In the winter of 2015, the public noticed thousands of dead seabirds washing ashore across the western coast of the United States and Canada. The USGS linked this massive seabird die-off to the North Pacific Marine Heatwave. A marine heatwave occurs when sea surface temperatures are above normal for an extended period of time.
Marine Biology and Ecosystems
The ocean is home to a wealth of biodiversity - from invisible-to-the-eye microbes to the larger-than-life megafauna - and unique marine habitat, such as deepwater coral reefs, seamounts, and submarine canyons. USGS science helps inform the management and conservation of marine biodiversity and habitats, from the coastlines down to the deepest trench.
Life in the Sea
From the microscopic plants known as phytoplankton that form the basis of the aquatic food web to the largest animal to ever live on Earth, the blue whale, our oceans are home to a wealth of biodiversity and every organism plays a critical role in the structure and function of this expansive marine environment.
Maintaining this biodiversity is important because a healthy ocean provides us with oxygen, helps regulate climate and weather, acts as a source of protein for many people around the world, and provides jobs and opportunities for eco-tourism and recreation. USGS science informs the management and conservation of marine biodiversity and habitats, in both nearshore and deepwater ecosystems.
USGS Role in Marine Ecosystems Research
From the Atlantic to the Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico in between, USGS scientists have implemented a multi-faceted offshore research program that weaves together expertise in a variety of disciplines to investigate nearshore and deepwater ecosystems. This interdisciplinary approach relies on a network of partners from around the Nation and the world to examine microbiology, population genetics, paleoecology, food webs, taxonomy, community ecology, physical oceanography, seafloor characteristics, and submarine hazards in the little explored, yet vital, marine ecosystems.
USGS Science in Nearshore Ecosystems
Nearshore systems are the habitats in which most people interact with marine environments, which include seabirds, seagrasses, algae, benthic invertebrates and fish, and top predators that include marine mammals like sharks, sea otters, walruses, and even polar bears. USGS research addresses natural and human-induced changes to this ecosystem and all its components.
Exploring Deep-sea Ecosystems
Most life in the ocean exists in surface waters above 200 meters depth where they have access to sunlight. However, even below 200 meters, where little to no sunlight reaches, temperatures drop, and pressure increases, abundant life exists. A diversity of organisms, including fishes, crustaceans, cephalopods, anemones, sea stars, microbes, and even corals make their home in the deep sea. These organisms reside on topographically complex terrain mirroring our terrestrial landscape, dotted with features like trenches, seamounts, canyons, and volcanoes. They also leave behind fossils that help geoscientists construct models of ancient ocean conditions and Earth’s geologic history, as shown in the schematic below.
Life at the Bottom of the Ocean
The mention of the seafloor may evoke thoughts of a deep, dark expanse of nothing, but the often-assumed void of life in the deep sea couldn’t be further from the truth. Even with the lack of sunlight, an average temperature of 4 degrees Celsius, and extreme pressures that an unprotected human could not survive, the deep sea is brimming with biodiversity, including deep-sea corals. The DISCOVRE (DIversity, Systematics and COnnectivity of Vulnerable Reef Ecosystems) program investigates unique and fragile deep-sea coral environments from the microscopic level to the ecosystem level. The multi-disciplinary approach has enhanced our understanding of the structure and function of significant biological communities surrounding deep coral reefs off the United States’ coasts.
Publications
Realizing the potential of eDNA biodiversity monitoring tools in the marine environment with application to offshore renewable energy
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) researches the biological diversity and distribution of species to support management, conservation, and resource use decisions. USGS scientists advance detection and monitoring technologies to assess changes in fish and wildlife populations, biodiversity, and the health of ecosystems. The United States is planning to install 30 gigawatts of offshore marine and wi
California Deepwater Investigations and Groundtruthing (Cal DIG) I, volume 3 — Benthic habitat characterization offshore Morro Bay, California
Estimating species misclassification with occupancy dynamics and encounter rates: A semi-supervised, individual-level approach
Evaluation of MPA designs that protect highly mobile megafauna now and under climate change scenarios
Surface ocean warming and acidification driven by rapid carbon release precedes Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum
Science
California Sea Otter Surveys and Research
Walrus Research
North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database
Polar Bear Research
Pacific Marine Heatwave
Multimedia
In the winter of 2015, the public noticed thousands of dead seabirds washing ashore across the western coast of the United States and Canada. The USGS linked this massive seabird die-off to the North Pacific Marine Heatwave. A marine heatwave occurs when sea surface temperatures are above normal for an extended period of time.
Illustrates where Common Eiders were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Common Eiders were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Four Tufted Puffins on the water, near their breeding colony at Gull Island in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
Four Tufted Puffins on the water, near their breeding colony at Gull Island in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
Zoomed image of a Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) breaking the surface.
Zoomed image of a Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) breaking the surface.
Illustrates where Pelagic Cormorants were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Pelagic Cormorants were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Tufted Puffins were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking
Illustrates where Tufted Puffins were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking
Illustrates where Northern Fulmars were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Northern Fulmars were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Timing is Everything: How Fish and Wildlife are Responding to Climate Change Through Shifts in the Timing of Life Events
Timing is Everything: How Fish and Wildlife are Responding to Climate Change Through Shifts in the Timing of Life Events
News
A new strategy to help unleash USGS eDNA capabilities
What's in a Sea Otter's Microbiome?
Video on the North Pacific Marine Heatwave
Sea surface temperature estimates for the mid-Piacenzian Indian Ocean—Ocean Drilling Program sites 709, 716, 722, 754, 757, 758, and 763
Effects of ocean acidification on salinity tolerance and seawater growth of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar smolts
Deepwater Program: Lophelia II, continuing ecological research on deep-sea corals and deep-reef habitats in the Gulf of Mexico
Vulnerability of coral reefs to bioerosion from land-based sources of pollution
Influence of glacier runoff on ecosystem structure in Gulf of Alaska fjords
Wound repair in Pocillopora
The PRISM4 (mid-Piacenzian) paleoenvironmental reconstruction
Emerging coral diseases in Kāne'ohe Bay, O'ahu, Hawai'i (USA): two major disease outbreaks of acute Montipora white syndrome
Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment (PaCSEA): aerial seabird and marine mammal surveys off northern California, Oregon, and Washington, 2011-2012
Sea surface temperatures of the mid-Piacenzian Warm Period: A comparison of PRISM3 and HadCM3
Seabed photographs, sediment texture analyses, and sun-illuminated sea floor topography in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary region off Boston, Massachusetts
Mid-Piacenzian sea surface temperature record from ODP Site 1115 in the western equatorial Pacific
USGS DISCOVRE: Benthic Ecology, Trophodynamics, and Ecosystem Connectivity – Lophelia II: Continuing Ecological Research on Deep-Sea Corals and Deep Reef Habitats in the Gulf of Mexico
Exploration of Caribbean Seamounts within the Greater and Lesser Antilles (GA/LA) Transition Zone: Characterization of the Benthic Ecology and Geology
How and Why is the Timing and Occurrence of Seasonal Migrants in the Gulf of Maine Changing Due to Climate?
Identifying Critical Thresholds and Tipping Points for Priority Coastal Species in a Changing Future
Assessing the Sustainability of Culturally Important Marine Sites in Guam and CNMI
Implications of Future Shifts in Migration, Spawning, and Other Life Events of Coastal Fish and Wildlife Species
The ocean is home to a wealth of biodiversity - from invisible-to-the-eye microbes to the larger-than-life megafauna - and unique marine habitat, such as deepwater coral reefs, seamounts, and submarine canyons. USGS science helps inform the management and conservation of marine biodiversity and habitats, from the coastlines down to the deepest trench.
Life in the Sea
From the microscopic plants known as phytoplankton that form the basis of the aquatic food web to the largest animal to ever live on Earth, the blue whale, our oceans are home to a wealth of biodiversity and every organism plays a critical role in the structure and function of this expansive marine environment.
Maintaining this biodiversity is important because a healthy ocean provides us with oxygen, helps regulate climate and weather, acts as a source of protein for many people around the world, and provides jobs and opportunities for eco-tourism and recreation. USGS science informs the management and conservation of marine biodiversity and habitats, in both nearshore and deepwater ecosystems.
USGS Role in Marine Ecosystems Research
From the Atlantic to the Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico in between, USGS scientists have implemented a multi-faceted offshore research program that weaves together expertise in a variety of disciplines to investigate nearshore and deepwater ecosystems. This interdisciplinary approach relies on a network of partners from around the Nation and the world to examine microbiology, population genetics, paleoecology, food webs, taxonomy, community ecology, physical oceanography, seafloor characteristics, and submarine hazards in the little explored, yet vital, marine ecosystems.
USGS Science in Nearshore Ecosystems
Nearshore systems are the habitats in which most people interact with marine environments, which include seabirds, seagrasses, algae, benthic invertebrates and fish, and top predators that include marine mammals like sharks, sea otters, walruses, and even polar bears. USGS research addresses natural and human-induced changes to this ecosystem and all its components.
Exploring Deep-sea Ecosystems
Most life in the ocean exists in surface waters above 200 meters depth where they have access to sunlight. However, even below 200 meters, where little to no sunlight reaches, temperatures drop, and pressure increases, abundant life exists. A diversity of organisms, including fishes, crustaceans, cephalopods, anemones, sea stars, microbes, and even corals make their home in the deep sea. These organisms reside on topographically complex terrain mirroring our terrestrial landscape, dotted with features like trenches, seamounts, canyons, and volcanoes. They also leave behind fossils that help geoscientists construct models of ancient ocean conditions and Earth’s geologic history, as shown in the schematic below.
Life at the Bottom of the Ocean
The mention of the seafloor may evoke thoughts of a deep, dark expanse of nothing, but the often-assumed void of life in the deep sea couldn’t be further from the truth. Even with the lack of sunlight, an average temperature of 4 degrees Celsius, and extreme pressures that an unprotected human could not survive, the deep sea is brimming with biodiversity, including deep-sea corals. The DISCOVRE (DIversity, Systematics and COnnectivity of Vulnerable Reef Ecosystems) program investigates unique and fragile deep-sea coral environments from the microscopic level to the ecosystem level. The multi-disciplinary approach has enhanced our understanding of the structure and function of significant biological communities surrounding deep coral reefs off the United States’ coasts.
Publications
Realizing the potential of eDNA biodiversity monitoring tools in the marine environment with application to offshore renewable energy
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) researches the biological diversity and distribution of species to support management, conservation, and resource use decisions. USGS scientists advance detection and monitoring technologies to assess changes in fish and wildlife populations, biodiversity, and the health of ecosystems. The United States is planning to install 30 gigawatts of offshore marine and wi
California Deepwater Investigations and Groundtruthing (Cal DIG) I, volume 3 — Benthic habitat characterization offshore Morro Bay, California
Estimating species misclassification with occupancy dynamics and encounter rates: A semi-supervised, individual-level approach
Evaluation of MPA designs that protect highly mobile megafauna now and under climate change scenarios
Surface ocean warming and acidification driven by rapid carbon release precedes Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum
Science
California Sea Otter Surveys and Research
Walrus Research
North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database
Polar Bear Research
Pacific Marine Heatwave
Multimedia
In the winter of 2015, the public noticed thousands of dead seabirds washing ashore across the western coast of the United States and Canada. The USGS linked this massive seabird die-off to the North Pacific Marine Heatwave. A marine heatwave occurs when sea surface temperatures are above normal for an extended period of time.
In the winter of 2015, the public noticed thousands of dead seabirds washing ashore across the western coast of the United States and Canada. The USGS linked this massive seabird die-off to the North Pacific Marine Heatwave. A marine heatwave occurs when sea surface temperatures are above normal for an extended period of time.
Illustrates where Common Eiders were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Common Eiders were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Four Tufted Puffins on the water, near their breeding colony at Gull Island in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
Four Tufted Puffins on the water, near their breeding colony at Gull Island in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
Zoomed image of a Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) breaking the surface.
Zoomed image of a Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) breaking the surface.
Illustrates where Pelagic Cormorants were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Pelagic Cormorants were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Tufted Puffins were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking
Illustrates where Tufted Puffins were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking
Illustrates where Northern Fulmars were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Illustrates where Northern Fulmars were tracked using Argos Wildlife Tracking.
Timing is Everything: How Fish and Wildlife are Responding to Climate Change Through Shifts in the Timing of Life Events
Timing is Everything: How Fish and Wildlife are Responding to Climate Change Through Shifts in the Timing of Life Events