Nearshore Fish Surveys in the Beaufort Sea

Nearshore systems provide habitat to a unique community of marine and diadromous (lives in both fresh and saltwater) fish and support high fish abundance.

Return to Wildlife, Fish, and Habitats >> Fish and Aquatic Ecology

In the Arctic, rapid changes in temperature and salinity have led to changes in where fish commonly occur. Recent offshore survey efforts also provide an opportunity to compare fish abundance between offshore and nearshore habitats to understand which species use nearshore and offshore habitats and if nearshore habitats are used for specific part of their lives (like juvenile rearing, feeding, or reproduction). Updated information on fish community and use of nearshore habitats will provide management agencies with information for assessments and improve understanding of current susceptibility and risks of development and production in federal waters.

Project Tasks:

Examine the composition of nearshore fish communities along spatial (central to eastern Beaufort) and temporal (inter-annual) scales.
Describe the distribution and abundance of marine and diadromous fish species in nearshore habitats in relation to known hydrographic (e.g., salinity, temperature) and biological (e.g., presence of kelp) drivers.
Assess the possible connectivity between continental shelf and estuarine nearshore fish communities through comparative analyses of community assemblage, abundance, and individual attributes (e.g., length) to identify the role of nearshore habitats.

Engage local students from Kaveolook School through K-12 Oceanography Program (see https://utmsi.utexas.edu/visit/summer-science/kaktovik-alaska)

A fish trap set in the ocean along the shore near Kaktovik, AK

A fyke net or fish trap used for continuous sampling of nearshore fish in shallow waters. Fish swimming along the beach are stopped by a small-mesh net that guides them in to one of these two underwater fish traps that are set side by side. Researchers visit nets at least once a day to identify, count, and release fish.
(Credit: Vanessa von Biela, USGS. Public domain.)

Underwater view of fish inside a fyke net

An underwater image of fish captured by a fyke net near Kaktovik, Alaska, Beaufort Sea, USA. The small silver fish with dark backs are young-of-year (age-0) Arctic cisco (Coregonus autumnalis) and the flatfish are Arctic flounder (Liopsetta glacialis).
(Credit: Vanessa von Biela, USGS. Public domain.)

A lot of small fish from a fyke net set near Kaktovik, AK. Biologists sort through them.

Biologists identify species, count, measure length, and release thousands of fish each year to understand how fish use nearshore habitats.
(Credit: Vanessa von Biela, USGS. Public domain.)

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Kenneth Dunton

Professor
University of Texas, Department of Marine Science
Email: ken.dunton@utexas.edu

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Below are other science projects associated with this project.

Date published: February 27, 2018
Status: Active
Fish and Aquatic Ecology

Fish and aquatic habitats in Alaska support important commercial, sport, and subsistence fisheries and provide forage fish that support wildlife populations. The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts interdisciplinary research to inform local, state, federal, and international policy makers regarding conservation of fish, aquatic species, and their habitats. We work collaboratively with...

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Sarah Laske, Ph.D., Ashley Stanek

Attribution: Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Wildlife Program, Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center

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Date published: May 6, 2019
Status: Active
Winter Habitat of Juvenile Dolly Varden in the Canning River

In the Arctic, rivers often freeze all the way to the bottom each winter leaving fish with limited habitat where they can survive.

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Randy J. Brown

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 25, 2018
Status: Active
Arctic Lake Food Webs

From 2011 to 2013 we investigated freshwater food webs of Arctic Coastal Plain lakes in Alaska to improve our understanding how Arctic freshwater food webs may respond to landscape change the warmer, drier future.

Contacts: Sarah Laske, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Joshua C Koch, Ph.D., Joel A Schmutz, Ph.D., Amanda Rosenberger, Ph.D., Mark Wipfli, Matthew Whitman

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 25, 2018
Status: Active
Condition of Forage Fish in Prince William Sound During the Marine Heatwave

Changes in the body condition of a key forage fish species, Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes personatus), are examined to understand how energy transfer to predators may have been disrupted during the recent marine heatwave in the North Pacific (late 2013 to mid 2016).

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., Mayumi L Arimitsu, Ph.D., John Piatt, Ph.D., Sarah K Schoen, Caitlin Marsteller

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 24, 2018
Status: Active
Ecosystem Shifts in Arctic Seas

In addition to the direct effects of sea ice loss on walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) and polar bears (Ursus maritimus) that use ice as a platform, the decline of Arctic sea ice is predicted to promote a fundamental ecosystem shift from benthic animals that forage on the sea floor to pelagic animals that forage near the sea surface.

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., David Douglas, Daniel Esler, Ph.D., Chadwick V Jay, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Bryan Black, Kenneth Dutton

Attribution: Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 24, 2018
Status: Active
Lake Trout Biochronologies as Long-term Climate and Productivity Indicators in Alaska Lake Ecosystems

High latitude ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to long-term climate change, yet continuous, multidecadal indicators by which to gauge effects on biology are scarce, especially in freshwater environments.

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Bryan Black, Randy J. Brown, Dan Young

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 19, 2018
Status: Active
Primary Production Sources and Bottom-up Limitations in Nearshore Ecosystems

Kelp forests are among the world’s most productive habitats, but recent evidence suggests that production is highly variable.

Contacts: James L Bodkin, Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., David Douglas, Gordon Kruse, Franz Mueter

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 18, 2018
Status: Active
Hydro-Ecology of Arctic Thawing (HEAT): Ecology

Permafrost thaw is leading to a myriad of changes in physical and chemical conditions throughout the Arctic.

Contacts: Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Joshua C Koch, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Jon O'Donnell

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 18, 2018
Status: Active
Effect of Elodea spp. on Fish Performance Mediated Through Food Web Interactions

The potential for invasive species introductions in Arctic and Subarctic ecosystems is growing as climate change manifests and human activity increases in high latitudes.

Contacts: Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Suresh Andrew Sethi, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Dan Young, Gordon Reeves, Theresa Tanner

Attribution: Invasive Species Program, Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 17, 2018
Status: Active
Sockeye Salmon Migrating at the Northern Edge of Their Distribution

The physiological challenge for anadromous fish to migrate upriver to spawn and complete their life cycle is influenced by river temperature.

Contacts: Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Stephen D McCormick, Amy Regish, Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Kevin D. Keith, Merlyn Schelske, Charlie Lean

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center
Date published: April 3, 2018
Status: Active
Assessing heat stress in migrating Yukon River Chinook Salmon

We will examine evidence of heat stress in Yukon River Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) using heat shock proteins and gene expression.

Contacts: Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D., Christian E Zimmerman, Ph.D., Lizabeth Bowen, Shannon Waters, Stephen D McCormick, Amy Regish, Michael P Carey, Ph.D., Randy J. Brown, Sean Larson

Attribution: Region 11: Alaska, States and Territories, Alaska Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center