University of Washington Tacoma
  •  
  •  
 

Access*: Interdisciplinary Journal of Student Research and Scholarship

Author Biography

Mikayla is a recent graduate from UWT with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science: Conservation Biology and Ecology. During her time at UWT, she worked with Cheryl Greengrove and Julie Masura on oceanographic research with a focus on phytoplankton. Mikayla hopes to pursue a Master's degree, preferably in entomology, eventually.

Document Type

Undergraduate Research Paper

Abstract

Diatoms are a major group of phytoplankton that form the foundation of aquatic food webs and dominate the phytoplankton community in aquatic systems. With silica-based cell walls and no flagella, their mobility is limited, and their demand for silica is greater than that of dinoflagellates and other groups. As climate change drives rising ocean temperatures and more frequent marine heat waves (MHWs), studies in the Northeastern Pacific show that diatom abundance relative to dinoflagellates declines during these events. Two main published hypotheses that explain this are: 1) Dinoflagellates are more tolerant to temperature, and 2) Silicate availability may decrease with warming, disadvantaging silica-dependent diatoms. This study will investigate diatom abundance in relation to temperature and silicate changes in Tofino Inlet, Clayoquot Sound, on Vancouver Island’s west coast (2013–2023), a period that included several MHWs. Researchers from the University of Washington Tacoma have collected annual late-summer/early fall water property data in Clayoquot Sound since 2001, along with phytoplankton samples since 2006. This dataset includes CTD profiles (temperature, salinity, density, oxygen, fluorescence, transmissivity), discrete water samples (nutrients, phytoplankton), and 10-meter vertical net tows (20 µm mesh). As the foundation of the food web, changes in phytoplankton composition can have drastic impacts on higher trophic levels. Understanding how MHWs affect phytoplankton communities will help improve climate change preparedness for marine resource managers. This study did not find a correlation between diatom abundance relative to silicate or temperature in Tofino Inlet. However, a spatial pattern was found in silicate concentrations along the inlet.

University

University of Washington Tacoma

Course

TESC 499 Undergraduate Research

Instructor

Cheryl Greengrove

Download

Share

COinS