Abstract
Marine Ecosystem Shifts, Large and Small: From Chlorophyll to Whales Track: Ocean, Coastal, and Marine Resources Author(s): Michelle Kinzel The El Nino phenomenon creates major shifts in oceanographic processes, driving food webs and impacting species of all types within a coastal ecosystem. This study assesses the distribution and home ranges of gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus, in relation to oceanographic events, chlorophyll concentrations and sea surface anomalies. Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS) is used to test the hypothesis that gray whales shift their home ranges on the feeding grounds following El Nino years due to fluctuating dynamics of the food web, driven by varying amounts of productivity, as measured by changes in chlorophyll levels. Ocean color data are used as an indicator of primary production, which subsequently drives the entire food web in shallow water coastal communities. Whale distrubition data, chlorophyll levels and anomalies are analyzed using ArcGIS 9 and the extension Hawth's Tools for data collected during summer field seasons from 1998-2001. Michelle Kinzel Coastal Ecosystems Research Foundation 1095 Calle Mesita Bonita , CA 91902 US Phone: 619-251-5484 E-mail: kinzel@cox.net |
|||||
