some of our key accomplishments to date. Since January, we held the third all-hands faculty retreat, supported the first CFOS student mentorship retreat, hosted the Consul General of Portugal in the Alaska Blue Economy Roundtable, continued to expand our asynchronous course delivery, received approval from the UA Board of Regents and Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities to offer a new Master of Marine Policy degree jointly with our colleagues at the University of Alaska Southeast, and welcomed new faculty, staff and students to the college. Thank you for all your good work.

It is a great pleasure to convey that Kristen Gorman has accepted an appointment as a tenure-track assistant professor in the Department of Marine Biology. Kristen’s research and teaching interests focus on the intersection of the evolution, ecology and physiology of marine vertebrates, primarily seabirds and fishes. Please join me in congratulating Kristen on her tenure-track faculty appointment!

Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July weekend.

R/V Sikuliaq

Today Sikuliaq arrived in Seward and will remain there over the holiday weekend. Next week, the ship will embark on the second leg of the 2022 Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research project, with Seth Danielson as chief scientist and participants from several collaborating institutions. The NGA LTER project is a multi-disciplinary study of the physical and biogeochemical variability of the Northern Gulf of Alaska.

Activities and Accomplishments

At the global UseR 2022 conference, Kristen Gorman presented a manuscript about palmerpenguins, R programming that uses Antarctic penguin data to teach data wrangling, exploration, and visualization in data science courses. 

Peter Westley and Matt Wooller were involved in producing a new management plan for invasive Northern pike recently published by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

A study about sea otter population collapse in southwest Alaska coauthored by Brenda Konar and CFOS alum Ben Weitzman won first place in the monograph category of the Wildlife Society’s publication awards.

CFOS in the News

Megan V. McPhee and graduate student Chris Sergeant were featured in UAF News and University of Montana News press releases about a new study that links the impacts of metal and coal mines on salmon to mining policy.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror featured Shackleton, an autonomous underwater vehicle operated by CFOS, in a story about using the glider to track Tanner crabs.

Publications

Arthur, D.E., J.A. Falke, B.J. Blain-Roth, and T.M. Sutton. 2022. Alaskan Yelloweye Rockfish (Sebastes ruberrimus) fecundity revealed through an automated egg count and digital imagery method. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10768.

Deemer, B.R., C.B. Yackulic, R.O. Hall Jr., M.J. Dodrill, T.A. Kennedy, J.D. Muehlbauer, D.J. Topping, N. Voichick, and M.D. Yard. 2022. Experimental reductions in sub-daily flow fluctuations increased gross primary productivity for 425 river kilometers downstream. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Nexus. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac094.

Dunker, K. J., P. Bradley, C. Brandt, T. Cubbage, T. Davis, J. Erickson, J. Jablonski, C. Jacobson, D. Kornblut, A. Martin, M. Massengill, T. McKinley, S. Oslund, O. Russ, D. Rutz, A. Sepulveda, N. Swenson, P. Westley, B. Wishnek, A. Wizik, and M. Wooller. 2022. Technical Guidance and Management Plan for Invasive Northern Pike in Southcentral Alaska: 2022-2030. Alaska Invasive Species Partnership.

Gordon J.Y., A.H. Beaudreau, E.M. Saas, and C. Carothers. 2022. Engaging formal and informal institutions for stewardship of rockfish fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska. Marine Policy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2022.105170.

Klenz, T., H.L. Simmons, L. Centurioni, J.M. Lilly, J.J. Early, and V. Hormann. 2022. Estimates of Near-Inertial Wind Power Input Using Novel in situ Wind Measurements from Minimet Surface Drifters in the Iceland Basin. Journal of Physical Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-21-0283.1.

Lynch, A.J., B.E.J. Myers, J.P. Wong, C. Chu, R.W. Tingley, and J.A. Falke, et al. 2022. Reducing uncertainty in climate change responses for inland fisheries management: a decision-path approach. Conservation Science and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12724.

Sergeant, C.J., E.K. Sexton, J.W. Moore, A.R. Westwood, S.A. Nagorski, J.L. Ebersole, D.M. Chambers, S.L. O’Neal, R.L. Malison, F.R. Hauer, D.C. Whited, J. Weitz, M. Capito, M. Connor, C.A. Frissell, G. Knox, E.D. Lowery, R. Macnair, V. Marlatt, J.K. McIntyre, M.V. McPhee, and N. Skuce. 2022. Risks of mining to salmonid-bearing watersheds. Science Advances. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abn0929.

Grants and Awards for June 2022

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-12127 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Technical Support - Year 1 of 5" - Ethan Roth - NSF - Mod 10 - $412,294.00 (June 15, 2018)
• Grant G-13543 "NASA IPA August 2020-July 2022" - Geoff Wheat - NASA - Mod 1 - $194,554.00 (August 1, 2020)
• Grant G-14380 "Arctic High-Frequency Radar Operations and Maintenance (Arctic HRF)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $156,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14451 "Seward Line Monitoring (Seward Line)" - Russ Hopcroft - AOOS - Mod 1 - $116,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14471 "Alaska Ecosystem Observatory Network Build-Out, Operations and Maintenance (Eco-Moorings)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $85,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14472 "Measuring Ocean Currents in Bering Strait with High Frequency Radars (Bering Strait HFR)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $115,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14473 "Alaska Region Glider Missions Supporting an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM Gliders)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $240,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14482 "An Arctic Marine Mammal Observing System (Chukchi Glider)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $65,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14484 "Time-Series Monitoring of Ocean Acidification in Alaska (OA Timeseries)" - Natalie Monacci - AOOS - Mod 1 - $29,000.00 (July 1, 2021)

CFOS graduate students that received funding through the Coastal Marine Institute's Student Awards for FY22/FY23:

• Hannah Myers "Passive acoustic monitoring of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in the northern Gulf of Alaska" - $25,000.00 (April 15, 2022)
• Sonia Kumar "Comparison of Cook Inlet Beluga Acoustic Presence in Critical Foraging Habitat Between Years of Reduced Commercial Salmon Fishing Zones" - $25,000.00 (June 1, 2022)
• Sydney Wilkinson "Resource Use of Arctic fishes along Beaufort Sea coastal Lagoons" - $12,126.00 (April 15, 2022)

Message from the Dean

The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities has approved the addition of the Master of Marine Policy (MMP) degree program, effective June 12, 2022. This is the final level of approval for the MMP, which may now be officially advertised and recruited for. Congratulations to all involved in crossing the finish line with this new degree offered jointly by CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast.

Summer solstice is tomorrow—time to get out and enjoy Alaska’s warm weather.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the North Pacific Ocean for the OA-Fe Availability cruise with chief scientist Mark Wells (University of Maine). The ship is scheduled to arrive in Seward on July 1, after which the crew will mobilize for the second leg of the 2022 NGA LTER project.

CFOS in the News

Bering Science featured CFOS graduate students Connie Melovidov (cover), Luke Henslee and Austin Flanigan.

Research supported by R/V Nanuq was featured on the Greek television station Alpha News.

Shannon Atkinson and Kendall Mashburn appeared in the “Humpback Health” episode of the Changing Seas television series, with videography by graduate student Courtney Pegus.

The journal Arctic published a multiauthor tribute to CFOS professor emeritus John Joseph Kelley, which includes anecdotes from David Norton and professors and deans emeriti Vera Alexander and Michael Castellini.

Publications

Beaudreau, A.H., C.A. Bergstrom, E.J. Whitney, D.H. Duncan, and N.C. Lundstrom. 2022. Seasonal and interannual variation in high-latitude estuarine fish community structure along a glacial to non-glacial watershed gradient in Southeast Alaska. Environmental Biology of Fishes. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01241-9

Gordon, J.Y., A.H. Beaudreau, B.C. Williams, and S.C. Meyer. 2022. Bridging expert knowledge and fishery data to examine changes in nearshore rockfish fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska over fifty years. Fisheries Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2022.106333

Muth, A.F., A.L. Kelley, and K.H. Dunton. 2022. High-frequency pH time series reveals pronounced seasonality in Arctic coastal waters. Limnology and Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.12080

Message from the Dean

The UA Board of Regents recently approved the Master of Marine Policy (MMP) degree program, which will be offered jointly by CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast. Set to commence in fall 2022, the MMP continues to generate considerable interest from state and federal agencies and industry. As expressed by the UA Regents, this joint effort will help meet a growing demand for fisheries and marine policy experts to manage Alaska’s vast marine resources. It is a pleasure to acknowledge Keith Criddle for leading this effort, as well as UAS Professor LJ Medenica, UAS Dean Carin Silkaitis, and many others for their important contributions. I would like to personally thank UA President Pitney and UAS Chancellor Karen Carey for their strong support in developing this new graduate degree.

As noted in last week’s UAF Friday Focus, the Alaska Blue Economy Center (ABEC) has been moved from its founding location in CFOS to the office of the UAF Vice Chancellor for Research. This strategic central location of ABEC within UAF will best serve the broader university community in driving innovation and industry engagement in support of Alaska’s growing blue economy enterprise. It is a pleasure to welcome and support Justin Sternberg’s continued close collaboration with CFOS in his role as ABEC director.

Lastly, after a decade of service at UAF, Andrew McDonnell has tendered his resignation as associate professor of oceanography, effective the end of this month. Andrew’s expertise in marine particle dynamics is widely acknowledged, and he will now focus on the deployment of renewable energy and supporting technologies in the private sector. Please join me in thanking Andrew for his good work at CFOS and wishing him the very best in his future endeavors.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in the North Pacific Ocean conducting the OA-Fe Availability cruise with chief scientist Mark Wells (University of Maine). The science team is investigating the role of ocean acidification on iron chemistry.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Shelby Bacus was awarded the 2022 Kathryn E. and John P. Doyle Scholarship from the Alaska Community Foundation.

The following CFOS students were elected as officers of the American Fisheries Society student subunit for 2022-2023:

• Garrett Dunne, President
• Lilian Hart, Vice President
• Linnaea Doerner, Treasurer
• Sam Rosenbaum, Communications/li>
• Madeline Lee, Diversity Equity and Inclusion Liaison

CFOS in the News

In UAF News, Vice Chancellor Nettie La Belle-Hamer described how the Alaska Blue Economy Center contributes to UAF’s goal of driving innovation in Alaska’s economy.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner mentioned CFOS in a short story about UAF’s Arctic Research Open House in May.

A wide array of media outlets, including MSN, The Washington Post, AP News, Phys.org and UAF News, mentioned Andrew McDonnell and Nanuq after McDonnell and his colleagues used the research vessel to measure carbon dioxide with an unoccupied underwater vehicle last month.

Publications

Aoki, L.R., B. Rappazzo, D.S. Beatty, L.K. Domke, G.L. Eckert, et al. 2022. Disease surveillance by artificial intelligence links eelgrass wasting disease to ocean warming across latitudes. Limnology and Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.12152

Guo, C., B.H. Konar, K.B. Gorman, and C.M. Walker. 2022. Environmental factors important to high-latitude nearshore estuarine fish community structure. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105109

Shelamoff, V., S. Umanzor, C. Layton, M. Tatsumi, M.J. Cameron, J.T. Wright, and C.R. Johnson. 2022. Ecosystem engineering kelp limits recruitment of mussels and microphytobenthic algae. Marine Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-022-04072-5

Grants and Awards for May 2022

New awards:

• Grant G-14796 "Implications AK Snow Crab Industry" - Shelby Bacus (Amanda Kelley) - UA Foundation NGOA - $5,000.00 (May 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14810 "Improving the Stock Assessments of Pacific Sleeper Shark (Somniosus pacificus) and Pacific Spiny Dogfish (Squalus suckleyi) in Alaska" - Garrett Dunne (Andrew Seitz) - UA Foundation NGOA - $5,000.00 (May 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14811 "Lowell Wakefield Chair in Fisheries and Ocean Sciences" - Peter Westley - UA Foundation - $80,000.00 (November 3, 2021)

Awards that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-11709 "LTER: Resilience in the Environmental Mosaic of the Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGA) Shelf Ecosystem" - Russ Hopcroft - NSF - Mod 5 - $134,906.00 (September 1, 2017)
• Grant G-12178 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Ship Operations CY2018-2022" - Bradley Moran - NSF - Mod 12 - $1,896,777.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-13024 "A sustainable, integrated AMBON in the Chukchi Sea" - Katrin Iken - NOAA - Mod 6 - $73,000.00 (September 1, 2019)
• Grant G-14680 "Life history variability and mixed-stock analysis of Dolly Varden in the Noatak River" - Andrew Seitz - AK Department of Fish & Game - $7,786.73 (July 1, 2021)

Awards set up for assumption:

• Grant G-14786 "Gulf Watch Alaska Long-Term Research and Monitoring Program: Nearshore Component" - Katrin Iken - Prince William Sound Science Center (February 1, 2022)

Message from the Dean

By all accounts the UAF Arctic Research Open House last Thursday was a great success. CFOS did a fantastic job showcasing a variety of our research programs and field equipment; the survival suit competition and inflatable life raft were a big hit with the many budding young scientists. A big thank you to Alice Bailey and the many faculty, staff and students who helped prepare such a wonderful public display of CFOS research.

It is a pleasure to welcome Jonathon Baugher as CFOS IT Lead. Jonathan will oversee desktop support, video conference, and other IT services. His office is located at O’Neill 209C and he can be reached by email at jbbaugher@alaska.edu.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for the OOI Papa and Waves at Papa projects in the Gulf of Alaska. Led by chief scientist Kris Newhall (WHOI), the science team will be deploying a dual profiler mooring, two flanking subsurface moorings, three gliders, a waverider surface mooring and some expendable drifters during the cruise.

Activities and Accomplishments

Franz Mueter and CFOS alumna Sherri Dressel were elected to co-chair the Scientific and Statistical Committee of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council.

As announced by the UA News Center, graduate student Annie Maliguine was awarded the Angus Gavin Migratory Bird Research Grant for her research on Steller's eiders.

CFOS in the News

UAF News and the Seward Journal highlighted Andrew McDonnell and his wife, Claudine Hauri (IARC), in a story about how research is integrated into their family life.

An aquatic insect citizen science project in the Grand Canyon coordinated by Jeff Muehlbauer and colleagues, was featured in a White House Office of Science & Technology Policy press release.

R/V Sikuliaq was featured on the cover of the National Science Foundation’s Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide.

Publications

Abernethy, E.F., J.D. Muehlbauer, T.A. Kennedy, K.E. Dziedzic, H. Elder, M.K. Burke, and D.A. Lytle. 2022. Population connectivity of aquatic insects in a dam-regulated, desert river. River Research and Applications. https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.3972

Hudson, K., M.J. Oliver, J. Kohut, J.H. Cohen, M.S. Dinniman, J.M. Klinck, C.S. Reiss, G.R. Cutter, H. Statscewich, K.S. Bernard, and W. Fraser. 2022. Subsurface eddy facilitates retention of simulated diel vertical migrators in a biological hotspot. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021jc017482

Metcalfe, A.N., T.A. Kennedy, G.A. Mendez, and J.D. Muehlbauer. 2022. Applied citizen science in freshwater research. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Water. https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1578

Oke, K.B., F.J. Mueter, and M.A. Litzow. 2022. Warming leads to opposite patterns in weight-at-age for young versus old age classes of Bering Sea walleye pollock. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2021-0315

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to recognize CFOS staff who were honored last week during the UAF Staff Recognition and Development Day. These individuals and all our hardworking staff help to ensure that CFOS operates efficiently and effectively. Please join me in congratulating the following employees for their dedicated service to CFOS and to the university: Anthony Mello, Richard Null, and Mark Teckenbrock (5 years); Pat Church (10 years), Hans Pedersen (15 years); Katherine Hedstrom and Christina Sutton (20 years); Gabrielle Hazelton (30 years).

Spring is finally here with warmer temps and trees budding—I hope everyone is able to enjoy some time in our spectacular outdoors.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seward preparing for the Waves at Papa and OOI Papa projects with chief scientist Kris Newhall (WHOI). At Ocean Station Papa, the science team will deploy a dual profiler mooring, subsurface moorings, gliders, a waverider surface mooring and drifters.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Kyle Dilliplaine received the "Two Petes" award from the Oil Spill Recovery Unit and a tuition award to attend the Biogeochemical Exchange Processes at the Sea-Ice Interfaces (BEPSII) Sea Ice School this May.

At the National Science Board meeting, the Office of Integrated Activities highlighted UAF Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations (C-DEBI) researchers.

CFOS in the News

Andrew McDonnell and his wife Claudine Hauri (IARC) were featured in a UAF News story about how their research is integrated into family life, including their recent ocean acidification work using R/V Nanuq.

Alaska Native News highlighted Amanda Kelley and graduate student James Currie in a story about monitoring ocean acidification in Kachemak Bay.

In their newsletter, the Alaska Idea Network of Biomedical Research Excellence featured Shannon Atkinson and her research using drones to collect blow samples from humpback, blue and killer whales.

The Bureau of Reclamation featured Jeff Muehlbauer in a press release about a “Bug Flow” experiment that will be conducted this summer at Glen Canyon Dam. The experiment is designed to improve egg-laying conditions for aquatic insects that are the primary food source for fish in the Colorado River.

Publications

Danielson, S.L., J.M. Grebmeier, K. Iken, et al. 2022. Monitoring Alaskan Arctic shelf ecosystems through collaborative observation networks. Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2022.119.

Lu, K., S. Danielson and T. Weingartner. 2022. Impacts of short-term wind events on Chukchi hydrography and sea-ice retreat. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105078.

Stricker, C.A., K.D. Rode, B.D. Taras, J.F. Bromaghin, L. Horstmann and L. Quakenbush. 2022. Summer/fall diet and macronutrient assimilation in an Arctic predator. Oecologia. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-022-05155-2.

Whitmore, L.M., A.M. Shiller, T.J. Horner, Y. Xiang, et al. 2022. Strong margin influence on the Arctic Ocean Barium cycle revealed by pan-Arctic synthesis. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017417.

Grants and Awards for April 2022

New awards for CFOS researchers during the month of April are as follows:

• Grant G-14728 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Instrumentation 2022" - Ethan Roth - NSF - $70,062.00 (April 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14766 "FY22 Acoustic Tracking of Tanner Crab Using an AUV Glider Near Kodiak, Alaska" - Seth Danielson - Alaska Department of Fish & Game - $30,000.00 (April 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14750 "Reducing Chinook Salmon Bycatch" - Andrew Seitz - UA Foundation PCCRC - $69,099.00 (April 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14751 "Potential of Pollock Roe Peptides" - Quentin Fong - UA Foundation PCCRC - $55,058.00 (April 1, 2022)

Grants that received incremental funding during the month of April:

• Grant G-11291 "Hilcorp Arctic Fisheries Study (UA Foundation)" - Trent Sutton - UA Foundation - $101,550.00 (January 1, 2017)
• Grant G-13303 "Collaborative Research: A High Resolution Multi-Tracer Biogeochemical Study of the Pacific Arctic" - Dean Stockwell - NSF - Mod 2 - $109,862.00 (April 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13354 "Nutritional Consequences of Changes in Phytoplankton Community Structure" - Sarah Mincks - UA Foundation PCCRC - $3,624.00 (April 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13545 "Evaluation of Spatio-temporal Methods for Standardizing Data from Multiple Fishery-Independent Surveys in the GOA and BSAI" - Curry Cunningham - UA Foundation PCCRC - $50,572.00 (August 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

As we conclude the spring 2022 semester, I would like to convey my appreciation to our dedicated students, staff and faculty for your perseverance and energy in advancing the mission of CFOS.

As many of you may know, Milo Adkison has tendered his resignation as Professor of Fisheries, effective May 9, 2022. For the past 25 years, Milo has been an integral part of the CFOS fisheries program, having served on 20 MS and PhD committees and published over 60 peer-reviewed papers. A member of the Curyung Tribe of Dillingham, Milo has served as Chair of the Department of Fisheries, on numerous university committees, and on many state and national fisheries science councils and committees. In 2018, Milo testified before the US Senate Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard on The State of our Salmon. Chancellor White recently awarded Milo the rank of UAF Emeritus Professor of Fisheries. Please join me in congratulating Milo on a productive career at UAF and wishing him the very best in his future endeavors.

2022 Dean’s Recognition Awards

Outstanding Advisor: Brenda Konar
Outstanding Instructor: Curry Cunningham
Outstanding Researcher: Gwenn Hennon
Outstanding Public Service: Alice Bailey
Outstanding Staff: Michelle Warrenchuck
Outstanding R/V Sikuliaq Crew: Sean Gardiner
Outstanding Graduate Student: Lauren Sutton
Outstanding Undergraduate Student: Sadie Oswald

Spring 2022 graduates

Rebecca Cates. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Ginny Eckert
Delaney Coleman. MS Oceanography, Advisor: Russ Hopcroft
William Dokai. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Megan McPhee
Erika King. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Megan McPhee
Savannah Sandy. MS Oceanography, Advisor: Seth Danielson
Brittany Charrier. PhD Marine Biology, Advisor: Sarah Mincks
Veronica Padula. PhD Fisheries, Advisor: Anne Beaudreau and Doug Causey (UAA)
Sadie Oswald. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Fisheries Science
Emily Williamson. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Ocean Science
Brian Zhang. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Fisheries Science

2022 Student Awards

Outstanding graduate student/Dean's Recognition Award: Lauren Sutton
Outstanding overall undergraduate student/Dean's Recognition Award: Sadie Oswald
Outstanding Senior: Brian Zhang
Outstanding Junior: Rachel Heimke
Outstanding Sophomore: Linnaea Doerner
Outstanding Freshman: Kilie Jacques

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Russ Hopcroft’s (UAF/CFOS) Northern Gulf of Alaska Long Term Ecological Research (NGA LTER) project.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Lindsey Call has been awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program, for her research on the effects of glacial coverage on the ecology of stream-rearing juvenile salmon. The NSF GRFP is one of the top graduate student fellowship awards in the nation. Congratulations Lindsey!

CFOS had a strong presence at the University of Alaska Mariculture Conference in Juneau. With CFOS as a sponsor, Bradley Moran helped organize the event. Justin Sternberg, Ginny Eckert and Schery Umanzor gave oral presentations and/or facilitated panel discussions. Natalie Monacci and graduate students Becca Cates, Courtney Hart, Tamsen Peeples and Muriel Dittrich presented posters.

Undergraduates Bryce Bateman, Feyne Elmore, Amy Whitney and Kimberly Williams presented their research at URSA’s Research and Creative Activities Days. Williams won the Dean’s Choice Award and Elmore received an Honorable Mention.

At the Alaska Space Grant Symposium, Sonia Kumar was recognized for giving the best graduate student oral presentation. The honor included a travel award.

CFOS in the News

UAF News and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner recognized Susan Henrichs as a recipient of UAF’s Meritorious Service Award. Henrichs began her career as a faculty member in marine science and retired as provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs.

Alice Bailey and Franz Mueter were mentioned in a UAF News article about the Arctic Encounter Symposium.

Publications

Bucklin, A., P. Batta-Lona, J.M. Questel, et al. 2022. COI metabarcoding of zooplankton species diversity for time-series monitoring of the NW Atlantic Continental Shelf. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.867893

Mayer, L.A., M.R. Abbott, [...], S.B Moran, et al. 2022. Cross-Cutting Themes for U.S. Contributions to the UN Ocean Decade. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26363

Message from the Dean

Please mark your calendars for Friday, May 13, when CFOS will host Pedro Pinto, Consul General of Portugal, and his delegation to participate in the Alaska Blue Economy Roundtable: A Dive into the UN Decade for Ocean Science and Sustainable Development. Ocean issues are a strategic foreign policy priority for Portugal, where the 2022 UN Ocean Conference will take place in Lisbon. The roundtable is part of a larger effort by the Government of Portugal to raise awareness of the UN Ocean Decade with key entities involved in fisheries and ocean sciences research and education, including UAF. The roundtable will take place on the UAF campus and will be accessible in person and virtually; details will be forthcoming.

Speaking of the blue economy, the University of Alaska Mariculture Conference takes place this week in Juneau. With over 100 participants registered, this 3-day conference will focus on the continued development of mariculture in Alaska through consideration of opportunities in industry, policy, research, and education.

Today marks the beginning of Student Employee Appreciation Week. CFOS employs over 40 students who play an important role in support of the college's education, research, and operational excellence. It is a pleasure to acknowledge our student employees’ dedication and commitment to the CFOS mission.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway transiting from Newport, Oregon, to Seward. During this transit, Sikuliaq will host a STEMSEAS group and conduct an equipment test for Russ Hopcroft’s Northern Gulf of Alaska Long Term Ecological Research project.

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS presence at the Arctic Encounter Symposium last week in Anchorage included Franz Mueter, who participated in a panel discussion about the future of fisheries management in the Arctic, and Alice Bailey, who represented CFOS and R/V Sikuliaq at the UA research table.

Tuula Hollmen received the Alaska SeaLife Center’s 2022 Alaska Ocean Leadership Award for Marine Research.

Graduate student Matthew Cheng was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Program Fellowship, which will provide support for his research on fisheries catch rates. The NSF GRFP is one of the top graduate student fellowship awards in the nation. Congratulations Matthew!

The Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit hosted their annual Research Review and Cooperators Business Meeting, where fourteen CFOS graduate students presented their research to an audience of students, research faculty and staff, and state and federal agency personnel.

Seventeen graduate students presented their research at the 25th Alaska Fisheries Society Student Symposium, with awards going to:

• Matthew Cheng: winner, best long talk
• Kevin Fitzgerald: runner-up, best long talk
• Carter Johnson: winner, best short talk
• Aaron Lambert and Joseph Spencer: tied for the runner-up, best short talk

Graduate students Shelby Bacus, Garrett Dunne, Andrew Rothenberger, and Sonia Kumar received Northern Gulf of Alaska Applied Research awards through UA Advancement.

CFOS in the News

Alexei Pinchuk was featured in a Washington Post story about the mystery of where salmon travel in the Pacific Ocean during the winter. The story also appeared in Reporter Wings.

The 'Can We Connect?' podcast on Spotify featured the research of graduate students Shelby Bacus and Marina Washburn.

National Fisherman magazine mentioned CFOS in an article about how environmental DNA metabarcoding can be used to characterize nearshore fish communities in Southeast Alaska.

Publications

Leppi, J.C., J.A. Falke, D.J. Rinella, M.S. Wipfli, A.C. Seitz, and M.S. Whitman. 2022. Landscape geomorphology and local-riverine features influence Broad Whitefish (Coregonus nasus) spawning habitat suitability in Arctic Alaska. Ecology of Freshwater Fish. https://doi.org/10.1111/eff.12657.

Clawson, C.M., J.A. Falke, J. Rose, A. Prakash, A.E. Martin, and L.L. Bailey. 2022. High-resolution remote sensing and multistate occupancy estimation identify drivers of spawning site selection in fall chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) across a sub-Arctic riverscape. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2021-0013.

Smith, M., L. Horstmann, and R. Stimmelmayr. 2022. Stable isotope differences of polar bears in the southern Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea. Journal of Wildlife Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/jwmg.22225.

Umanzor, S., S. Han, H.I. Song, J.S. Park, A.T. Critchley, C. Yarish, and J.K. Kim. 2022. Ascertaining the interactions of brown seaweed-derived biostimulants and seawater temperature on spore release, germination, conchocelis, and newly formed blades of the commercially important red alga Neopyropia yezoensis? Algal Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.algal.2022.102692.

Zinkann A.C., M.J. Wooller, M.B. Leigh, S.L. Danielson, G. Gibson, and K. Iken. 2022. Depth distribution of organic carbon sources in Arctic Chukchi Sea sediments. Deep Sea Research II. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105076.

Grants and Awards for March 2022

New awards:

• Grant G-14701 "Cook Inlet HF Radar Data Recovery" - Seth Danielson - Oil Spill Recovery Institute - $19,552.00 (January 31, 2022)
• Grant G-14702 "Alaska Mariculture Cluster - Developing a viable and sustainable mariculture industry for the long-term benefit of Alaska's economy, environment, and communities Phase 1" - Justin Sternberg - Southeast Conference - $25,000.00 (December 15, 2021)
• Grant G-14727 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Shipboard Scientific Equipment (SSSE)- 2022" - Ethan Roth - NSF - $130,356.00 (March 15, 2022)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-11744 "Synthesizing Optically - and Carbon Export-Relevant Particle Size Distribution for the EXPORTS Field Campaign" - Andrew McDonnell - University of California Santa Barbara NCEAS - Mod 5 - $36,635.00 (September 15, 2017)
• Grant G-13129 "Impacts of Sedimentation and Drivers of Variability in the Boulder Patch Community, Beaufort Sea" - Katrin Iken - University of Texas at Austin - Mod 2 - $46,158.00 (September 18, 2019)
• Grant G-13303 "Collaborative Research: A High Resolution Multi-Tracer Biogeochemical Study of the Pacific Arctic" - Dean Stockwell - NSF - Mod 2 - $109,862.00 (April 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

Last week the UAF Graduate Academic and Advisory Committee voted to approve the Master of Marine Policy (MMP) degree proposal. The next step is for the UAS Graduate Committee, UAS Faculty Senate and UAF Faculty Senate to review and vote on the proposal. We have received strong external support for this new program from the commissioner of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Alaska Board of Fisheries, North Pacific Fishery Management Council and Pacific Seafood Processors Association. There have also been constructive discussions with the U.S. Coast Guard to address domestic and international resource management, policy, and security issues as part of this graduate degree. Kudos to Keith Criddle and his UAS colleagues for all their good work on what promises to be a nationally recognized marine policy graduate program.

We have officially launched the search for two tenure-track assistant professor positions in oceanography. Thank you to Mark Johnson for leading this search and to the search committee for their time and effort; please spread the word to potential candidates.

We are in the final stages of organizing the University of Alaska Mariculture Conference, which will take place April 12–14 at the Centennial Hall Convention and Civic Center in Juneau. The conference will highlight industry, policy and research opportunities and challenges related to the burgeoning mariculture industry in Alaska. This conference has benefited from considerable time and effort of many organizations and individuals, including the Juneau Economic Development Council, Southeast Conference, Alaska Fisheries Development Fund, Alaska Sea Grant, UAS and CFOS, and importantly, strong support from UA President Pitney.

Please mark your calendars for the 2022 CFOS State of the College, which will be held virtually at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 21. In addition to highlighting our research, academic and outreach activities over the past year, we will present the annual Dean’s Recognition Awards to our faculty, staff and students.

Finally, since 2015 the state of Alaska has provided $500,000 annually to support research and education programs conducted by UAF-based researchers and collaborators aboard R/V Sikuliaq. As operator of Sikuliaq, CFOS facilitates the allocation of these state funds through the Alaska Sikuliaq Program. The deadline for the CY2023 proposal submission is this Wednesday, March 31.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Ed Dever’s (OSU) Ocean Observatories Initiative Endurance Array maintenance voyage. Photos and cruise updates are posted on the OOI Expedition Blog.

Activities and Accomplishments

The Tamamta program hosted a dialogue about racial equity in fisheries education, research and governance at the American Fisheries Society Alaska Chapter annual meeting. Courtney Carothers, Peter Westley and Sonia Ibarra participated in the discussion.

Including the eleven students that completed the 2022 Scientific Diving class over spring break, CFOS has now trained more than 500 divers since Brenda Konar first taught the course in 2000.

CFOS in the News

A photograph of Sikuliaq was used in an Anchorage Daily News opinion editorial by UAF Vice Chancellor for Research Nettie La Belle-Hamer about embracing research as an important part of U.S. national security in the changing Arctic.

Seth Danielson was mentioned in a National Park Service news release about humpback whale declines caused by the Northeast Pacific marine heatwave.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror featured a CFOS glider named Gretel that is collecting data on salmon in the Northern Gulf of Alaska.

Alaska Sea Grant featured ocean acidification research by Amanda Kelley and graduate student James Currie on their website and in the Fishlines newsletter.

Tamsen Peeples and Michael Stekoll discussed seaweed mariculture on KMXT radio as part of the Alaska Fisheries Report.

Publications

Gabriele, C.M., C.L. Amundson, J.L. Neilson, J.M. Straley, C.S. Baker, and S.L. Danielson. 2022. Sharp decline in humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) survival and reproductive success in southeastern Alaska during and after the 2014–2016 Northeast Pacific marine heatwave. Mammalian Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-021-00187-2

Hossain, A.I., B.S. Baghirzade, [...], S. Umanzor, et al. 2022. Symbiotic engineering: A novel approach for environmental remediation. ACS ES&T Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsestengg.1c00333

Pickett, B.D., S. Talma, J.R. Glass, D. Ence, T.P. Johnson, P.D. Cowley, P.G. Ridge, and J.S.K. Kauwe. 2022. Genome assembly of the roundjaw bonefish (Albula glossodonta), a vulnerable circumtropical sportfish. Gigabyte. https://doi.org/10.46471/gigabyte.44

Message from the Dean

I hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing and safe spring break last week—welcome back!

On Thursday, March 17, we will welcome President Pitney to our monthly faculty meeting. She will discuss her vision for a greater presence of fisheries and ocean science research and education in Southeast Alaska. Please mark your calendars for this important discussion.

Last week, the Consortium for Ocean Leadership (COL) held its spring trustees and members meetings in Washington, DC. Discussions centered on plans already underway to strengthen COL’s mission, including the need to advocate for sound national ocean policy, plans, programs and budgets, to sustain existing COL programs, and to foster growth of new programmatic opportunities. In addition, Nicole LeBoeuf, Assistant Administrator of NOAA’s National Ocean Service, gave an update on the recent and rather sobering 2022 Sea Level Rise Technical Report, and NOAA’s vision to promote the New Blue Economy. Roberta Marinelli, Director of NSF’s Office of Polar Programs, presented an exciting overview of the new Antarctic Research Vessel, including envisioned vessel capabilities and construction timeline. As COL Board Chair, I am heartened that the mission and vision of CFOS aligns with these national priorities.

Yesterday marked daylight savings time, and one can feel that spring is now just around the corner.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is scheduled to arrive in Newport, Oregon, this week to demobilize Bob Cowen’s (OSU) Plankton Size Spectra cruise and then mobilize Ed Dever’s (OSU) OOI Endurance Array voyage.

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS alum Terril Efird, who is now the Operations Officer of NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada, discussed NOAA Corps opportunities with students in UA’s Scientific Diving Program.

CFOS in the News

UAF News and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner featured a CFOS glider named Gretel that is currently looking for salmon in the Gulf of Alaska. Data collected by the autonomous instrument can be viewed in near real-time at a web portal managed by the Alaska Ocean Observing System.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner published an article by Andrés Lopez about a project at the University of Alaska Museum of the North that is investigating how changes to fish species in the northern Pacific ocean affect parasites.

Shannon Atkinson was mentioned in a SIT News story about a humpback whale named Flame.

Publications

Bluhm, B.A., K. Brown, L. Rotermund, W. Williams, S.L. Danielson, and E.C. Carmack. 2022. New distribution records of kelp in the Kitikmeot Region, Northwest Passage, Canada, fill a pan-Arctic gap. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-022-03007-6

Britton, K., B. Crowley, C.P Bataille, J.H. Miller, and M.J. Wooller. 2022. Editorial: A Golden Age for Strontium Isotope Research? Current Advances in Paleoecological and Archaeological Research. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2021.820295

Lundstrom, N.C., A.H. Beaudreau, F.J. Mueter, and B. Konar. 2022. Environmental Drivers of Nearshore Fish Community Composition and Size Structure in Glacially Influenced Gulf of Alaska Estuaries. Estuaries and Coasts. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-022-01057-x

Mueter, F.J. 2022. Chapter 14: Arctic Fisheries in a Changing Climate. In: M. Finger and G. Rekvig (eds.), Global Arctic. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-81253-9_14

Rabault, J., M. Johnson, et al. 2022. OpenMetBuoy-v2021: An Easy-to-Build, Affordable, Customizable, Open-Source Instrument for Oceanographic Measurements of Drift and Waves in Sea Ice and the Open Ocean. Geosciences. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12030110

Siegert, D., B. Konar, M.R. Lindeberg, S. Saupe, and K. Iken. 2022. Trophic structure of rocky intertidal communities in two contrasting high-latitude environments. Deep-Sea Research II. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2022.105050

Grants and Awards for February 2022

New awards:

• Grant G-14669 "2022 Beaufort Sea Fish Monitoring Project" - Trent Sutton - Hilcorp Alaska LLC - $40,485.00 (January 1, 2022)
• Grant G-14680 "Life history variability and mixed-stock analysis of Dolly Varden in the Noatak River FY22" - Andrew Seitz - Alaska Department of Fish & Game - $3,854.76 (July 1, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-13745 "Dynamics of Contemporary Genomic Evolution in Replicate Threespine Stickleback Populations" - Krista Oke - Stony Brook University - Mod 1 - $77,655.00 (September 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

The UA Board of Regents meeting last week presented goals and measures to advance the university’s mission, and two points are particularly notable for CFOS: Chancellor White recognized the recent development of our fully asynchronous BS degree, and President Pitney identified an opportunity to increase fisheries and ocean sciences research and teaching in Southeast Alaska. It is heartening to have our senior leaders highlight programs and opportunities that are relevant to the future success of CFOS. In that regard, President Pitney has agreed to attend the next CFOS faculty meeting to discuss her vision and how CFOS can assist with implementation.

And, on behalf of CFOS, it is a great pleasure to congratulate President Pitney on her official appointment as President of the University of Alaska System—the first-ever woman to hold this prestigious position!

It is a pleasure to welcome Tendai Shambare as our new student worker in support of CFOS IT capabilities. Welcome aboard!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for the first science voyage of 2022. Bob Cowen’s (Oregon State University) Plankton Size Spectra project will use a towed imaging system, plankton nets, and CTD casts to investigate plankton size distributions along the Oregon and Washington coasts.

Activities and Accomplishments

Gwenn Hennon and Jessica Glass recently gave presentations as part of the Geophysical Institute’s Science for Alaska lecture series.

Lindsey Stadler was awarded third place in UAF’s inaugural Three Minute Thesis competition. Josianne Haag was another finalist, and Jonah Bacon, Emily Stidham, Stephanie O’Daly, Liza Hasan, and Madeline Lee represented CFOS in the preliminary rounds.

CFOS in the News

The upcoming University of Alaska Mariculture Conference was featured by UAF News and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

R/V Sikuliaq was mentioned by UAF News, KTVF, and Alaska’s News Source regarding a project in which UAF researchers aim to reconstruct the Bering Land Bridge during the last ice age.

Shannon Atkinson was mentioned in an Alaska Native News story about a humpback whale named Flame.

Chemistry World mentioned Geoff Wheat’s geochemical research as part of the Deep Sea Drilling Program.

Publications

Boothman, W.S., L. Coiro, and S.B. Moran. 2022. Molybdenum accumulation in sediments: A quantitative indicator of hypoxic water conditions in Narragansett Bay, RI. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2022.107778.

Priest, J.T., F.J. Mueter, S.W. Raborn, and T.M. Sutton. 2022. Effects of environmental variables on a nearshore Arctic fish community, 2001–2018. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-022-03013-8.

von Biela, V.R., C.J. Sergeant, M.P. Carey, Z. Liller, C. Russell, S. Quinn-Davidson, P.S. Rand, P.A. Westley, and C.E. Zimmerman. 2022. Premature mortality observations among Alaska’s pacific salmon during record heat and drought in 2019. Fisheries. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.10705.

Message from the Dean

With this being the first C-Notes edition in February, it is opportune to acknowledge Black History Month. Established in 1926, Black History Month recognizes and celebrates the achievements of the African American population in the nation’s history. Please take a moment to reflect on the many important contributions from our Black community.

The following key priorities emerged from our all-hands faculty retreat held last month: continue development of asynchronous instruction modality, support student success and well-being, and reinvest in our research enterprise. It is a pleasure to convey that we are making progress on each of these priorities.

Specifically, CFOS has completed the design of a fully asynchronous BS degree concentration. While we continue to fully support our place-based instruction and research training activities, offering an asynchronous instruction modality addresses evolving workforce and education needs in Alaska and beyond. This effort has involved many faculty and staff, and I would like to acknowledge Associate Dean Trent Sutton for his determination in helping to grow our academic programs. Further, we are actively addressing graduate student pay equity at CFOS, and expect to roll out a plan in the near future. And, we will also soon transmit guidance to increase our research faculty through the postdoctoral investigator pipeline and via external hires.

It is a pleasure to welcome Samara (Sam) Mashal as the new CFOS web manager. Sam has more than two decades of web marketing experience working in the technology industry. Leaving behind a career in Silicon Valley, she now calls Alaska home and looks forward to living the Alaskan experience while working her way into academia and research. Sam can be reached at smashal@alaska.edu. (Note: please continue to email our web group at web@cfos.uaf.edu to request changes to the CFOS website.) Please join me in welcoming Sam to CFOS!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy Valentine’s Day!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is scheduled to depart Portland this week for a post-shipyard shakedown cruise, then will transit to Newport to stage the first science voyage of 2022.

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS and the Seward Marine Center hosted the 25th annual Tsunami Ocean Sciences Bowl in Seward, where thirteen teams from across the state competed for the chance to represent Alaska in the National Ocean Sciences Bowl finals competition in May. Thank you to Amanda Kelley and her team of graduate students who contributed to the research component of the competition, CFOS staff who volunteered their time, and to SMC staff for ensuring the success of the event! This year’s winners are:

1st place: Locolithophores team, Juneau-Douglas High School
2nd place: Geo Schmucks team, Cordova Jr/Sr High School
3rd place: Tectonic Plates team, Mat-Su Career & Tech High School

Alice Bailey and Seth Danielson presented R/V Sikuliaq research activities to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission at the Annual Whaling Captains' Association Mini-Convention in Anchorage.

Kristen Gorman presented an online talk on her Copper River sockeye research to the Wrangell Institute for Science and Environment.

R/V Sikuliaq was featured in a Science for Alaska lecture by Bernard Coakley that can be viewed on the UAF Geophysical Institute’s Facebook videos page.

CFOS in the News

The upcoming University of Alaska Mariculture Conference was featured by UA News, Alaska Native News and UA Southeast. The conference, titled “Mariculture for Alaska’s Future: Status, Challenges, and Opportunities,” will be held in Juneau this April.

Publications

Chambers, C., T. Henke. B. Barr, D. Cook, B Costa Pierce, N. Einatsson, B. Kaisar, O. Knutsson, M. Kokorsch, N. Nazarova, and T. Sutton. 2022. Marine fisheries and aquaculture in the Arctic. In: Renewable Economies in the Arctic, pp. 224–248. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003172406

Ulaski, M.E., H. Finkle, A.H. Beaudreau, and P.A.H. Westley. 2022. Climate and conspecific density inform phenotypic forecasting of juvenile Pacific salmon body size. Freshwater Biology (cover story). https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13850

Grants and Awards for January 2022

Awards that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-1085 "NOSB Support" - Bradley Moran - UA Foundation - $51,500.00 (July 1, 2002)
• Grant G-11133 "Chukchi Sea Ecosystem Mooring" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 9 - $25,000.00 (June 1, 2016)
• Grant G-12178 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Ship Operations CY2018-2022" - Bradley Moran - NSF - Mod 11 - $4,522,860.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-14468 "Demonstrating operational readiness of AUV-based ecosystem monitoring through a field program supporting the International Year of the Salmon (OMAO Glider)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $7,500.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14548 "Ecosystem monitoring and detection of wind and ice-mediated changes through a year-round physical and biochemical mooring in the Northeast Chukchi Sea" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - Mod 1 - $8,800.00 (December 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that Tyler Hennon has been appointed as Research Assistant Professor in CFOS. A graduate of the University of Washington and University of Oregon, Tyler most recently held a postdoctoral position working primarily with Seth Danielson’s research group. An observational physical oceanographer, his research focuses on ocean microstructure turbulence, internal gravity waves, spatiotemporal variability of sea surface temperature, as well as topics relating to biogeochemistry. Please join me in congratulating Tyler on his faculty appointment.

Harper Simmons has tendered his resignation to take a position at the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory. I would like to personally thank Harper for his research, teaching and service contributions to the university. We will greatly miss Harper, and wish him all the best going forward.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently in Portland, Oregon, for scheduled regulatory routine maintenance. The ship is scheduled to depart Portland in mid-February for a post-shipyard shakedown cruise and then transit to Newport to stage for the first science voyage of 2022.

Activities and Accomplishments

Numerous CFOS faculty, staff and students participated in the Alaska Marine Science Symposium held in Anchorage last week. Graduate students Marina Alcantar and Shelby Bacus gave Alaska Ocean Acidification Network's lightning talks, and we are proud to say that half of the AMSS Student Awards went to CFOS! Congratulations to the following students:

Brian Ulaski- Best Oral Presentation, Doctorate level

Addie Norgaard- Best Poster Presentation, Doctorate level

Alex Sletten- Best Poster Presentation, Masters level

 

Publications

Etnoyer, P.J., C.G. Messing, K.A. Stanley, T.K. Baumiller, L. Kate and T.C. Shirley. 2022. Diversity and time-series analyses of Caribbean deep-sea coral and sponge assemblages on the tropical island slope of Isla de Roatán, Honduras. Marine Biodiversity. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-021-01255-z

Hennon, G.M.M., J. Sefbom, E. Schaum, S.T. Dyhrman and A. Godhe. 2021. Guidelines for the study of climate change effects on HABs, Chapter 4: Studying the acclimation and adaptation of HAB species to changing environmental conditions. UNESCO-IOC/SCOR. https://doi.org/10.25607/OBP-1692

Huang, M., K.R. Robbins, Y.L., S. Umanzor, M. Marty-Rivera, D. Bailey, C. Yarish, S. Lindell and J.L. Jannink. 2022. Simulation of sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) breeding guided by practices to accelerate genetic gains. G3 Genes|Genomes|Genetic. https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkac003

Menzies, C., R.E. Price, J. Ryan, O. Sissmann, K. Takai, C.G. Wheat. 2022. Spatial variation of subduction zone fluids during progressive subduction: Insights from Mariana Serpentinite Mud Volcanoes. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2021.10.030

Message from the Dean

With the start of the spring 2022 semester last week, it is a pleasure to welcome back our current and new CFOS students. As always, our faculty and staff are here to support you, and we wish you great success. 

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our new graduate students:

Muriel Dittrich. M.S. Marine Biology, Advisor: Schery Umanzor

Margaret Harings. M.S. Fisheries, Advisors: Andres Lopez and Erik Schoen

Brendan Higgins. M.S. Marine Biology, Advisor: Tuula Hollmen

Hannah Kepner. M.S. Oceanography, Advisor: Russ Hopcroft

Megan Brauner. Ph.D. Oceanography, Advisors: Gwenn Hennon and Brandon Briggs (UAA)

Sabrina Garcia. Ph.D. Fisheries, Advisor: Andrew Seitz

Andrew Rothenberger. Ph.D. Fisheries, Advisor: Andrew Seitz 

 

Finally, last Friday was Will Burt’s final work day as a CFOS faculty member; we wish him well in his future endeavors.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently in Portland, Oregon, for scheduled regulatory routine maintenance. The ship is scheduled to depart Portland in mid-February for a post-shipyard shakedown cruise and then transit to Newport to stage for the first science voyage of 2022.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student James Currie was awarded a Scientists in the Schools fellowship from the Sitka Sound Science Center. 

Justin Sternberg and Bradley Moran coauthored an invited article on climate adaptation in the Arctic Ocean published by the Wilson Center. 

CFOS in the News

KTOO featured Seth Danielson in an article about results from the November 2021 Sikuliaq cruise in the Bering and Chukchi Seas.

Publications

Umanzor S., S. Han, H.I. Song, J.S. Park, A.T. Critchley, C. Yarish, J.K. Kim. 2022. Enhancements provided by the use of an Ascophyllum nodosum extract can be transferred through archeospores in the red alga Neopyropia yezoensis (Ueda) L.-E. Yang & J. Brodie. Aquatic Botany. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquabot.2021.103481

Message from the Dean

Happy New Year! It is a pleasure to wish everyone a warm welcome after what was hopefully a relaxing winter break spent with friends and family—and here is to a safe and productive 2022.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently docked in Seward preparing for the scheduled regulatory shipyard work this winter. The location of the shipyard has not yet been confirmed. 

CFOS in the News

The cover of Molecular Ecology featured a publication co-authored by Megan McPhee, postdoctoral fellow Yue Shi and graduate student William Dokai about the role of gene flow on fish. 

Seth Danielson appeared in KNOM radio and Nome Nugget stories describing findings from the November 2021 Sikuliaq cruise in the Bering and Chukchi Seas.

The Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies (CICOES) magazine mentioned Natalie Monacci in an article about the Ocean Acidification Research Center’s (OARC) projects monitoring marine carbonate chemistry around Alaska. The Newsletter of the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) included a summary of seawater carbon dioxide observations in the eastern Bering Sea collected by a long-term monitoring site led by OARC. 

A Fairbanks Daily News-Miner article about Alaska seaweed mariculture featured Schery Umanzor and Justin Sternberg.

Marine Link mentioned Steve Roberts in a story about satellite imagery produced by the Geographic Information Network of Alaska (GINA) on R/V Sikuliaq.

Publications

Berkman, S.A., T.M. Sutton, F.J. Mueter, and B.W. Elliott. 2021. Effects of early life-stage and environmental factors on the marine survival of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in rivers of Southeast Alaska. Fishery Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.7755/FB.119.4.1

Shi, Y., K.L. Bouska, G.J. McKinney, W. Dokai, A. Bartels, M.V. McPhee, and W.A. Larson. 2021. Gene flow influences the genomic architecture of local adaptation in six riverine fish species. Molecular Ecology.  https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16317

Grants and Awards for December 2021

New awards for CFOS:

• Grant G-14548 "Ecosystem monitoring and detection of wind and ice-mediated changes through a year-round physical and biogeochemical mooring in the Northeast Chukchi Sea" - Seth Danielson - NPRB - $88,002.00 (December 1, 2021)
• Faculty Initiative Fund Award "Seabird Biologging at St. Paul Island, Alaska" - Kristen Gorman - UA Statewide - $29,700.00 (December 1, 2021)

Awards that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-13328 "Telemetry and genetic identity of Chinook salmon in Alaska" - Andrew Seitz - Department of the Navy - Mod 6 - $221,812.00 (April 15, 2020)
• Grant G-14309 "Dynamical downscaling of the submesoscale cascade of turbulence" - Harper Simmons - ONR - Mod 1 - $85,322.00 (August 23, 2021)

New award controlled by another department:

• Grant G-14571 "CICOES Postdoc Fellowships at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks" - Peter Westley - IARC - $94,488.00 (December 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

As we wind up another challenging but rewarding year, it is a pleasure to express my sincere appreciation to our students, staff and faculty, and to our Captain and crew in ensuring the safe and successful operation of R/V Sikuliaq—we can be proud of our collective hard work and many accomplishments this past year—well done CFOS! 

Happy holidays and best wishes for the New Year!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently docked in Seward preparing for its scheduled regulatory shipyard period this winter. The location of the shipyard has not yet been determined. 

Activities and Accomplishments

Last week, R/V Nanuq successfully completed GAK-1 sampling and glider testing in wind, waves, freezing spray, and white out snow conditions.

Megan McPhee and faculty from Kamchatka State Technical University, Far Eastern Federal University, and Sakhalin State University recently formed the “Russian Far East-Alaska Salmon Exchange,” a consortium dedicated to sharing research and education on Pacific salmon. As part of this effort, CFOS graduate student Molly Payne presented her thesis research on stream attractiveness to stray hatchery chum salmon at the first “Salmon Mini-Conference.”

Graduate student Hannah Myers was awarded “Best Talk: Observational Ecology” at the 2021 Western Society of Naturalists Conference for her presentation on the distribution and acoustic residency patterns of Gulf of Alaska killer whales. 

CFOS in the News

The Fish Site featured Schery Umanzor and Justin Sternberg in a story about Alaska mariculture. 

Hannah Myers was featured in a KTOO story about listening to the voices of killer whales.

Publications

Horrillo, J., W. Knight and Z. Kowalik. 2022. Numerical Modeling of Tsunami Waves. Advanced Series on Ocean Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1142/12421

Message from the Dean

Plans are well underway for our all-hands faculty retreat on January 7, 2022. Since the last CFOS faculty retreat in January 2019, we have continued to successfully implement our shared vision as outlined in the CFOS Decadal Plan. Specifically, over the past three years we have increased student enrollment, broadened our academic programs and course modality to meet evolving education and workforce needs, hired new and diverse faculty, reinvested in our research enterprise and major facilities, and continued to strengthen communications. The purpose of the 2022 faculty retreat is to provide an opportunity for our faculty to engage in setting near-term priorities to help advance our academic programs, ensure student success, and bolster research. Details of our virtual retreat will be forthcoming.

It is a pleasure to convey that the 2021 CFOS Annual Report is now complete and available online. Every year I wonder—how will we top this with the next report? I believe you will agree that this year’s annual report has achieved that goal. Tip of the hat to Alice Bailey for leading this effort, to Carol Kaynor for expert editing and attention to detail, and to Molly Putnam for final layout and production. Well done, team!

Fall 2021 graduates:

Zane Chapman. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Franz Mueter

Betsy McCracken. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Trent Sutton

Jamie Musbach. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Sherry Tamone

Amy Dowling. MS Marine Biology, Major Advisor: Brenda Konar

Feyne Elmore. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Ocean Science

Thomas House. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Fisheries Science

Elizabeth Kiely. BA Fisheries, Concentration: Fisheries Business and Social Science

Ronald Sheldon. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Concentration: Fisheries Science

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently docked in Seward preparing for its scheduled regulatory shipyard period this winter. The location of the shipyard has not yet been determined. 

Activities and Accomplishments

Ana Aguilar-Islas was featured in a story about women in oceanography on the NSF Long Term Ecological Research website. 

CFOS professor emeritus Zygmunt Kowalik published a book about numerical modeling of tsunami waves in collaboration with alum Juan Horrillo and former student William Knight. 

CFOS in the News

Schery Umanzor and Justin Sternberg were featured in a UAF News story about Alaska mariculture. 

Jessica Glass appeared in a Scientific American article about mass sardine migrations in South Africa. 

Marine Technology News named Seth Danielson’s photograph of a zooplankton net tow from R/V Sikuliaq as “Photo of the Day.”

Steve Roberts was mentioned in a Marine Technology Reporter story about satellite imagery produced by the Geographic Information Network of Alaska (GINA) on R/V Sikuliaq.

Hannah Myers was featured in a SIT News story about listening to the voices of killer whales.

Publications

Westley, P.A.H., J.C. Black, C. Carothers, and D. Ringer. 2021. State of Alaska's salmon and people: Introduction to a special feature. Ecology and Society. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12910-260433

Vershinina, A.O., […], M.J. Wooller, et al. 2021. Ancient horse genomes reveal the timing and extent of dispersals across the Bering Land Bridge. Molecular Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15977

Grants and Awards for November 2021

Grant that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-14172 "Measuring the pulse of the Gulf of Alaska: Oceanographic observations along the Seward Line 2019-2024" - Russ Hopcroft - NPRB - Mod 1 - $12,076.00 (July 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

As we look forward to enjoying Thanksgiving Day with friends and family this week, please take a moment to reflect on the many positive aspects of our daily lives. While each of us copes with the very real and often exhausting challenge of living in a pandemic, we are indeed fortunate and blessed in many ways. In that regard, it is my pleasure to thank the faculty, staff and students for all your good work, which provides significant benefits to Alaska and our nation. Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway transiting from Nome to Seward, having completed all scheduled at-sea research projects for calendar year 2021. Once in Seward, Sikuliaq will begin preparations for her scheduled regulatory shipyard period this winter.  

Activities and Accomplishments

Jeff Muehlbauer received an EPSCoR faculty seed grant and travel award to conduct research on woody debris transported to rivers and to present at the 2022 Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting.

Graduate student Courtney Hart and postdoctoral researcher Scott Gabara were awarded 2022 Scientist in Residency Fellowships at the Sitka Sound Science Center.

Graduate student Erika King gave a talk about Coho salmon at the American Fisheries Society annual meeting. 

Brian Mullaly, Ethan Roth and Natalie Monacci facilitated a research instruction cruise aboard R/V Nanuq, where Seward high school students gained hands-on experience conducting measurements and collecting samples in Resurrection Bay. 

CFOS in the News

Graduate student Hannah Myers’ killer whale research was featured by UAF News.

Hakai magazine and High Country News featured undergraduate student Brooke Woods in a story about subsistence fishing for salmon on the Yukon River. 

Steve Roberts, R/V Sikuliaq’s science systems engineer, was mentioned in a Seward Journal story about satellite imagery produced by the Geographic Information Network of Alaska (GINA).

Publications

Sutton, L., F.J. Mueter, B.A. Bluhm, and K. Iken. 2021. Environmental Filtering Influences Functional Community Assembly of Epibenthic Communities. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.736917

Message from the Dean

The second UA System-wide “Giving Day” is set to begin at noon on Tuesday, November 10. On the CFOS Giving Day website, there will be a 49-hour (consistent with the 49th state) time period to make a donation to two funding areas important to student success: the CFOS Support Fund and the CFOS Graduate Student Support Fund. To help inspire participation in this effort, I have pledged a gift challenge that will be “unlocked” after the first ten donations have been made. I encourage all alumni, friends and supporters to contribute. 

It is a pleasure to announce that Peter Westley has been appointed as the university’s first Lowell A. Wakefield Chair in Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. The Wakefield Chair endowment supports the mission of CFOS by expanding the rehabilitation, development and improvement of fishery resources of the State of Alaska. Please join me in congratulating Peter on this prestigious appointment!

Arny Blanchard has announced his retirement at the end of this year. A three-time UAF alum, Arny began his employment at the university in 1986 as a student, and subsequently rose to the rank of CFOS Research Professor. His research focus is on taxonomic studies in Alaska's coastal waters, and he was particularly involved with the Chukchi Sea Environmental Studies Program and the Port Valdez Environmental Studies Program. He also taught undergraduate and graduate courses in statistics, and contributed to the success of numerous graduate students. We will miss Arny's thoughtful and collegial manner. Please join me in wishing Arny the very best in his next chapter. 

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in support of Seth Danielson’s (UAF/CFOS) Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) cruise to the Chukchi and Bering Seas. Originally scheduled in late August aboard another vessel, this voyage will collect water column, zooplankton and sediments samples, as well as conduct mooring retrievals and deployments.

Activities and Accomplishments

Bradley Moran was selected to chair the national Consortium for Ocean Leadership (COL) Board of Trustees. Based in Washington, D.C., COL is a national nonprofit organization representing the leading public and private ocean research education institutions, aquaria and industry.

Curry Cunningham has been invited to participate in the development of the National Marine Fisheries Service Fisheries Integrated Modeling System (FIMS), as a member of its inaugural Council. FIMS aims to provide a next-generation framework of stock assessment models and related tools, designed to assist fishery managers with the goal of achieving sustainable fisheries.

Pat Church received an EPSCoR Travel Award to attend the 2022 National Council of University Research Administrators in Washington, DC. 

Graduate students Erika King, Lia Domke, and Monica Brandhuber contributed to the creation of the Fisheries for Kids newsletter that was sent to teachers in Juneau schools last week. 

Graduate student Tamsen Peeples won “Best in Show” at the annual Juneau underwater pumpkin carving contest. 

The results are in for this year's CFOS pumpkin carving contest, which was organized by the Fisheries and Ocean Sciences Student Organization. Congratulations to all participants! Winner: Erika King; Runners up: Lindsey Stadler, Feyne Elmore, Emily Ortega, Elizabeth Hinkle.

A newsletter called "Fisheries for Kids" has been created by CFOS graduate students and will be distributed to Juneau schools. If you are interested in receiving future issues, please contact Monica at mebrandhuber@alaska.edu.

CFOS in the News

KTVF news featured the recent seven-week R/V Sikuliaq cruise led by PI Bernard Coakley (UAF/GI). 

CFOS’s Juneau campus was mentioned in an Alaska Native News story about student interns contributing to local climate change studies. 

Publications

Hudson, K., M.J. Oliver, J. Kohut, M.S. Dinniman,  J. Klinck, C. Moffat, H. Statscewich, K. Bernard, and W. Fraser. 2021. A Recirculating Eddy Promotes Subsurface Particle Retention in an Antarctic Biological Hotspot. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021jc017304

Britton, K., B.E. Crowley, C.P. Bataille, J.H. Miller and M.J. Wooller. 2021. Silver Linings at the Dawn of a “Golden Age” Front. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2021.748938

Becker. K., R.E. Thomas. E.E. Davis, H. Villinger, and C.G. Wheat. 2021. Geothermal heating and episodic cold-seawater intrusions into an isolated ridge-flank basin near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Communications Earth & Environment. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-021-00297-2.

Grants and Awards for October 2021

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14451 "Seward Line Monitoring" - Russ Hopcroft - AOOS - $116,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14468 "Demonstrating operational readiness of AUV-based ecosystem monitoring through a field program supporting the International Year of the Salmon (OMAO GLIDER)" Seth Danielson - AOOS - $52,136.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14469 "Chukchi Sea beam trawl survey data rescue (Chukchi Data Rescue)" - Franz Mueter - AOOS - $25,270.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14471 "Alaska Ecosystem Observatory Network Build-Out, Operations and Maintenance (ECO-Moorings)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $105,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14472 "Measuring Ocean Currents in Bering Strait with High Frequency Radars (Bering Strait HFR)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $115,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14473 "Alaska Region Glider Missions Supporting an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM Gliders)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $243,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14482 "An Arctic Marine Mammal Observing System (Chukchi Glider)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $65,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14483 "Cook Inlet Radar (Cook Inlet HFR)" - Seth Danielson - AOOS - $114,286.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14484 "Time-Series Monitoring of Ocean Acidification in Alaska (OA Timeseries)" - Natalie Monacci - AOOS - $29,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14485 "National Ocean Acidification Observing Network (NOA-ON) Stations: Gulf of Alaska (GAKOA) and Bering Sea (M2) moorings (M2 & GAK Moorings)" - Natalie Monacci - AOOS - $161,904.00 (July 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

The 2021 CFOS Annual Report is in the final stages of layout and proofreading. We can look forward to a visually appealing and interesting report on some of our academic, research and service highlights over the past year. My thanks to Alice Bailey for developing the content and assembling the final report, and to Carol Kaynor for expert editing. We expect to distribute the report in December.

As part of our ongoing effort to implement the CFOS Decadal Plan, we are preparing to hold the third CFOS all-hands faculty retreat in January. As with prior retreats, a key objective is to develop actionable priorities for the college over the next two years. In this regard, I encourage faculty to work together to develop a set of goals in support of the CFOS mission to deliver outstanding education, research and service programs focused on Alaska’s aquatic ecosystems. Details regarding this virtual event will be forthcoming.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently underway in the Beaufort Sea supporting Craig Lee’s (UW/APL) AMOS project, which aims to develop a year-round observing system that will be used to better forecast the Arctic environment.

Activities and Accomplishments

Thomas Kelly presented at the prestigious Dissertations in Chemical Oceanography (DISCO) symposium in Kauai. 

CFOS in the News

Seth Danielson and Katrin Iken were featured in the AOOS newsletter for a benthic camera system that they developed, which will provide year-round photos of seafloor organisms. 

UAF News announced the premiere of a documentary film co-produced by CFOS graduate student Jamie Currie, entitled “Olympic Sleepers of the Arctic”, about the physiological adaptations of hibernating Arctic ground squirrels.

The Juneau Empire featured a study by undergraduate student Emily Williamson and graduate student Chris Sergeant that compares climate models to observations made by Southeast Alaska homesteader Allen Hasselborg on Admiralty Island in Southeast Alaska.

The Seattle Times mentioned the recent R/V Sikuliaq cruise led by Bernard Coakley (UAF/GI) in a story about the journey of USCGC Healy through the Northwest Passage, and a UNOLS newsletter highlighted Sikuliaq’s voyage to nearly 500 nautical miles north of Alaska. 

Publications

Myers, H.J., D.W. Olsen, C.O. Matkin, L.A. Horstmann, and B. Konar. 2021. Passive acoustic monitoring of killer whales (Orcinus orca) reveals year-round distribution and residency patterns in the Gulf of Alaska. Scientific Reports. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-99668-0

Drinkwater, K.F., N. Harada, S. Nishino, M. Cherici, S.L. Danielson, R.B. Invaldsen, T. Kristiansen, G.L. Hunt Jr., F.J. Mueter, and J.E. Stiansen. 2021. Possible future scenarios in the Gateways to the Arctic for Subarctic and Arctic marine systems: I. Climate and physical–chemical oceanography. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsab182

Mueter, F.J., B. Planque, G.L. Hunt Jr., I.D. Alabia, T. Hirawake, L. Eisner, P. Dalpadado, K.F. Drinkwater, N. Harada, P. Arneberg, and S.I. Saitoh. 2021. Possible future scenarios in the Gateways to the Arctic for Subarctic and Arctic marine systems: II. Prey resources, food webs, fish, and fisheries. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsab122

Mueter, F.J., K. Iken, L.W. Cooper,  J.M. Grebmeier, K.J. Kuletz, R.R. Hopcroft,  S.L. Danielson, R.E. Collins, and D.A. Cushing. 2021. Changes in diversity and species composition across multiple assemblages in the northeast Chukchi Sea during two contrasting years are consistent with borealization. Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2021.213

Lawley, J.W., E. Gamero-Mora, M.M. Maronna, L.M. Chiaverano, S.N. Stampar,  R.R. Hopcroft, A.G. Collins, and A.C. Morandini. 2021. The importance of molecular characters when morphological variability hinders diagnosability: systematics of the moon jellyfish genus Aurelia (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa). PeerJ. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.11954

 

Message from the Dean

Today, UAF celebrates Indigenous Peoples' Day, a day to honor Alaska Native and Indigenous knowledge, culture and wisdom. The past year has brought greater awareness of the challenges that Indigenous communities have faced, which calls upon each of us to renew our focus on supporting social justice. On this Indigenous Peoples' Day, please take a moment to reflect on how working together can help bring an end to the discrimination, exclusion and marginalization of Indigenous people and communities.

UAF will be hosting an event today at noon with keynote speaker Pearl Brower. This year's theme is "Raising Indigenous Voices” to honor and celebrate the many contributions of Alaska Native peoples to UAF and Alaska. I encourage everyone to join on the UAF Facebook page.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq’s crew recently installed a rebuilt diesel engine in less than 5 days while in Nome; Bravo Zulu to the engineering department and Port Engineer Bob Cruise for a job well done! The ship is currently underway to support Craig Lee’s (UW/APL) AMOS project, and will deploy moorings, gliders, floats and UUVs as part of a year-round effort to better understand changing conditions in the Beaufort Sea.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Marina Washburn received an award for her presentation at the 2021 Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association Annual Shellfish Conference.

Graduate student Zane Chapman gave a presentation to science students at Thunder Mountain High School. 

Sonia Kumar led a Beluga Whale Alliance Instagram Takeover to educate viewers about Cook Inlet beluga whales and fieldwork conducted in the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers. 

CFOS in the News

Chris Seargent and undergraduate student Emily Williamson were featured by UAF News regarding research that compares modern climate modeling software to historic observations of conditions in Southeast Alaska. 

National Public Radio posted an interview with Courtney Carothers about the Tamamta program on the homepage of their website. 

KUAC and KTOO aired an interview with Bernard Coakley while he was underway on R/V Sikuliaq for the Chukchi Edges II cruise. News stories about the cruise appeared in UAF News, Alaska Native News and The Nome Nugget. 

Peter Westley and Krista Oke were mentioned in a WION story about how Alaska’s salmon are getting smaller. 

Seth Danielson and R/V Sikuliaq appeared in a WHOI press release about the growing potential of toxic algal blooms in the Arctic. 

Publications

Adkison M.D. 2021. A review of salmon spawner-recruitment analysis: the central role of the data and its impact on management strategy. Reviews in Fisheries Science and Aquaculture. https://doi.org/10.1080/23308249.2021.1972086

Bucklin, A., J.M. Questel, L. Blanco-Bercial, A. Frenzel, S.B. Smolenack, P.H. Wiebe. 2021. Population connectivity of the euphausiid, Stylocheiron elongatum, in the Gulf Stream (NW Atlantic Ocean) in relation to COI barcode diversity of Stylocheiron species. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsab158

O’Toole, Ciar, K. Phillips, C. Bradley, J. Coughlan, E. Dillane, I.A. Fleming, T.E. Reed, P.A.H. Westley, T.F. Cross, P. McGinnity, and P.A. Prodöhl. 2021. Population genetics reveal patterns of natural colonization of an ecologically and commercially important invasive fish.  Canadian Journal of Fishisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2020-0255

Deary, A.L., C.D. Vestfals, F.J. Mueter, E.A. Logerwell, E.D Goldstein, P.J. Stabeno, S.L. Danielson, R.R. Hopcroft, and J.T. Duffy-Anderson. 2021. Seasonal abundance, distribution, and growth of the early life stages of polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) in the US Arctic. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-021-02940-2

Garcia, S., C.A. Tribuzio, A.C. Seitz, M.B. Courtney, J.K. Nielsen, J.M. Murphy, and D.S. Oxman. 2021. Differential horizontal migration patterns of two male salmon sharks (Lamna ditropis) tagged in the Bering Sea. Animal Biotelemetry. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40317-021-00260-0

Paukert, C.P., J.D. Olden, A.J. Lynch, D. Brashears, R.C. Chambers, C. Chu, M. Daly, K.L. Dibble, J. Falke, D. Issak, P. Jacobson, O.P. Jensen, and D. Munroe. 2021. Climate change effects on North American fish and fisheries to inform adaptation strategies. Fisheries. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.10668

Grants and Awards for September 2021

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14321 "Development of an In Situ Pore Water Sampler for Scientific Ocean Drilling" - C. Geoff Wheat - NSF - $592,667.00 (September 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14327 "Delineating species and stock boundaries in the Arctic-Bering cisco species pair" - Andres Lopez - BOEM - $32,966.00 (September 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14330 "Building Capacity for Tribal Monitoring of Harmful Algal Toxins in Subsistence Harvested Shellfish" - Shannon DeMaster - US Geological Survey - $199,817.00 (September 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14354 "Extension of Machine Learning Methods to Bristol Bay Run Timing Forecasts" - Curry Cunningham - Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association - $32,000.00 (July 19, 2021)
• Grant G-14372 "Development of a Management Strategy Evaluation Framework for Subsistence Salmon Fisheries of the Kuskokwim River Watershed" - Curry Cunningham - NOAA - $266,186.00 (September 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14378 "Collaborative Research: Elucidating Brine-Dominated, Segment-Scale Hydrothermal Discharge Along The Cleft Segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge" - C. Geoff Wheat - NSF - $79,353.00 (September 15, 2021)
• Grant G-14395 "Enhancing ocean color remote sensing tools to better constrain fisheries forecasting models in a critical  subarctic system" - Will Burt - NASA - $138,000.00 (August 23, 2021)
• Grant G-14412 "Estimating escapement of Chilkat River Chinook salmon using trans-generational mark-recapture (tGMR)" - Megan McPhee - AK Department of Fish & Game - $149,508.00 (August 15, 2021)
• Grant G-14420 "Integrating oceanographic research and monitoring efforts in the NE Gulf of Alaska" - Seth Danielson - NPS - $147,898.00 (September 17, 2021)

Grant set up on assumption:

• Grant G-14380 "Arctic High-Frequency Radar Operations and Maintenance" - Seth Danielson - AOOS (July 1, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-2865 "Meek Lecturers" - Andrew Seitz - UA Foundation - $100,000.00 (October 1, 2005)
• Grant G-11616 "LTER: Beaufort Sea Lagoons: An Arctic Coastal Ecosystem in Transition" - Katrin Iken - University of Texas at Austin - Mod 4 - $181,656.00 (August 1, 2017)
• Grant G-13024 "A sustainable, integrated AMBON in the Chukchi Sea" - Katrin Iken - NOAA - Mod 4 - $269,000.00 (September 1, 2019)
• Grant G-13469 "Zooplankton Monitoring Along Coastal Regions and Tidewater Glacier Fjords of Glacier Bay and Wrangell- St. Elias National Parks & Preserves" - Jennifer Questel - NPS - Mod 1 - $165,002.00 (June 30, 2020)
• Grant G-13646 "A sustainable, integrated AMBON in the Chukchi Sea" - Katrin Iken - NASA - $50,000.00 (September 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to convey that Jennifer Questel has been appointed as Research Assistant Professor in CFOS. A CFOS alum, Jenn most recently held a UAF Centennial Postdoctoral Fellow, working with Russ Hopcroft and other researchers. Her research expertise focuses on the ecology of zooplankton communities, specifically the assessment of zooplankton biodiversity using molecular techniques for species identification, population genetics, and population connectivity. Please join me in congratulating Jenn on her faculty appointment!

The CFOS Advisory Council will meet tomorrow to discuss priorities and needs of the college. The meeting agenda includes presentations on our academic and research programs; diversity and inclusivity efforts; student activities; AOOS collaborations; OARC; ABEC; and lunch with Chancellor White. I look forward to an engaging meeting with our Council members.

R/V Sikuliaq

Bernard Coakley’s (UAF/GI) Chukchi Edges II cruise will finish in Nome later this week. After Coakley’s gear is unloaded, a rebuilt engine will be installed on the ship and preparations will begin for Craig Lee’s (UW/APL) AMOS cruise. 

Activities and Accomplishments

Geoff Wheat won the Innovative Disclosures and Entrepreneurial Activities (IDEAs) 2021 award for best disclosure from a faculty member for the development of the Multi-Temperature Fluid Sampler. The competition is hosted by the university’s Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization (OIPC).

CFOS in the News

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner ran an obituary for Judy McDonald, who was a research scientist at the Seward Marine Center from 1975 to 2001. She helped manage the wet lab in the Hood Laboratory and was instrumental to Alaska’s participation in the National Ocean Science Bowl. 

Russ Hopcroft was featured in a KDLL radio story about algae blooms in the Gulf of Alaska. 

UAF News and Phys.org mentioned Andrew McDonnell in stories about how natural cycles in the Gulf of Alaska can accentuate ocean acidification. 

Courtney Carothers spoke about CFOS’s Tamamta program on the radio program Alaska News Nightly. 

Andy Seitz was featured in a video made by the Alaska Center for Energy and Power about fish interactions with a hydrokinetic test site on the Tanana River. 

Alaska News Nightly featured Matthew Wooller’s mammoth research at the Alaska Stable Isotope Facility. 

Publications

Hauri, C., R. Pagès, A.M.P. McDonnell, M.F. Stuecker, S.L. Danielson, K. Hedstrom, B. Irving, C. Schultz, and S.C. Doney. 2021. Modulation of ocean acidification by decadal climate variability in the Gulf of Alaska. Communications Earth & Environment. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-021-00254-z

King, A.L., L. Anderson, M. Abbott, M. Edwards, M.S. Finkenbinder, B. Finney, and M.J. Wooller. 2021. A stable isotope record of late Quaternary hydrologic change in the north-western Brooks Range, Alaska (eastern Beringia). Journal of Quaternary Research. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3368

Lalande, L., J.M. Grebmeier, A.M.P. McDonnell, R.R. Hopcroft, S. O'Daly, and S.L. Danielson. 2021. Impact of a warm anomaly in the Pacific Arctic region derived from time-series export fluxes. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255837

Mateus, C.S., M.F. Docker, G. Evanno, J.E. Hess, J.B. Hume, I.C. Oliveira, A. Souissi, and T.M. Sutton. 2021. Population structure in anadromous lampreys: patterns and processes. Sea Lamprey International Symposium III, Journal of Great Lakes Research.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2021.08.024

Raymond W.W., J.B. Schram, G.L. Eckert, and A.W.E. Galloway. 2021. Sea otter effects on trophic structure of seagrass communities in southeast Alaska. Marine Ecology Progress Series. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13819

Message from the Dean

Just over two years ago, CFOS established the Alaska Blue Economy Center (ABEC) to serve as a resource and support center for research, instruction, and outreach related to Alaska's vast aquatic resources and ecosystems. In this regard, and in partnership with the Alaska Center for Energy and Power, College of Business and Security Management, and Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization, it is a pleasure to convey that Justin Sternberg has been hired as the Director of ABEC. Justin brings a wealth of experience working to advance Alaska’s burgeoning blue economy sector and energy programs. He is in the process of relocating to Fairbanks, and his office will be located in the CFOS Dean’s Office. His email address is jcsternberg@alaska.edu. Please join me in congratulating Justin on his new appointment!

I hope you take time to enjoy the beautiful fall season colors.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq continues to operate in the northern Chukchi Sea for Bernard Coakley’s (UAF/GI) Chukchi Edges II cruise.  They are halfway through the 45-day voyage to investigate the formation, composition and structure of the northern edge of the Chukchi Sea continental shelf. 

Activities and Accomplishments

Jeff Falke was selected as an Agency Coordinating Lead for the Alaska Chapter of the 5th National Climate Assessment.  

CFOS in the News

A UAF News article announced the first cohort of graduate students in CFOS’s new Tamamta program, which focuses on bridging Indigenous and Western sciences. 

Shannon Atkinson was featured in a NOAA Fisheries article about humpback whale research conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mat Wooller was featured in a Scientific American article regarding his work at the Alaska Stable Isotope Facility. 

Publications

Blanchard, A.L. and D.G. Shaw. 2021. Multivariate analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediments of Port Valdez, Alaska, 1989–2019. Marine Pollution Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112906

Callahan, M.W., A.H. Beaudreau, R.A. Heintz, F.J. Mueter, and M.C. Rogers. 2021. Temporal and age-based variation in juvenile sablefish diet composition and quality: Inferences from stomach contents and stable isotopes. Marine and Coastal Fisheries. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1002/mcf2.10173

Clawson, C.M., J.A. Falke, J. Rose, A. Prakash, A.E. Martin, and L.L. Bailey. 2021. High-resolution remote sensing and multistate occupancy estimation identify drivers of spawning site selection in fall chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) across a sub-Arctic riverscape. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2021-0013

Copping, A.E., L.G. Hemery, H. Viehman, A.C. Seitz,  G.J. Staines, and D.J. Hasselman. 2021. Are fish in danger? A review of environmental effects of marine renewable energy on fishes. Biological Conservation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109297 

Galloway A.W.E., A.H. Beaudreau, M.D. Thomas, B.L. Basnett, L.S. Lam,  S.L. Hamilton,  K.S. Andrews, J.B. Schram,  J. Watson, and J.F. Samhouri. 2021. Assessing prevalence and correlates of blue-colored flesh in lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus) across their geographic range. Marine Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-021-03936-6.https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-021-03936-6

Gorman, K.B., K.E. Ruck, T.D. Williams and W.R. Fraser. 2021. Advancing the Sea Ice Hypothesis: Trophic interactions among breeding Pygoscelis penguins with divergent population trends throughout the western Antarctic Peninsula. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.526092

Jalbert, C., J.A. Falke, J.A. Lopez, K.J. Dunker, A.J. Sepulveda, and P.A.H. Westley. 2021. Vulnerability of Pacific salmon to invasion of northern pike (Esox lucius) in Southcentral Alaska. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254097

Melica, V., S. Atkinson, J. Calambokidis, A. Lang, J. Scordino, and F. Mueter. 2021. Application of endocrine biomarkers to update information on reproductive physiology in gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus). PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255368

Shackell, N.L., J.A.D. Fisher, C.E. den Heyer, D.R. Hennen, A.C. Seitz, A. Le Bris, D. Robert, M.E. Kersula, S.X. Cadrin, R.S. McBride, et al. 2021. Spatial ecology of Atlantic halibut across the Northwest Atlantic: A recovering species in an era of climate change. Reviews in Fisheries Science and Aquaculture. https://doi.org/10.1080/23308249.2021.1948502

Stratton, M.E., H. Finkle, J.A. Falke, and P.A.H. Westley. 2021. Assessing potential stock structure of adult Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in a small Alaska watershed: Quantifying run timing, spawning locations, and holding areas with radio telemetry. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10658

Walther, E.J., M.S. Zimmerman, and P.A.H. Westley. 2021. Landscape attributes explain salmonid ecological neighborhoods across a complex river network. Freshwater Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13801

Williamson E.R. and C.J. Sergeant. 2021. Independent validation of downscaled climate estimates from a coastal Alaska watershed using local historical weather journals. PeerJ. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12055

Grants and Awards for August 2021 

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14270 "Passive Acoustic Monitoring of Cook Inlet Belugas and Links to Salmon Availability" - Lara Horstmann (Sonia Kumar) - UA Foundation Northern Gulf of Alaska Applied Research Student Award - $6,404.00 (May 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14282 "Understanding Spatial Dynamics and Movements of Pacific Halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis) in the Northern Bering Sea" - Andrew Seitz - BOEM - $139,946.00 (August 12, 2021)
• Grant G-14291 "Harnessing the power of eDNA as real-time assessment tool of nearshore Arctic marine communities" - Jessica Glass - BOEM - $200,766.00 (August 17, 2021)
• Grant G-14299 "Annual cycle of upper ocean turbulence in the Nordic Seas: observations and models" - Harper Simmons - ONR - $551,931.00 (August 16, 2021)
• Grant G-14309 "Dynamical downscaling of the submesoscale cascade of turbulence" - Harper Simmons - ONR - $60,109.00 (August 23, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-11653 "Coastal hydrographic physical dynamics and oceanography assessments" - Seth Danielson - NPS - Mod 3 - $62,444.00 (August 2, 2017)
• Grant G-12127 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Technical Support Year 1 of 5" - Ethan Roth - NSF - Mod 9 - $513,498.00 (June 15, 2018)
• Grant G-12178 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Ship Operations CY2018-2022" - Bradley Moran - NSF - Mod 10 - $2,758,304.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-13328 "Telemetry and genetic identity of Chinook salmon in Alaska" - Andrew Seitz - Department of the Navy - Mod 5 - $278,347.00 (April 15, 2020)
• Grant G-13562 "Lake Clark National Park & Preserve Oceanographic Assessment" - Tyler Hennon - NPS - Mod 1 - $105,296.00 (August 12, 2020)

Grants controlled by other departments:

• Grant G-14032 "Material and Cost Efficient Modular Riverine Hydrokinetic Energy System" - Andrew Seitz - ACEP - Department of Energy - $71,533.00 (April 12, 2021)
• Grant G-14290 "UAF Drivers and Diversity of Chinook Salmon Pop in the AYK Region" - Curry Cunningham - IARC - AK Dept. of Fish & Game - $129,962.00 (July 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

As we kick off the fall semester, it is a pleasure to welcome our new and current students. While we continue to deal with challenging times due to the pandemic, our faculty and staff are ready to support your education, training and future success. In that regard, this afternoon we will welcome and celebrate our students with a meet and greet BBQ at our Fairbanks location. Many thanks to Christina Sutton and the Dean’s Office and Academic Programs staff for organizing this event.

Wishing everyone a safe and productive semester.

R/V Sikuliaq

In support of Bernard Coakley’s (UAF/GI) Chukchi Edges II cruise, Sikuliaq is sailing further north than ever before. The ship is currently at 79 degrees North latitude in the Arctic Ocean, which is about 475 miles northwest of Point Barrow. 

CFOS in the News

Graduate student Ellen Chenowith’s baleen whale research was featured in a Functional Ecologists article. 

Russ Hopcroft was quoted by the Anchorage Daily News and the Cordova Times regarding phytoplankton in the Gulf of Alaska. 

Mat Wooler’s research at the Alaska Stable Isotope Facility was featured by ScienceBlog and the Good News Network. 

Graduate Student Sonia Kumar was on the front page of the Anchorage Daily News as part of a story about the return of beluga whales to Turnagain Arm. 

Publications

Quintella, B.R., Clemens, B.J., Sutton, T., Lanca, M.J., Madenjian, C.P., Happel, A., and Harvey, C. 2021. At-sea feeding ecology of parasitic lampreys. Sea Lamprey International Symposium III, Journal of Great Lakes Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2021.07.008

Zinkann, A.C., Wooller, M.J., O'Brien, D., and Iken, K. 2021. Does feeding type matter? Contribution of organic matter sources to benthic invertebrates on the Arctic Chukchi Sea shelf. Food Webs. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fooweb.2021.e00205

Message from the Dean

CFOS benefits significantly from its state, federal, tribal, NGO, research and industry partners. In this regard, I recently visited the Kasitsna Bay Laboratory, which is owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and co-managed with CFOS. K-Bay Lab Director Kris Holderied, staff and CFOS students led me on a tour of the research labs, classrooms, scientific diving capabilities and related infrastructure at this unique and picturesque shoreside facility located near Seldovia. K-Bay supports numerous research projects, including the current EPSCoR Fire and Ice project. This facility is a model for collaboration between the university and NOAA. It is a pleasure to thank Kris and her team and the wonderful staff and students for all their good work.

Congratulations to our summer 2021 graduates:

Talia Davia. BS Fisheries
Jesse Gordon. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Anne Beaudreau
Julia McMahon. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Peter Westley
Amy Darcie Neff. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Brenda Norcross
Patrick Barry. PhD Fisheries, Major Advisor: Tony Gharrett
Kelly Cates. PhD Fisheries, Major Advisor: Shannon Atkinson
Jason Leppi. PhD Fisheries, Major Advisor: Mark Wipfli and Daniel Rinella

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is in Nome topping off the fuel tanks for Bernard Coakley’s (UAF/GI) cruise into the northern Chukchi Sea. Funded by NSF, the Chukchi Edges II cruise is a 45-day voyage to test hypotheses about formation, composition and structure of the northern edge of the Chukchi Sea continental shelf—aka, the Chukchi Borderland.  This is the longest research voyage ever conducted by Sikuliaq

Activities and Accomplishments

Will Burt was recognized for excellence in reviewing by the American Geophysical Union.

CFOS in the News

The Prince William Sound Science Center featured Kristen Gorman’s Copper River sockeye salmon migration study in their July newsletter.

Congratulations to Mat Wooller, whose research appeared on the cover of Science magazine and in The New York Times, The Daily Mail, CNN, Wired and many other media outlets.

Bernard Coakley’s current Sikuliaq cruise was featured by UAF News and Alaska Native News.

Reliable UK mentioned Peter Westley in a feature story about the impacts of salmon declines on Indigenous subsistence fishermen in Alaska.

Publications

Gonzalez, S., Horne, J.K., and Danielson, S.L. 2021. Multi-scale temporal variability in biological-physical associations in the NE Chukchi Sea. Polar Biology 44(4): 837–855. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-021-02844-1

Haenel, Q., Oke, K.B., Laurentino, T.G., Hendry, A.P., and Berner, D. 2021. Clinical genomic analysis reveals strong reproductive isolation across a steep habitat transition in stickleback fish. Nature Communications 12:4850. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25039-y

Harke, M.J., Frischkorn, K.R., Hennon, G.M.M., Haley, S.T., Barone, B., Karl, D. M., and Dyhrman, S.T. 2021. Microbial community transcriptional patterns vary in response to mesoscale forcing in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. Environmental Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.15677

Jensen, L.T., Lanning, N.T., Marsay, C.M., Buck, C., Aguilar-Islas, A.M., Rember, R., Landing, W.M., Sherrell, R.M., and Fitzsimmons, J.N. 2021. Biogeochemical cycling of colloidal trace metals in the Arctic cryosphere. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans 126(8). https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017394

Kandel, A., and Aguilar-Islas, A.M., 2021. Spatial and temporal variability of dissolved aluminum and manganese in surface waters of the northern Gulf of Alaska. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography 189–190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2021.104952

Khalsa, N.S., Gatt, K.P., Sutton, T.M., and Kelley, A.L. 2021. Characterization of the abiotic drivers of abundance of nearshore Arctic fishes. Ecology and Evolution 11(16): 11491–11506. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7940

Krause, J.W., Lomas, M.W., and Danielson, S.L. 2021. Diatom growth, biogenic silica production, and grazing losses to microzooplankton during spring in the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography 104950. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2021.104950

Miller, C.A., and Kelley, A.L. 2021. Alkalinity cycling and carbonate chemistry decoupling in seagrass mystify processes of acidification mitigation. Scientific Reports 11:13500. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-92771-2

Miller, C.A., and Kelley, A.L. 2021. Seasonality and biological forcing modify the diel frequency of nearshore pH extremes in a subarctic Alaskan estuary. Limnology and Oceanography 66(4): 1475–1491. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.11698

Miller, C. A., Bonsell, C., McTigue, N.D., and Kelley, A.L. 2021. The seasonal phases of an Arctic lagoon reveal the discontinuities of pH variability and CO₂ flux at the air–sea interface. Biogeosciences 18:1203–1221. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1203-2021

Vestfals C.D., Mueter F.J., Hedstrom K.S., Laurel B.J., Petrik C.M., Duffy-Anderson J.T., and Danielson S.L. 2021. Modeling the dispersal of polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) early life stages in the Pacific Arctic using a biophysical transport model. Progress in Oceanography 196:102571. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2021.102571

Wooller, M.J., C. Bataille, P. Druckenmiller, G. M. Erickson, P. Groves, N. Haubenstock, T. Howe, J. Irrgeher, D. Mann, K. Moon, B. A. Potter, T. Prohaska, J. Rasic, J. Reuther, B. Shapiro, K. J. Spaleta, and A. D. Willis. 2021. Lifetime mobility of an Arctic woolly mammoth. Science 373(6556): 806–808 https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abg1134

Grants and Awards for July 2021

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14046 "Stock Assessment of a Valuable Groundfish Species: Lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus) in Prince William Sound" - Katja Berghaus (Trent Sutton) - UA Foundation NGOA - $8,298.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14155 "Gulf of Alaska Deep-Sea Zooplankton - Morphological and genetic analyses of zooplankton communities for nearshore to deep waters of the Gulf of Alaska" - Jennifer Questel - NPRB - $176,700.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14172 "Measuring the pulse of the Gulf of Alaska: Oceanographic observations along the Seward Line 2019-2024" - Russ Hopcroft - NPRB - $120,778.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14179 "MSE for Subsistence Fisheries of the Kuskokwim River Watershed" - Curry Cunningham - Bering Sea Fishermen's Association - $110,710.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14206 "Collaborative Research: Global eddy-driven transport estimated from in situ Lagrangian observations" - Harper Simmons - NSF - $48,256.00 (July 15, 2021)
• Grant G-14207 "Collaborative Research: Taking the Pulse of the Arctic Ocean - A US Contribution to the International Synoptic Arctic Survey" - Seth Danielson - NSF - $246,814.00 (July 15, 2021)
• Grant G-14210 "Second Generation consequences of hatchery enhancement of sockeye salmon in Auke Creek, Alaska" - Megan McPhee - Bering Sea Fishermen's Association - $10,735.00 (July 1, 2021)

Grant set up on assumption:

• Grant G-14241 "Bio-physical drivers of bowhead whale distribution on the Alaskan Beaufort Shelf During a Period of Rapid Environmental Change" - Stephen Okkonen - BOEM - $2,747,838.00 (once awarded) (July 1, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-8633 "Rasmuson Fisheries Research Center Fellowships" - Bradley Moran - UA Foundation - $250,000.00 (April 1, 2013)
• Grant G-11709 "LTER: Resilience in the Environmental Mosaic of the Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGA) Shelf Ecosystem" - Russ Hopcroft - NSF - Mod 4 - $1,127,000.00 (September 1, 2017)
• Grant G-11557 "CAREER: Imaging the global distribution and drivers of the ocean's biological carbon pump" - Andrew McDonnell - NSF - Mod 7 - $79,100.00 (July 1, 2017)
• Grant G-12178 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Ship Operations CY2018-2022" - Bradley Moran - NSF - Mod 9 - $2,157,779.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-12804 "CMI Program Administration--Kumar Student Award" - Sonia Kumar (Lara Horstmann) - $25,000.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-12804 "CMI Program Admin--Stadler Student Award" - Lindsey Stadler (Katrin Iken) - $12,175.00 (July 1, 2021)
• Grant G-12819 "Cooperative Training and Research for Alaska Fisheries Science" - Alexei Pinchuk - NOAA - Mod 3 - $180,000.00 (July 1, 2019)
• Grant G-12819 "Cooperative Training and Research for Alaska Fisheries Science" - Alexei Pinchuk - NOAA - Mod 4 - $75,000.00 (July 1, 2019)
• Grant G-12935 "Collaborative Research: Characterization of Subduction Channel Processes - Borehole Sampling at Active Serpentinite Mud Volcanoes on the Mariana Forearc" - Geoff Wheat - NSF - Mod 2 - $94,007.00 (September 1, 2019)
• Grant G-13397 "Subtidal Habitat Mapping in the Cook Inlet Lease Area for Current and Predictive Sea Otter Associations with Habitat" - Elizabeth Hasan - Oil Spill Recovery Institute - Mod 2 - $30,000.00 (April 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

As recently communicated by UA Interim President Pitney, and consistent with recent changes in CDC guidance in response to an increase in the Delta variant of the virus, today marks a return to wearing face masks on campus for both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. Please ensure that you comply with this updated university policy to mitigate the spread of Covid-19, and thank you for your cooperation as we look forward to the start of the fall semester this month.

A priority for CFOS is to support the growth of our graduate programs and to foster graduate student research. In this regard, a new strategic investment for the college is the CFOS Dean’s Graduate Student Research Assistantship, with the first assistantship being offered in the coming academic year. Details of this competitive research assistantship were recently conveyed by Associate Dean for Academic Programs Trent Sutton, including the application deadline of August 16, 2019. In addition, each of our department chairs was allocated funds to help support graduate student tuition and related scholarly activities for the upcoming academic year. Despite the continued state budget challenges, going forward my goal is to continue to prioritize the success of our students.

It is a great pleasure to convey that Schery Umanzor has accepted an appointment as a tenure-track assistant professor in the Department of Marine Biology. Based at our Lena Point facility, Schery's research and teaching focus on kelp mariculture represents a key opportunity for the university and Alaska in the burgeoning Blue Economy. Please join me in congratulating Schery on her tenure-track faculty appointment!

Finally, after many years working at UAF and CFOS, today is Carol Kaynor's last day working as our web editor. Please join me in thanking Carol for the incredible work she has accomplished in managing the CFOS website and for her expert editorial work. She will continue to provide assistance on a limited basis to address questions and website issues. Please direct future web-related requests and updates to web@cfos.uaf.edu.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is in Seward preparing for Bernard Coakley’s (UAF/GI) Chukchi Edges II cruise in the northern Chukchi Sea. The purpose of the cruise is to test hypotheses about formation, composition and structure of the northern edge of the Chukchi Sea continental shelf.

Activities and Accomplishments

R/V Nanuq supported Amy Bishop and her team for drone surveys of bird colonies in the Chiswell Islands and Cape Resurrection. Natalie Monacci will use Nanuq to maintain the GAKOA buoy in Sunny Cove.

CFOS in the News

Shannon Atkinson and Heidi Pearson were featured in a NOAA Fisheries story about humpback whale research in Juneau.

Publications

Larsen Tempel, J.T., S. Wise, T.Q. Osborne, K. Sparks, and S. Atkinson. 2021. Life without ice: Perceptions of environmental impacts on marine resources and subsistence users of St. Lawrence Island. Ocean and Coastal Management 212:105819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2021.105819

Pickett, B.M., J.R. Glass, P.G. Ridge, and J.S.K. Kauwe. 2021. De novo genome assembly of the marine teleost, bluefin trevally (Caranx melampygus). G3 Genes|Genomes|Genetics. https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab229

Walther, E.J., M. Zimmerman, and P.AH. Westley. 2021. Landscape attributes explain salmonid ecological neighborhoods across a complex river network. Freshwater Biology 00:1–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13801

Wright T., R. Davis , H. Pearson, M. Murray, and M. Sheffield-Moore. 2021. Skeletal muscle thermogenesis enables aquatic life in the smallest marine mammal. Science 373:223–225. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abf4557

Message from the Dean

With the start of fall semester now just weeks away, we will soon welcome back many new and current students to our college. We can be proud that, despite the challenges, enrollment has continued to tick up over the past few years, reaching an all-time high last year, and we anticipate another solid enrollment for the coming academic year. We also welcome our new tenure-track faculty hire, Jessica Glass, who will start her first academic year in the Department of Fisheries.

Plans are underway to host the fall meeting of the CFOS Advisory Council, which will be held in person on the Fairbanks campus on Tuesday, September 28. This will be a full-day meeting, and will include meetings with our students, staff and faculty. Please stay tuned for details.

The Dean’s Office and Dean’s Advisory Committee are starting to plan the third all-hands faculty retreat. At this time, we plan to host the retreat for a full day at the Captain Cook Hotel on Sunday, January 23, preceding the start of the 2022 Alaska Marine Science Symposium. The retreat agenda will be developed with input from faculty and staff.

Thank you all for your continued dedication to our mission to deliver excellence in fisheries and ocean sciences research, education and outreach for the benefit of Alaska and the nation.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Kris Newhall’s (WHOI) OOI Papa cruise, which will recover, service and redeploy moorings and gliders at Ocean Station Papa in the North Pacific Ocean.

Activities and Accomplishments

Mark Johnson gave the talk “Opening of the Arctic for Shipping and Resource Extraction and the Role that Alaska Will Play” as part of UAF’s Discover Alaska series.

Gwenn Hennon gave the talk "Diatoms on thin ice: sensitivity and resiliency to anthropogenic change in the Alaskan Arctic" at the Molecular Life of Diatoms 6 conference held July 12–14, 2021.

CFOS in the News

Will Burt, Curry Cunningham and the Tamamta program were mentioned in a UAF News announcement about NASA funding for oceanographic research in the Gulf of Alaska.

The summer edition of UAF’s Aurora magazine highlights CFOS research about warm water in the Arctic, Chinook salmon size, and sea urchins in the Aleutian Islands. The issue also features Mat Wooller’s research at the Alaska Stable Isotope Facility.

KDLG radio in Dillingham ran a story about Milo Adkison’s summer field course in fisheries management.

Amanda Kelley and graduate students Shelby Bacus and Marina Washburn were featured in a video produced by AOOS about the impacts of ocean acidification on juvenile pink salmon.

Publications

Chenoweth, E.M., K.M. Boswell, A.S. Friedlaender, M.V. McPhee, J.A. Burrows, R.A. Heintz, and J.M. Straley. 2021. Confronting assumptions about prey selection by lunge‐feeding whales using a process‐based model. Functional Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.13852

Jalbert, C.S. J.A. Falke, J.A. López, K.J. Dunker, A.J. Sepulveda, and P.A.H. Westley. 2021. Vulnerability of Pacific salmon to invasion of northern pike (Esox lucius) in Southcentral Alaska. PLoS ONE 16(7): e0254097.>https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254097

Melica, V., S. Atkinson, D. Gendron, J. Calambokidis, and F. Mueter. 2021. Blubber endocrine profiles provide insights into reproductive biology in blue whales from the eastern North Pacific Ocean. General and Comparative Endocrinology 310:113830. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ygcen.2021.113830

Phelps, S.R., G.M.M. Hennon, S.T. Dyhrman, M.D.H. Limón, O.M. Williamson, and P.J. Polissar. 2021. Carbon isotope fractionation in Noelaerhabdaceae algae in culture and a critical evaluation of the alkenone paleobarometer. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 22(7): e2021GC009657. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GC009657

Siegel, D., et al. [authors include A.M.P. McDonnell]. 2021. An operational overview of the EXport Processes in the Ocean from RemoTe Sensing (EXPORTS) Northeast Pacific field deployment. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene 9(1): 00107. https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2020.00107

van Putten, I., R. Kelly, R.D. Cavanagh, E.J. Murphy, A. Breckwoldt, S. Brodie, C. Cvitanovic, M. Dickey-Collas, L. Maddison, J. Melbourne-Thomas, H. Arrizabalaga, K. Azetsu-Scott, L.E. Beckley, R. Bellerby, A.J. Constable, G. Cowie, K. Evans, M. Glaser, J. Hall, A.J. Hobday, N.M. Johnston, J.K. Llopiz, F. Mueter, F.E. Muller-Karger, K.C. Weng, D. Wolf-Gladrow, and J.C. Xavier. 2021. A decade of incorporating social sciences in the Integrated Marine Biosphere Research Project (IMBeR): Much done, much to do? Frontiers in Marine Science 8:662350. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.662350

Message from the Dean

As we have now closed out the first half of the year, it is worth reflecting on some of our key milestones and accomplishments to date. Since January, we held the first CFOS Advisory Council meeting, established a new CFOS Diversity Committee, continued to expand our course delivery through asynchronous modality, are developing a new Master of Marine Policy degree jointly with our colleagues at UAS, appointed the first Frank and Marjorie Meek Chair in Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, and welcomed new faculty, staff and students to the college.

There is much to be proud of at CFOS, and the recognition of our high-quality academic and research programs and operation of national facilities is a testament to the dedication and hard work of our faculty, staff and students. Thank you for all your good work.

Wishing everyone a safe and relaxing Fourth of July holiday weekend.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Russ Hopcroft’s (UAF/CFOS) Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research (NGA LTER) project.

Activities and Accomplishments

Andy Seitz gave the talk “Can clean energy and fish co-exist?” as part of UAF’s Discover Alaska series.

R/V Nanuq was used to test how unmanned aerial systems might help monitor populations of seabirds in the Gulf of Alaska.

CFOS in the News

KNOM radio featured a story on Robert Mason’s (UCONN) recent Sikuliaq cruise, which explored how climate change may increase levels of mercury in the Arctic Ocean and affect marine mammals and fish.

Publications

Ulaski, B.P., and B. Konar. 2021. Direct release of embryonic sporophytes from adult Nereocystis luetkeana (Laminariales, Ochrophyta) in a high latitude estuary. Algae 36(2): 147–154. https://doi.org/10.4490/algae.2021.36.5.10

Umanzor, S., J.M. Sandoval-Gil, M. Sanchez-Barredo, L.B. Ladah, M.-M. Ramirez-García, and J.A. Zertuche-González. 2021. Short-term stress responses and recovery of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera, Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) juvenile sporophytes to a simulated marine heatwave and nitrate scarcity. Journal of Phycology. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpy.13189

Grants and Awards for June 2021

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14101 "Tactical Naval Sensing: Regional 3D Oceanic Conditions" - Harper Simmons - University of California, San Diego - $80,000.00 (June 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14117 "Relaxed Selection in Salmon Hatcheries - Year 2" - Milo Adkison - Pacific Salmon Commission - $112,000.00 (May 15, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-11744 "Synthesizing Optically-and Carbon Export-Relevant Particle Size Distributions for the EXPORTS Field Campaign" - Andrew McDonnell - University of California Santa Barbara - Mod 4 - $105,116.00 (September 15, 2017)

Grants controlled by another department:

• Grant G-14145 "PR643395: Tanana River Test Site Use and Support" - Andrew Seitz - AK Center for Energy and Power - Pacific Northwest National Laboratory PNNL - $5,430.00 (June 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

Last Friday was Juneteenth, a date commemorating the end of slavery in our nation—and now an official federal holiday. I again encourage everyone to stand together against all forms of racism.

Please join me in welcoming CFOS fisheries student Katja Berghaus as the Dean’s Office front desk assistant, replacing Mikayla Grunin.

Finally, summer solstice has now passed, which is all the more reason to spend time outside and enjoy the Alaska summer.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is in Seward for repairs on the port thruster and to get ready for Dr. Russ Hopcroft’s (UAF/CFOS) Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research project. The NGA LTER voyage is scheduled to depart Seward on Sunday, June 27.

Activities and Accomplishments

Ph.D. student Katja Berghaus was awarded the highly competitive Kathryn E. and John P. Doyle Scholarship, which supports female students studying science at the University of Alaska.

Professor Andy Seitz has been appointed the first Frank and Marjorie Meek Endowed Chair in Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. Congratulations, Andy!

CFOS in the News

KTUU and the Nome Nugget featured Harper Simmons’ research on ocean warming in the Arctic.

Natalie Monacci was recognized in the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network’s Pier Review newsletter for her work mentoring the Nigerian Maritime University Ocean Acidification Team through the Pier2Peer Network.

Publications

Abernethy, E.F., J.D. Muehlbauer, T.A. Kennedy, J.D. Tonkin, R. Van Driesche and D.A. Lytle. 2021. Hydropeaking intensity and dam proximity limit aquatic invertebrate diversity in the Colorado River Basin. Ecosphere 12(6): e03559. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3559

Jiang, L.-Q., R.A. Feely, R. Wanninkhof, D. Greeley, L. Barbero, S. Alin, B.R. Carter, D. Pierrot, C. Featherstone, J. Hooper, C. Melrose, N. Monacci, et al. 2021. Coastal Ocean Data Analysis Product in North America (CODAP-NA)—an internally consistent data product for discrete inorganic carbon, oxygen, and nutrients on the North American ocean margins. Earth System Science Data 13(6): 2777–2799. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-2777-2021

Message from the Dean

At the request of UA Interim President Pitney and UAS Chancellor Carey, CFOS and the University of Alaska Southeast have been working together to develop a proposal for a new Master of Marine Policy (MMP) degree program. Keith Criddle, the UAF Ted Stevens Distinguished Professor of Marine Policy, has been leading the CFOS effort in conjunction with faculty at UAS. In the coming days, we will solicit input on the draft program from CFOS and UAS faculty, as well as provide an update to the president and Chancellor Carey. While there is still a ways to go in defining the final program and garnering final approval from UA senior leadership and the Board of Regents, our goal is to have this new degree program offered jointly by UAF/CFOS and UAS and open to enrollment by the 2022 fall semester. This is another example of CFOS and UAS faculty and staff working toward a common goal in support of fisheries and marine science research and education for the benefit of Alaska.

Wishing everyone a happy National Ocean Month and World Oceans Day tomorrow.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway in support of Dr. Robert Mason’s (UCONN) mercury cycling study, which consists of a transect from open water through the marginal ice zone and into ice-covered regions in the Bering and Chukchi Seas. The voyage is scheduled to end in Seward on June 14.

Activities and Accomplishments

Russ Hopcroft was awarded Alaska Sikuliaq Program funding for Sikuliaq ship-time in support of Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-term Ecological Research program cruises in 2022.

Last Thursday, Dean Moran gave a “Did You Know” presentation to the UA Board of Regents that highlighted CFOS academic and research programs and major facilities, which was part of a larger presentation on Alaska’s Blue Economy. The presentation included a recorded interview with NOAA director and CFOS alum Dr. Robert Foy.

UAF’s underwater glider Shackleton was the first glider to transit from Prince William Sound to Resurrection Bay. After the 20-day journey, the glider was successfully recovered by CFOS’s vessel R/V Nanuq last week.

Graduate student Lauren Sutton was awarded the highly competitive Kathryn E. and John P. Doyle Scholarship. Each year two undergraduate and two graduate students receive the award, which supports female students studying science at the University of Alaska.

CFOS in the News

Lara Horstmann was mentioned in a Fairbanks Daily News-Miner feature story about a bowhead whale skeleton suspended at the University of Alaska Museum of the North.

The Mountain Research Initiative featured Gwenn Hennon in a photo essay about the receding Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, Alaska.

Katrin Iken was featured in a story published by the Austrian Polar Research Institute regarding her recent paper about the ecology of the Chukchi Borderland marine region.

In their newsletter Ocean News Weekly, the Consortium of Ocean Leadership highlighted Franz Mueter and CFOS alum Casey Clark’s work to enable scientists to better gauge how centuries of fossil fuel emissions could be skewing data collected from the marine environment.

UAF News ran a story on Brenda Konar’s appointment as the new principal investigator and project director of NSF’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) “Fire and Ice” research project.

Harper Simmons talked about ocean warming in the Arctic on KYUK radio.

Publications

Hinkle, E., and N.B. Ford. 2021. Reproductive traits of North American Cajun dwarf crayfish (Cambarellus shufeldtii) from the Neches River National Wildlife Refuge. The Southwestern Naturalist 65(1): 56–60. https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909-65.1.56

Moran, S.B. 2021. Workforce development and leadership training for the new blue economy. In: L. Hotaling and R. Spinrad, eds. Preparing the Workforce for the New Blue Economy: People, Products and Policies. Elsevier, pp. 407–416. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-821431-2.00002-0

Vershinina, A.O., P.D. Heintzman, D.G. Froese, G. Zazula, M. Cassatt-Johnstone, L. Dalén, C. Der Sarkissian, S.G. Dunn, L. Ermini, C. Gamba, P. Groves, J.D. Kapp, D.H. Mann, A. Seguin-Orlando, J. Southon, M. Stiller, M.J. Wooller, et al. 2021. Ancient horse genomes reveal the timing and extent of dispersals across the Bering Land Bridge. Molecular Ecology. http://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15977

Zhulay, I., B.A. Bluhm, P.E. Renaud, R. Degen, and K. Iken. 2021. Functional pattern of benthic epifauna in the Chukchi Borderland, Arctic deep sea. Frontiers in Marine Science 8:609956. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.609956

Grants and Awards for May 2021

New awards for CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-14081 "Large Payload Delivery AUV Study" - C. Geoff Wheat - ONR - $199,055.00 (May 11, 2021)
• Grant G-14099 "Life History, variability and mixed-stock analysis of Dolly Varden in the Noatak River FY21" - Andrew Seitz - ADFG - $7,634.00 (April 1, 2020)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-2218 "Administration of PCCRC" - Keith Criddle - UA Foundation PCCRC - $42,000.00 (January 1, 2005)
• Grant G-3163 "Ted Stevens Distinguished Professor of Marine Policy" - Keith Criddle - UA Foundation - $220,000.00 (April 1, 2006)
• Grant G-12114 "Inertial and Turbulent Processes in the Iceland Basin: A Proposal to the Near Inertial Shear and Kinetic Energy in the North Atlantic Experiment (NISKINE) Departmental Research Initiative" - Harper Simmons - ONR - Mod 4 - $207,035.00 (April 15, 2018)
• Grant G-13303 "Collaborative Research: A High Resolution Multi-Tracer Biogeochemical Study of the Pacific Arctic" - Dean Stockwell - NSF - Mod 1 - $44,325.00 (April 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13353 "Spatiotemporal dynamics of chum salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea" - Megan McPhee - UA Foundation PCCRC - $47,551.00 (May 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13354 "Nutritional consequences of changes in phytoplankton community structure" - Sarah Mincks - UA Foundation PCCRC - $35,775.00 (April 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13545 "Evaluation of Spatio-temporal Methods for Standardizing Data from Multiple Fishery-Independent Surveys in the GOA and BSAI" - Curry Cunningham - UA Foundation PCCRC - $78,066.00 (August 1, 2020)

Message from the Dean

On June 3, CFOS will be featured as part of the Did You Know series of presentations to the UA Board of Regents. As part of this Regents’ meeting, it will be my pleasure to interview one of our outstanding alumni, Bob Foy, Science and Research Director of the NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center. This will be followed by presentations focused on the Blue Economy by CFOS, UAS and Alaska Sea Grant, showcasing the depth and diversity of our collective academic, research and outreach programs that bring significant benefits to Alaska and the nation.

Effective June 30, Brenda Konar will step down as associate dean for research and director of the Institute of Marine Science (IMS) and the Coastal Marine Institute (CMI), and will begin work as the project director and lead PI for EPSCoR Fire and Ice. Brenda has served as associate dean for nearly 7 years, providing support for our research enterprise and major facilities. In addition to her own robust research and teaching programs as professor in the department of marine biology, Brenda has played a key role in fostering collaborative research initiatives, securing funding for a new research faculty position in mariculture, recruiting other new research faculty, and working with the National Science Foundation and the university to develop the Community and Environmental Compliance Standard Operating Procedures (CECSOP) for Sikuliaq research operations. Brenda will remain a faculty member in CFOS, and we look forward to her continued success. Please join me in thanking Brenda for her outstanding university service.

I am pleased to announce that Jennifer Reynolds has agreed to serve a one-year term as interim associate dean for research and director of IMS and CMI. Jennifer brings significant experience in research administration as a former director of NURP and IMS. Please join me in congratulating Jennifer on her new appointment.

Finally, it is a pleasure to announce that Laura Frisone is the new CFOS HR coordinator. As a former university employee in the Office of Information and Technology, she brings experience in university and HR operations. Today is her first day on the job. Please join me in welcoming Laura to the CFOS team.

R/V Sikuliaq

Tyler Hennon’s (UAF/CFOS) Bering and Aleutian Internal Tide Mixing (BAIT MIX) cruise, which was supported by the Alaska Sikuliaq Program, has been completed. Sikuliaq is currently underway in support of Dr. Robert Mason’s (UCONN) project, which is investigating how changes in sea-ice conditions are impacting the role of mercury and methylmercury in the Arctic Ocean food web.

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS researchers presented flash talks at UAF’s Arctic Research Open House, which was hosted by the International Arctic Research Center. A Facebook Live video recording of the event is available, and UAF’s YouTube channel has a playlist of talks by participating researchers, including Shelby Bacus, Katrin Iken, Mark Johnson, Erika King, Brenda Konar, Natalie Monacci and Lindsey Stadler.

Graduate student Brain Ulaski recently presented an overview of projects conducted at the Kasitsna Bay Laboratory to Lathrop High School.

Gwenn Hennon participated in Joy Elementary School's Earth Week with a presentation and student activity, “The hidden world within sea ice,” which was developed with support from the Coastal Marine Institute.

CFOS in the News

EurekaAlerts and UAF News mentioned Franz Mueter and CFOS alumni Casey Clark in a press release about a new tool that will allow scientists to better gauge how centuries of fossil fuel emissions could be skewing the data they collect from marine environments.

A recent study by Alexei Pinchuk that includes visualizations of how warming waters impact Alaska’s marine ecosystem was featured in Golden Software, Inc.

Mat Wooller’s research was mentioned in a NOAA feature story about information that seal whiskers provide to scientists.

Trent Sutton, CFOS graduate students Kyle Gatt and Carolyn Hamman, and alumni Justin Priest and Duncan Green were featured in the American Fisheries Society Alaska Chapter’s newsletter, Oncorhynchus, regarding the Beaufort Sea Long-Term Nearshore Fish Monitoring Program.

Peter Westley was quoted in a story by the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner about food retailers that are changing guidelines because of shrinking salmon sizes.

Harper Simmons appeared in a Fairbanks Daily News-Miner story about the importance of warm Pacific water in melting sea ice in the Arctic.

Publications

Bucklin, A., K.T.C.A. Peijnenburg, K.N. Kosobokova, T.D. O'Brien, L. Blanco-Bercial, A. Cornils, T. Falkenhaug, R.R. Hopcroft, A. Hosia, S. Laakmann, C. Li, L. Martell, J.M. Questel, D. Wall-Palmer, M. Wang, P.H. Wiebe, and A. Weydmann-Zwolicka. 2021. Toward a global reference database of COI barcodes for marine zooplankton. Marine Biology 168:78. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-021-03887-y

Clark, C.T., M.R. Cape, M.D. Shapley, F.J. Mueter, B.P. Finney, and N. Misarti. 2021. SuessR: Regional corrections for the effects of anthropogenic CO₂ on δ¹³C data from marine organisms. Methods in Ecology and Evolution. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.13622

Message from the Dean

It is a pleasure to recognize the CFOS staff members who were honored last week at the annual UAF Staff Recognition event. These individuals and all of our hardworking staff help to ensure that CFOS operates efficiently and effectively. Please join me in congratulating the following employees for their dedicated service to CFOS and to the university: Caitlin Smoot, Jonathan Pierce, Paul St. Onge and Sarah Spanos (5 years of service); John Pender (10 years of service).

Spring is here with warmer temps and trees budding—I hope everyone is able to safely enjoy some of our spectacular outdoors.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Tyler Hennon’s (UAF/CFOS) Bering and Aleutian Internal Tide Mixing (BAIT MIX) project, a pilot study on the bottom-up and top-down controls on fish populations in order to ensure the health and sustainability of fisheries.

Activities and Accomplishments

The underwater glider Shackleton, part of the UAF glider fleet, was deployed in Cordova and is currently performing the first crossing of the Gulf of Alaska. Hank Statscewich will retrieve it using R/V Nanuq.

Graduate student Courtney Hart was selected as a Goering Family Fellowship recipient with a $1,000 scholarship for the 2021–2022 academic year.

Samuel May has received Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean and Ecosystem Studies funding to join CFOS and the lab of Peter Westley as a postdoctoral researcher to work on modeling the reproductive success of hatchery and wild salmon.

CFOS in the News

KOTZ radio and the Nome Nugget featured Harper Simmons in a story about warm water melting sea ice in the Arctic. Simmons, Seth Danielson and Thilo Klenz were mentioned in UAF News and Arctic Sounder stories about the research.

Bloomberg Green quoted Peter Westley in an article about how shrinking salmon body sizes have impacted the food industry.

Shannon Atkinson was mentioned in an Eos article about the lingering effects of the Pacific marine heatwave from 2014 to 2016 in the Gulf of Alaska.

The Bulletin of Marine Science featured a paper by Jessica Glass about predatory trevally in the Indo-Pacific.

Publications

Alabia, I.D., J. García Molinos, T. Hirata, F.J. Mueter, T. Hirawake, and S.-I. Saitoh. 2021. Marine biodiversity refugia in a climate-sensitive subarctic shelf. Global Change Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15632

Courtney, M.B., M. Evans, K.R. Shedd, and A.C. Seitz. 2021. Understanding the behavior and ecology of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) on an important feeding ground in the Gulf of Alaska. Environmental Biology of Fishes 104:357–373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-021-01083-x

Glass, J.R., S.R. Santos, J.S.K. Kauwe, and B.D. Pickett. 2021. Phylogeography of two marine predators, giant trevally (Caranx ignobilis) and bluefin trevally (Caranx melampygus), across the Indo-Pacific. Bulletin of Marine Science 97(2): 257–280. https://doi.org/10.5343/bms.2019.0114

Johnson, M.A., A.V. Marchenko, D.O. Dammann, and A.R. Mahoney. 2021. Observing wind-forced flexural-gravity waves in the Beaufort Sea and their relationship to sea ice mechanics. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(5): 471. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9050471

Smith, A.N., G.M.M. Hennon, E.R. Zinser, B.C. Calfee, J.W. Chandler, and A.D. Barton. 2021. Comparing Prochlorococcus temperature niches in the lab and across ocean basins. Limnology and Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.11777

Vestfals, C.D., F.J. Mueter, K.S. Hedstrom, B.J. Laurel, C.M. Petrik, J.T. Duffy-Anderson, and S.L. Danielson. 2021. Modeling the dispersal of polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) early life stages in the Pacific Arctic using a biophysical transport model. Progress in Oceanography 102571. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2021.102571

Grants and Awards for April 2021

New awards:

• Grant G-13997 "US Science Support Program Office associated with the International Ocean Discovery Program (USSSP-IDOP)" - Geoff Wheat - Columbia University - $79,816.00 (April 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14007 "2021 NGOA Award for Lee" - Peter Westley (Madeline Lee) - UA Foundation - $11,000.00 (March 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14016 "Evaluating Factors Adult Mortality CRSS" - Kristen Gorman - Alaska Department of Fish & Game - $64,999.00 (March 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14031 "Hilcorp Arctic Fisheries Study 2022" - Trent Sutton - Hilcorp Alaska LLC - $41,560.00 (January 1, 2021)
• Grant G-14040 "Shifting the Baseline for Salmon Escapement Goals: Causes and Solutions" - Milo Adkison - Alaska Department of Fish & Game - $74,648.00 (March 1, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding:

• Grant G-11400 "Long Term Monitoring: Ecological Communities in Kachemak Bay, Phase 2" - Katrin Iken - Prince William Sound Science Center - Mod 4 - $52.930.00 (February 1, 2017)
• Grant G-11408 "Environmental Drivers: Seward Line" - Russ Hopcroft - Prince William Sound Science Center - Mod 4 - $134,400.00 (February 1, 2017)
• Grant G-11485 "Long-Term Monitoring of the Alaska Coastal Current" - Seth Danielson - Prince William Sound Science Center - Mod 4 - $116,900.00 (February 1, 2017)
• Grant G-11625 "Modeling of Near Surface Stratification Processes in the Bay of Bengal: A proposal to the MISO-DRI" - Harper Simmons - Office of Naval Research - $114,055.00 (August 1, 2017)
• Grant G-12804 "Coastal Marine Institute Program Administration 2019-2024" - Brenda Konar - BOEM - Mod 2 - $89,702.00 (May 1, 2019)
• Grant G-12127 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Technical Support - Year 1 of 5" - Ethan Roth - NSF - Mod 8 - $863,401.00 (June 15, 2018)
• Grant G-13193 "CY2019 Navy-funded cruises on R/V Sikuliaq" - Douglas Baird Jr. - Office of Naval Research - Mod 2 - $2,294,800.00 (August 5, 2019)
• Grant G-13323 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Instrumentation" - Ethan Roth - Mod 1 - $340,000.00 (April 1, 2020)

Grant and grant fund controlled by another department:

• Grant G-12834 "Alaska INBRE-4 One Health" - Amanda Kelley - AK INBRE CD Award - $46,500.00 (March 1, 2021)
• Grant G-13079 "Landfast Ice Climatology within the Arctic OCS" - Seth Danielson - GI - BOEM - Mod 2 - $127,226.00 (September 24, 2019)

Message from the Dean

As we conclude the spring 2021 semester, I would like to reiterate my appreciation to our dedicated students, staff and faculty for your perseverance and collective energy in advancing the mission of CFOS. Please note that on Thursday, April 29, CFOS will host a virtual graduation celebration. Details on how to connect to the CFOS event have been shared and are available from Christina Sutton.

I am delighted to convey that Stephanie Madsen has accepted Chancellor White’s appointment to the CFOS Advisory Council. As executive director of the At-sea Processors Association and an elected director serving on the board of the UA Foundation, Stephanie has been an ardent supporter of the university and of the diverse research and education programs in CFOS, particularly in fisheries. Please join me in congratulating Stephanie on her recent appointment.

Last, please join me in congratulating associate professor Seth Danielson on being awarded tenure, and Alexei Pinchuk on his promotion to research professor.

2021 Dean’s Recognition Awards

Outstanding Advisor: Katrin Iken
Outstanding Instructor: Courtney Carothers
Outstanding Public Service: Peter Westley
Outstanding Researcher: Russ Hopcroft
Outstanding Staff: Hank Statscewich
Outstanding R/V Sikuliaq Crew Member: Christoph Gabaldo
Outstanding Graduate: Eric Walther
Outstanding Undergraduate: Brian Zhang

Spring 2021 graduates

Ashley Bolwerk. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Ginny Eckert
Kyle Gatt. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Trent Sutton
Sonia Ibarra. PhD Fisheries, Major Advisor: Ginny Eckert
Nina Lundstrom. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Anne Beaudreau
Eric Walther. MS Fisheries, Major Advisor: Peter Westley
Christopher Latty. PhD Marine Biology, Major Advisor: Tuula Hollmen
Mary (Katie) McCabe. MS Marine Biology, Major Advisor: Brenda Konar
Channing Bolt. PhD Oceanography, Major Advisor: Ana Aguilar-Islas
Dmitry Brazhnikov. PhD Oceanography, Major Advisor: Harper Simmons
Hanna Hellen. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
Nana Matsui. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
Robert (Eric) Rowe. BS Fisheries
Tazia Wagner. BS Fisheries

Student awards

Outstanding overall student/Dean's Choice Award: Brian Zhang
Leadership Award: Feyne Elmore
Outstanding Senior: Sadie Oswald
Outstanding Junior: Kortney Birch
Outstanding Sophomore: Kyleigh McArthur
Outstanding Freshman: Shelby Thompson

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Dr. Russ Hopcroft’s (UAF/CFOS) Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research (NGA LTER) spring research voyage. This is the first of two NGA LTER voyages aboard Sikuliaq in 2021. The second is scheduled for late June to mid-July.

Activities and Accomplishments

Kristen Gorman gave a presentation to the Marine Biology class at Lathrop High School in Fairbanks, discussing her work on Copper River sockeye salmon migration energetics.

Olivia Edwards won best MS oral presentation at the recent Alaska Chapter of the American Fisheries Society meeting.

Chris Sergeant was chosen to be in the 2021 cohort of Wilburforce Leaders in Conservation Science.

CFOS in the News

Footage from R/V Sikuliaq was featured in a University of California San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography video showing how warm water enters the Arctic and melts ice from below.

Greenwave featured Schery Umanzor’s research on nutrient extraction by farmed kelp.

Andy Seitz and Peter Westley were featured in a KYUK article about how marine predation may affect the body size of spawning Yukon River Chinook salmon.

Publications

Callahan, M.W., A.H. Beaudreau, R. Heintz, and F. Mueter. 2021. First winter energy allocation in juvenile sablefish Anoplopoma fimbria, a fast growing marine piscivore. Marine Ecology Progress Series 663:145–156. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13641

Kelly, A., J.H. Miller, M.J. Wooller, C.T. Seaton, P. Druckenmiller, and L. DeSantis. 2021. Dietary paleoecology of bison and horses on the mammoth steppe of eastern Beringia based on dental microwear and mesowear analyses. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 572:110394. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2021.110394

MacKinnon, J.A., H.L. Simmons, J. Hargrove, J. Thomson, T. Peacock, M.H. Alford, B.I. Barton, S. Boury, S.D. Brenner, N. Couto, S.L. Danielson, E.C. Fine, H.C. Graber, J. Guthrie, J.E. Hopkins, S.R. Jayne, C. Jeon, T. Klenz, C.M. Lee, Y-D Lenn, A.J. Lucas, B. Lund, C. Mahaffey, L. Norman, L. Rainville, M.M. Smith, L.N. Thomas, S. Torres-Valdés, and K.R. Wood. 2021. A warm jet in a cold ocean. Nature Communications 12:2418. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22505-5

Williams, B.C., K.R. Criddle, and G.H. Kruse. 2021. An agent-based model to optimize transboundary management for the walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) fishery in the Gulf of Alaska. Natural Resource Modeling. https://doi.org/10.1111/nrm.12305

Message from the Dean

For those residing in Fairbanks, I hope that you have shoveled out, still have a roof overhead, and have otherwise returned to normalcy after the Snowmageddon event on Easter weekend. At the least the Fairbanks ski season has been extended!

Beginning in 2015, the state of Alaska has provided $500,000 annually to support research and education programs conducted by UAF-based researchers and collaborators aboard Sikuliaq. As operator of Sikuliaq, CFOS facilitates the allocation of these state funds through the competitive Alaska Sikuliaq Program (ASP). The deadline for the CY2022 proposal submission is April 30.

Finally, it is a pleasure to welcome Mikayla Grunin as our new Front Desk Assistant in the Dean’s Office—welcome aboard, Mikayla!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is currently transiting from Newport, Oregon, to Seward. After the ship arrives in Seward, preparations will begin for the first of two Northern Gulf of Alaska Long-Term Ecological Research voyages for Russ Hopcroft (UAF/CFOS).

Activities and Accomplishments

CFOS students presented posters at the 2021 Research and Creative Activity Days Award Ceremony to share research supported by UAF’s Undergraduate Research and Scholarly Activity (URSA) program.

• Talia Davis: “Ocean water and blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) samples create baseline for climate change and pollution indicators and strengthen data sovereignty for the Tlingit community of Kake, Alaska” (CFOS Dean’s Choice Honorable Mention)
• Feyne Elmore: “Effects of salinity and minerals on zooplankton abundance and structure in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska”
• Amanda Franz: “The influence of acclimation temperatures on the mRNA expression driving thermotolerance in broad whitefish Coregonus nasus”
• Hanna Hellen: “Differences in stable isotope signatures between Chukchi Sea and Southern Beaufort Sea polar bears”
• Thomas House: “Differences in isotopic signatures among Arctic grayling in the Yukon River Watershed”
• Molly Piscoya and Roger Maldonado: “Histological analyses of male lingcod reproductive tissues in Prince William Sound”
• Will Samuel: “Analysis of the Cripple Creek project: Assessing the effects of fish passage improvements and habitat enhancement” (CFOS Dean’s Choice Award)
• Emily Williamson: “Phytoplankton diversity and abundance along a glacial gradient in Kachemak Bay, Alaska”

At the recent Alaska Chapter of the American Fisheries Society meeting, the following CFOS students received the highest scores for their presentations:

• Undergraduate oral presentation: Will Samuel, “Analysis of the Cripple Creek project: Assessing the effects of fish passage improvements and habitat enhancement”
• MS poster presentation: Carolyn Hamman, “Detection of Arctic cod Boreogadus saida using eDNA in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska”
• PhD poster presentation: Chris Sergeant, “How will Pacific salmon in Alaska respond to changes in streamflow and water temperature?”

CFOS in the News

Andy Seitz and Peter Westley spoke on a KYUK radio show about their research on late-stage marine mortality of Yukon River Chinook salmon.

CFOS, the Seward Marine Center, Gillian Braver and Amanda Kelley were mentioned in an article in the Seward Journal about the success of the 2021 Tsunami Bowl. The event was also mentioned by UAF News and the Juneau Empire.

Feyne Elmore was mentioned in UAF News for receiving a 2021 Barry Goldwater Scholarship.

Publications

Jones, B.R., A.L. Kelley, and S.L. Mincks. 2021. Changes to benthic community structure may impact organic matter consumption on Pacific Arctic shelves. Conservation Physiology 9(1): coab007. https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coab007

McIntosh Marcek, H.A., L.F.W. Lesack, B.N. Orcutt, C.G. Wheat, S.R. Dallimore, K. Geeves, and L.L. Lapham. 2021. Continuous dynamics of dissolved methane over two years and its carbon isotopes (δ13C, Δ14C) in a small Arctic lake in the Mackenzie Delta. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 126(3): e2020JG006038. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JG006038

Meyer, K.A., L.V. Chiaramonte, and J.B. Reynolds. 2021. The 100-watt method: A protocol for backpack electrofishing in small streams. Fisheries 46(3):125–130. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.10535

Weitzman, B., and B. Konar. 2021. Biological correlates of sea urchin recruitment in kelp forest and urchin barren habitats. Marine Ecology Progress Series 663:115–125. https://doi.org/663:115-125

Grants and Awards for March 2021

New awards:

• Grant G-13919 "The Student Observing Sikuliaq Information (SOSSI) Program" - Will Burt - NPRB - $19,997.00 (March 1, 2021)
• Grant G-13964 "Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System" - Seth Danielson - Princeton University - $100,000.00 (October 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13970 "2021 BWT Bottom Sampling Support, Analyses, and Report" - Arny Blanchard - Alyeska Pipeline Service Company - $69,854.00 (January 1, 2021)
• Grant G-13993 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Oceanographic Instrumentation - 2021" - Ethan Roth - NSF - $89,615.00 (March 15, 2021)
• Grant G-13994 "University of Alaska Fairbanks/Sikuliaq Shipboard Scientific Equipment (SSSE) 2021" - Ethan Roth - NSF - $24,972.00 (March 15, 2021)

Grants that received incremental funding during March:

• Grant G-12333 "ASGARD: Arctic Shelf Growth, Advection, Respiration and Deposition Rate Experiments" - Seth Danielson - NRPB - Mod 2 - $50,000.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-12726 "Investigating microbial biodegradation of crude oil in Arctic marine sediments via shotgun metagenomics and compound-specific hydrocarbon analyses" - Alexis Walker - Oil Spill Recovery Institute - Mod 2 - $23,900.00 (April 1, 2019)

Grant funds controlled by another department:

• Grant G-13295 "Alaska Space Grant Program FY20-24" - Denice Thorsen (GI) - NASA:
  
  • Higher Ed Mini Grant - Sonia Kumar (Lara Horstmann) - $21,937.00 (March 1, 2021)
  • Higher Ed Mini Grant - Ben Lowin (Will Burt) - $22,436.00 (March 1, 2021)

Message from the Dean

Last week the CFOS Advisory Council (AC) met for the first time to hear from Chancellor White, members of our leadership team, and our student representatives regarding CFOS academic departments and programs, research activities and major facilities. I want to thank Molly McCammon for agreeing to serve as chair. Next steps include addressing the council directive and priorities, as well as specific topics of interest to members, including industry partnerships and advocacy; research priorities; and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the college. I look forward to working with the AC as we strive to meet the needs of our students, our community and industry partners, and the state of Alaska.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for Dr. Ed Dever’s (OSU) Ocean Observatory Initiative (OOI) Endurance Array maintenance cruise off the coasts of Oregon and Washington. The Endurance Array is part of a regional observatory network that includes OOI, Station Papa, and Ocean Networks Canada. This observing network captures the variability of ocean properties across a range of temporal and spatial scales, allowing researchers to examine ocean health issues such as hypoxia, ocean acidification, and harmful algal blooms.

Activities and Accomplishments

The Seward Marine Center hosted the 24th annual Tsunami Bowl, themed Plunging into our Polar Seas, which was held online this year due to the pandemic. The Juneau-Douglas High School “New Squids on the Dock” team was the overall winner of the Tsunami Bowl and will proceed to the national competition. Other awards are listed on the Tsunami Bowl Facebook page.

R/V Sikuliaq Science Operations Manager Ethan Roth presented a virtual tour of the ship to Tsunami Bowl teams using video footage provided by Sikuliaq marine technician Bern McKiernan.

The journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry recognized a paper coauthored by Matthew Wooller, Dried blood spot sampling of landlocked Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) for estimating mercury exposure and stable carbon isotope fingerprinting of essential amino acids, as one of its Top 10 Exceptional Papers of 2020.

The Alaska SeaLife Center announced that Seth Danielson is the recipient of the 2021 Marine Research Award. This honor is part of the center’s Alaska Ocean Leadership Awards given annually to individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to the awareness and sustainability of Alaska’s marine resources. Congratulations, Seth!

Feyne Elmore, an undergraduate student in the Fisheries and Marine Sciences program, was selected as a prestigious 2021 Barry Goldwater Scholar. This federally endowed award recognizes outstanding undergraduate students pursuing research careers in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics. For 2021, there were 410 awardees selected from more than 5,000 nominations by colleges and universities across the nation. Congratulations, Feyne!

Fisheries graduate students Elizabeth Mik'aq Lindley and Madeline Lee were awarded Honorable Mentions in the 2021 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program.

CFOS in the News

Curry Cunningham, Andy Seitz, Peter Westley and CFOS alumna Kaitlyn Manishin were featured by UAF News and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in a story about the role that late-stage ocean mortality may play in Yukon River Chinook salmon declines.

The three University of Alaska chancellors noted the UAS–UAF joint undergraduate fisheries program in a Fairbanks Daily News-Miner article.

Recent CFOS alumna Lauren Wild was featured in a KCAW radio story about a necropsy conducted on a humpback whale that washed ashore near Sitka.

Trent Sutton and graduate student Carolyn Hamman were featured in the Western Division of the American Fisheries Society’s Tributary newsletter regarding their research on synthetic chemicals and mercury found in coastal Beaufort Sea fishes of subsistence importance.

Publications

Kosobokova, K.N., and R.R. Hopcroft. 2021. Population structure, vertical distribution and fecundity of Eukrohnia hamata (Chaetognatha) in the Arctic Ocean during summer. Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers 169:103454. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2020.103454

Raymond, W.W., B.B. Hughes, T.A. Stephens, C.R. Mattson, A.T. Bolwerk, and G.L. Eckert. 2021. Testing the generality of sea otter‐mediated trophic cascades in seagrass meadows. Oikos. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.07681

Suryan, R.M., M.L. Arimitsu, H.A. Coletti, R.R. Hopcroft, M.R. Lindeberg, S.J. Barbeaux, S.D. Batten, W.J. Burt, M.A. Bishop, J.L. Bodkin, R. Brenner, R.W. Campbell, D.A. Cushing, S.L. Danielson, M.W. Dorn, B. Drummond, D. Esler, T. Gelatt, D.H. Hanselman, S.A. Hatch, S. Haught, K. Holderied, K. Iken, D.B. Irons, A.B. Kettle, D.G. Kimmel, B. Konar, K.J. Kuletz, B.J. Laurel, J.M. Maniscalco, C. Matkin, C.A.E. McKinstry, D.H. Monson, J.R. Moran, D. Olsen, W.A. Palsson, W.S. Pegau, J.F. Piatt, L.A. Rogers, N.A. Rojek, A. Schaefer, I.B. Spies, J.M. Straley, S.L. Strom, K.L. Sweeney, M. Szymkowiak, B.P. Weitzman, E.M. Yasumiishi, and S.G. Zador. 2021. Ecosystem response persists after a prolonged marine heatwave. Scientific Reports 11:6235. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-83818-5

Umanzor, S., Y. Li, D. Bailey, S. Augyte, M. Huang, M. Marty‐Rivera, J‐L. Jannink, C. Yarish, and S. Lindell. 2021. Comparative analysis of morphometric traits of farmed sugar kelp and skinny kelp, Saccharina spp., strains from the Northwest Atlantic. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society. https://doi.org/10.1111/jwas.12783

Message from the Dean

I hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing and safe spring break last week. Yesterday marked daylight savings time, and one can feel that spring is now just around the corner.

For more than twenty years, CFOS has played a lead role in bringing together high school students from across the state to compete in the Alaska Tsunami Bowl, which is part of the National Ocean Sciences Bowl. Next week, the 24th annual Tsunami Bowl will take place, with the theme “Plunging into our Polar Seas,” which highlights polar research. Due to the pandemic, this year’s event will be held virtually March 26–28. The competition will include 8 teams from 7 schools: Cordova High School, Dimond High School, Eagle River High School, Gustavus High School, Ketchikan High School, Juneau-Douglas High School, and Mat-Su Career and Technical High School. A big thanks to Gillian Braver for organizing this year’s event and Amanda Kelley for leading the research paper and oral presentations.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is underway for the first science cruise of 2021: Dr. David Schmidt’s Cascadia GPS-A project to install geodetic transponders and benchmarks along the Cascadia subduction zone. Later this week, Sikuliaq will arrive in Newport, Oregon, to begin staging for Dr. Ed Dever’s (OSU) OOI Endurance Array maintenance cruise.

Activities and Accomplishments

Many CFOS faculty, research staff and students are participating in the Kachemak Bay Science Conference, which begins today and continues through March 18.

Gwenn Hennon gave a seminar at NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center about climate change impacts on phytoplankton.

On Friday, March 12, Bradley Moran presented highlights of CFOS research, academic programs, and the Seward Marine Center to the Alaska House Finance Subcommittee; a heartfelt thanks to Rep. Adam Wool for the invitation to present.

CFOS in the News

In an article published in the Frontiersman, UA Interim President Pat Pitney cited CFOS as an example of how the university continues to grow despite statewide budget cuts.

The Peninsula Clarion ran a story about a recent sea star die-off event in the Northern Gulf of Alaska that was based on a journal article by Brenda Konar and others in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology.

Seth Danielson appeared in the Prince William Sound Science Center’s newsletter in an article about how gliders are used to study herring.

The Seward Marine Center, research vessels operated by CFOS, and CFOS staff and faculty were highlighted in a story about the history of SMC that was published by UAF’s Cornerstone.

Publications

Arimitsu, M., J. Piatt, S. Hatch, R.M. Suryan, S. Batten, M.A. Bishop, R.W. Campbell, H. Coletti, D. Cushing, K. Gorman, R.R. Hopcroft, K.J. Kuletz, C. Marsteller, C. McKinstry, D. McGowan, J. Moran, W.S. Pegau, A. Schaefer, S. Schoen, J. Straley, and V.R. von Biela. 2021. Heatwave-induced synchrony within forage fish portfolio disrupts energy flow to top pelagic predators. Global Change Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15556

Barnes, C.L., A.H. Beaudreau, and R.N. Yamada. 2021. The role of size in trophic niche separation between two groundfish predators in Alaskan waters. Marine and Coastal Fisheries 13(1): 98–113. https://doi.org/10.1002/mcf2.10141

Brown, K.L., S. Atkinson, C.G. Furin, F.J. Mueter, and R. Gerlach. 2021. Metals in the stomach contents and brain, gonad, kidney, and liver tissues of subsistence-harvested northern sea otters (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) from Icy Strait, Alaska. Marine Pollution Bulletin 166:112183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112183

Johnson, J.J., P.A. Shaw, E.J. Oh, M.J. Wooller, S. Merriman, H.Y. Yun, T. Larsen, J. Krakoff, S.B. Votruba, and D.M. O'Brien. 2021. The carbon isotope ratios of nonessential amino acids identify sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumers in a 12-wk inpatient feeding study of 32 men with varying SSB and meat exposures. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqaa374

Kaiser, B.A., M. Kourantidou, D. Ahsan, S. Bakanev, A. Burmeister, G. Eckert, L.M. Fernandez, H.P. Hong, A.A. Monsalve, D. Mullowney, B.H. Nøstvold, H. Park, E. Poulsen, L. Ravn-Jonsen, C. Siddon, J.H. Sundet, K. Tokunaga, and M. Yamamoto. 2021. Global ecological and economic connections in Arctic and sub-Arctic crab markets. Marine Policy 127:104442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104442

Knudsen, E.E., P.S. Rand, K.B. Gorman, D.R. Bernard, and W.D. Templin. 2021. Hatchery-origin stray rates and total run characteristics for pink salmon and chum salmon returning to Prince William Sound, Alaska, in 2013–2015. Marine and Coastal Fisheries 13(1): 58–85. https://doi.org/10.1002/mcf2.10134

Message from the Dean

As part of the continued implementation of our Decadal Plan, we will begin planning the third CFOS all-hands faculty retreat. As with our prior faculty retreats, we will review our goals and establish specific action items in academics, research and service for the next 1–2 years. This will include developing strategies for continued growth in student enrollment; ensuring the efficient and effective implementation of our evolving academic programs; developing interdisciplinary research programs; strengthening major facilities and operations; and serving the needs of Alaska’s communities. The retreat agenda and meeting dates will be developed by the Dean’s Advisory Committee with input from faculty and staff.

It is a pleasure to welcome Jeff Muehlbauer as Assistant Unit Leader in Fisheries in the Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Jeff earned his doctorate in ecology from the University of North Carolina. Since then, he has worked as a research ecologist and research biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Flagstaff, Arizona. Jeff’s research interests include river ecology, hydrology and geomorphology.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle at the University of Washington dock for annual preventive maintenance and a 5-week upgrade to the engineering machinery and alarm control system. Later this week, the ship will get underway to test the new engineering control system and conduct the multibeam patch test. The first science cruise of 2021 will begin next week in support of David Schmidt’s Cascadia GPS-A project to install geodetic transponders and benchmarks along the Cascadia subduction zone.

Activities and Accomplishments

The 24th annual American Fisheries Society Alaska Chapter Student Symposium was held last Friday. This year’s event, which was organized by Jesse Gordon, Lia Domke and Taylor Cubbage, included 22 student presentations from Juneau, Fairbanks, Anchorage, Bethel and Nome, and was attended by 180 people. Please contact lkdomke@alaska.edu for a recording. Here are the top-rated presentations:

• Best Long Talk: Taylor Cubbage (Fairbanks, Fisheries): Physiological performance of northern pike: implications for management in invaded systems
• Best Short Talk: Erika King (Juneau, Fisheries): Assessing the contribution of precocial males to the next generation and genetic diversity in a naturally spawning population of coho salmon

CFOS recently held a 3-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, which originated at the University of Queensland. Will Burt organized the event, where each graduate student had three minutes and a single slide to present their thesis research to more than 50 participants. Here are the top-rated presentations:

• First Place: Lindsey Stadler (Fairbanks, Marine Biology): Food web ecology of nearshore fishes along a gradient of glacially influenced watersheds
• Second place: Emily Ortega (Fairbanks, Oceanography): Iron speciation in the northern Gulf of Alaska
• People's Choice: Erika King (Juneau, Fisheries): Assessing the impact of precocial males on population structure and genetic diversity in a naturally spawning population of coho salmon

Graduate student Josie Haag gave a flash talk on her research as part of “Venus, Volcanoes and More: UAF Graduate Research Stories,” a presentation in the Science for Alaska Lecture Series.

CFOS in the News

The Seward Marine Center, research vessels operated by CFOS, and CFOS staff and faculty were highlighted in a story about the history of SMC that was published by the Seward Journal and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

Seth Danielson was featured in Arctic Today regarding how changes in the Bering Sea are influencing weather patterns.

Publications

Carothers, C., J. Black, S.J. Langdon, R. Donkersloot, D. Ringer, J. Coleman, E.R. Gavenus, W. Justin, M. Williams, F. Christiansen, J. Samuelson, C. Stevens, B. Woods, S.J. Clark, P.M. Clay, L. Mack, J. Raymond-Yakoubian, A. Akall'eq Sanders, B.L. Stevens, and A. Whiting. 2021. Indigenous peoples and salmon stewardship: a critical relationship. Ecology and Society 26(1): 16. https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol26/iss1/art16/

Dilliplaine, K., M. Oggier, R.E. Collins, H. Eicken, R. Gradinger, and B. Bluhm. 2021. Crude oil exposure reduces ice algal growth in a sea-ice mesocosm experiment. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-021-02818-3

Manishin, K.A., C.J. Cunningham, P.A.H. Westley, and A.C. Seitz. 2021. Can late stage marine mortality explain observed shifts in age structure of Chinook salmon? PLoS ONE 16(2): e0247370. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247370

Pinchuk, A.I., S.D. Batten, and W.W. Strasburger. 2021. Doliolid (Tunicata: Thaliacea) blooms in the southeastern Gulf of Alaska as a result of the recent marine heat wave of 2014–2016. Frontiers in Marine Science 8:625486. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.625486

Taher, M.E., A.M. Ghoneium, R.R. Hopcroft, and W.S. ElTohamy. 2021. Temporal and spatial variations of surface water quality in the Nile River of Damietta Region, Egypt. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 193:128. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-08919-0

Weitzman B., B. Konar, K. Iken, H. Coletti, D. Monson, R. Suryan, T. Dean, D. Hondolero, and M. Lindeberg. 2021. Changes in rocky intertidal community structure during a marine heatwave in the Northern Gulf of Alaska. Frontiers in Marine Science 8:556820. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.556820

Message from the Dean

I am delighted to convey that Dr. Terrie Williams has agreed to deliver the CFOS keynote lecture for the spring semester. An internationally recognized comparative ecophysiologist at the University of California Santa Cruz, Dr. Williams is director of the Center for Marine Mammal Research and Conservation at UCSC. For the past 30 years her research has investigated the physiology of large mammalian predators. I want to extend my gratitude to Dr. Williams for her willingness to serve as CFOS keynote speaker. This seminar will take place on Wednesday, April 14, at 3:30 pm. Please stay tuned for details of Dr. Williams’s virtual presentation.

The first meeting of the CFOS Advisory Council is scheduled for March 24, and will be held virtually. I am delighted to welcome such a dedicated and diverse group to help support and advocate for the health and needs of our college. Details of the meeting will be forthcoming.

Last, the recent launch of Ocean Decade U.S. was by many accounts a major success, and in that regard it is noteworthy that Geoff Wheat was a coauthor on one of only eight Ocean Shots selected from more than one hundred submissions to this event. And, in his keynote remarks, NSF Division Director Terry Quinn highlighted Sikuliaq as part of major science programs and facilities that NSF supports for the ocean sciences community. These are just a few recent examples of CFOS being recognized on the national stage—well done!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle at the University of Washington dock for annual preventive maintenance and a 5-week upgrade to the engineering machinery and alarm control system.

Activities and Accomplishments

Will Burt has organized a Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition in which CFOS graduate students will have to explain their research in three minutes to a nonspecialized audience. The first round of the competition is tomorrow (2/16) at 12:00 pm AK time. Contact wburt2@alaska.edu if you are interested in watching this event or the finals the following week.

Trent Sutton spoke about lamprey on an episode of the US Fish and Wildlife Service Fish of the Week podcast.

Graduate students Ashley Bolwerk, Lia Domke and Becca Cates gave a talk at the Fireside Lecture Series about conducting fieldwork in Southeast Alaska. The event was held at the U.S. Forest Service Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center.

Publications

Clark, C.T., L. Horstmann, and N. Misarti. 2021. Walrus teeth as biomonitors of trace elements in Arctic marine ecosystems. Science of the Total Environment 772:145500. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145500

Hvingel, C., B. Sainte-Marie, and G.H. Kruse. 2021. Cold-water shellfish as harvestable resources and important ecosystem players. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsab005

Message from the Dean

On Wednesday and Thursday this week, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) will host a virtual launch of Ocean Decade US, which is in support of the UN Decade of Ocean Science and Sustainable Development. Registration is free for the two-day meeting and will feature high-level remarks by Committee Chair Larry Mayer, Committee Vice Chair Rick Spinrad, NASEM President Marcia McNutt, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Director Margaret Leinen, UN Special Envoy for the Ocean Peter Thomson, and Monica Medina of Our Daily Planet. The meeting will feature transformative “Ocean Shots,” Early Career Professionals, a Youth Advisory Council, and an e-Posterboard Hall. House Oceans Caucus Co-Chairs Rep. Don Young and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (OR) will provide recorded remarks to help kick off the meeting. I encourage you to join this important event.

It is a pleasure to welcome Joesi Zastrow (jlzastrow@alaska.edu) to the CFOS Dean’s Office. She replaces Claire Hughes at the front desk. Joesi graduated from UAF this past December with a BS in Biology. Welcome aboard, Joesi!

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle at the University of Washington dock for annual preventive maintenance and a 5-week upgrade to the engineering machinery and alarm control system.

Activities and Accomplishments

The annual Alaska Marine Science Symposium (AMSS) was held virtually last week and featured numerous presentations by CFOS students and faculty. Two CFOS graduate students advised by Brenda Konar won first-place awards for their poster presentations: Brian Ulaski won the Ph.D. category for his poster about the importance of seaweed wrack as a habitat and resource, and Amy Dowling won the M.S. category for her poster on environmental drivers of variability in Pacific blue mussels in glacially influenced estuaries.

CFOS faculty and graduate students presented progress on current research projects at the Coastal Marine Institute’s annual research review.

Gwenn Hennon gave a talk at the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program’s weekly meeting examining how loss of glacial ice will alter Alaska's marine ecosystems.

Graduate students Josianne Haag and Emily Ortega have partnered with the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center to host a youth art contest to encourage kids to think about their local biodiversity.

As part of the Strait Science series in Nome, graduate student Stephanie O’Daly gave a lecture about changes in algal distribution and decreased removal of carbon in the Northern Bering and Chukchi seas.

CFOS in the News

Andrew McDonnell was mentioned in an Alaska Center for Energy and Power newsletter as a collaborator on a grant to develop a business model and demonstrate the feasibility of using wind-powered heat pumps to heat homes and businesses in Alaska.

The Delta Wind printed an op-ed by Seth Danielson about the importance of University of Alaska–based ocean monitoring.

CFOS’s high-frequency radar program was featured by KNOM Radio.

The Anchorage Daily News acknowledged CFOS in an article about a new Blue Pipeline Venture Studio, which is designed to help boost Alaska’s ocean economy.

The Nome Nugget ran a story about Stephanie O’Daly’s research on sea ice carbon production.

Publications

Charapata, P., L. Horstmann, and N. Misarti. 2021. Steroid hormones in Pacific walrus bones collected over three millennia indicate physiological responses to changes in estimated population size and the environment. Conservation Physiology 9(1): coaa135. https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coaa135

Johnson, M.A. 2021. Subtidal surface circulation in lower Cook Inlet and Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Regional Studies in Marine Science 41:101609. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2021.101609

Walker, A.M., M.B. Leigh, and S.L. Mincks. 2021. Patterns in benthic microbial community structure across environmental gradients in the Beaufort Sea shelf and slope. Frontiers in Microbiology 12:581124. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.581124

Mincks, S.L., T.J. Pereira, J. Sharma, A.L. Blanchard, and H.M. Bik. Composition of marine nematode communities across broad longitudinal and bathymetric gradients in the Northeast Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. Polar Biology 44:85–103. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-020-02777-1

Grants and Awards for January 2021

New awards for January 2021:

• Grant G-13890 "Finding Tlokowe: Using eDNA to Discover and Characterize Spawning Sites of the Nooksack River Longfin Smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys)" -Andrés López - Northwest Indian College - $65,902.00 (November 15, 2020)
• Grant G-13906 "Resource Access, Well-Being, and Small-Scale Fishing Livelihoods in Alaska's Rural and Indigenous Communities" - Courtney Carothers - NPRB - $165,127.00 (November 1, 2020)
• Grant G-13911 "Advancing Remote Sensing Insight into Coastal Sea Ice Ecosystems" - Stephen Okkonen - Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute - $32,656.00 (July 2, 2020)

Grants that received incremental funding in January 2021:

• Grant G-11291 "Hilcorp Arctic Fisheries Study (UA Foundation)" - Trent Sutton - UA Foundation - $95,540.00 (January 1, 2017)
• Grant G-12161 "Pacific Cod Individual Based Model Enhancement and Validation" - Ken Coyle - NPRB - Mod 2 (COVID Funding) - $8,358.00 (July 1, 2018)
• Grant G-12903 "Measuring the pulse of the Gulf of Alaska: Oceanographic observations along the Seward Line 2019-2020" - Russ Hopcroft - NPRB - Mod 1 (COVID Funding) - $11,194.00 (July 1, 2019)
• Grant G-13328 "Telemetry and genetic identity of Chinook salmon in Alaska" - Andy Seitz - Department of the Navy - Mod 4 - $221,839.00 (April 15, 2020)
• Grant G-13451 "Measuring the pulse of the Gulf of Alaska: Oceanographic observations along the Seward Line 2020-2021" - Russ Hopcroft - Mod 1 (COVID Funding) - $11,627.00 (July 1, 2020)

One new grant controlled by IARC awarded several projects to CFOS researchers:

• Grant G-13850 "Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean and Ecosystems Studies (CICOES)" - Uma Bhatt (main PI) - University of Washington - July 1, 2020:
  • Curry Cunningham (2 funds) - $74,974.00 and $10,888.00
  • Andrés López (2 funds) - $91,381.00 and $2,846.00
  • Megan McPhee (1 fund) - $45,866.00
  • Russ Hopcroft (2 funds) - $91,381.00 and $11,727.00
  • Seth Danielson (1 fund) - $120,000.00

One grant was set up on assumption in January 2021:

• Grant G-13873 "Assessing Kelp Nutrient Bioextraction Capacity in US Agriculture Farms with Implications for Conservation and Management" - Schery Umanzor Rodriguez - Department of Energy (January 22, 2021)

Message from the Dean

With the spring 2021 semester officially under way, it is a pleasure to welcome back our current and new CFOS students and acknowledge our fall 2020 graduates. As always, our faculty and staff are here to support you, and we wish you great success. The Chancellor’s List included Samantha Allen, Feyne Elmore, Rachel Heimke, Max Johnson, Kathryn Langlois, Kyleigh McArthur, Amanda Orr, Sadie Oswald, and Brian Zhang. The Dean’s List included Kortney Birch, Talia Davis, Sadie Inman, Syrena Jackson, Anthony Jaster, Annie Kilborn, Ron Sheldon, and Tazia Wagner.

Congratulations to our fall 2020 graduates:

• Tim Adickes. BS Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (Concentration: Fisheries Science)
• Donald Arthur. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Jeff Falke
• Emily Fergusson. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Ginny Eckert
• Anias Gentilhomme. MS Oceanography, Advisors: Eric Collins and Gwenn Hennon
• Annie Kandel. MS Oceanography, Advisor: Ana Aguilar-Islas
• Nicole Laroche. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Heidi Pearson
• Valentina Melica. PhD Fisheries, Advisor: Shannon Atkinson
• Malia Smith. MS Marine Biology, Advisor: Lara Horstmann
• Robert Spanger. PhD Fisheries, Advisor: Brenda Norcross

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our new graduate students:

• Mary Keenan. MS Marine Biology, Advisor: Lara Horstmann
• Briah Uher-Koch. PhD Marine Biology, Advisor: Tuula Hollmen
• Kevin Fitzgerald. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Jeff Falke
• Lilian Hart. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Curry Cunningham
• Madeline Lee. MS Fisheries, Advisor: Peter Westley

Next week, we look forward to CFOS presentations at the 2021 Alaska Marine Science Symposium, which will be a virtual meeting. If you haven't done so already, I encourage you to register and enjoy what is widely considered to be a premier symposium focused on arctic marine science.

Last, I would like to call to your attention that fellowship and scholarship applications are open for the new Tamamta program, which provides funded fellowships to Indigenous and allied MS and PhD students, and welcomes graduate students who would like to join this team as scholars. The Tamamta (a Sugpiaq and Yup’ik word meaning “all of us”) program elevates Indigenous knowledge systems to transform fisheries and marine sciences at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored in Seattle at the University of Washington dock for yearly maintenance and a 5-week upgrade to the engineering machinery and alarm control system.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Ben Lowin received a grant from the Alaska Space Grant Program for his research on bio-optical measurement techniques in the Northern Gulf of Alaska.

Seth Danielson spoke at the Strait Science series at UAF’s Northwest campus in Nome about CFOS’s high-frequency radar program, the importance of collaborating with Bering Strait and Arctic coastal communities, and changes in sea ice.

CFOS in the News

Courtney Carothers and graduate student Janessa Equible spoke about the Tamamta program on Bethel’s KYUK radio.

The Nome Nugget published a story about Seth Danielson’s recent Strait Science talk and UAF’s high-frequency radar program.

Mat Wooller’s work with stable isotope analysis was mentioned in a KTVF television story about prehistoric mummified wolf remains.

The Seward Marine Center’s 50th anniversary in December 2020 was featured in the Seward Journal.

Publications

Keogh, M.J., P. Charapata, B.S. Fadely, T. Zeppelin, L. Rea, J.N. Waite, V. Burkanov, C. Marshall, A. Jones, C. Sprowls, and M.J. Wooller. 2021. Whiskers as a novel tissue for tracking reproductive and stress-related hormones in North Pacific otariid pinnipeds. Conservation Physiology 9(1): coaa134. https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coaa134

Murphy, R., C. Cunningham, B.P. Harris, and C. Brown. 2020. Qualitative and quantitative fisher perceptions to complement natural science data for managing fisheries. Fisheries. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.10568

Orcutt, B.N., T. D'Angelo, C.G. Wheat, and E. Trembath‐Reichert. 2021. Microbe‐mineral biogeography from multi‐year incubations in oceanic crust at North Pond, Mid‐Atlantic Ridge. Environmental Microbiology. http://doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.15366

Questel, J.M., R.R. Hopcroft, H.M. DeHart, C.A. Smoot, K.N. Kosobokova, and A. Bucklin. Metabarcoding of zooplankton diversity within the Chukchi Borderland, Arctic Ocean: improved resolution from multi-gene markers and region-specific DNA databases. Marine Biodiversity 51:4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-020-01136-x

Rosellon-Druker, J., M. Szymkowiak, K.Y. Aydin, C.J. Cunningham, E.A. Fergusson, S. Kasperski, G.H. Kruse, J.H. Moss, M. Rhodes-Reese, K.S. Shotwell, E. Spooner, and E.M. Yasumiishi. 2021. Participatory place-based integrated ecosystem assessment in Sitka, Alaska: Constructing and operationalizing a socio-ecological conceptual model for sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria). Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2020.104912

Message from the Dean

Happy New Year! It is a pleasure to wish everyone a warm welcome after what was hopefully a safe and relaxing winter break spent with friends and family. I wish everyone a productive and safe 2021.

As many of you are aware, Anne Beaudreau has accepted a faculty position at the University of Washington School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, which is effective this month. It is a pleasure to thank Anne for her nine years of outstanding service at CFOS and wish her the very best going forward.

R/V Sikuliaq

Sikuliaq is moored at the Fairhaven Shipyard dock in Bellingham, Washington, for yearly maintenance. In mid-January, Sikuliaq will head to Seattle for a 5-week upgrade to the engineering machinery and alarm control system.

Activities and Accomplishments

Graduate student Sonia Kumar was awarded $21,937 through the Alaska Space Grant program for her research on Cook Inlet beluga whales.

CFOS in the News

CFOS was mentioned as a grant partner in a Cordova Times article about the Alaska Ocean Cluster program run by the Bering Sea Fishermen’s Association.

Publications

Levine, R.M., A. De Robertis, D. Grünbaum, R. Woodgate, C.W. Mordy, F. Mueter, E. Cokelet, N. Lawrence-Slavas, and H. Tabisola. 2020. Autonomous vehicle surveys indicate that flow reversals retain juvenile fishes in a highly advective high-latitude ecosystem. Limnology and Oceanography. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.11671

Dammann, D.O., M.A. Johnson, E.R. Fedders, A.R. Mahoney, C.L. Werner, C.M. Polashenski, F.J. Meyer, and J.K. Hutchings. Ground-based radar interferometry of sea ice. Remote Sensing 13(1): 43. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13010043