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Mayumi L Arimitsu, Ph.D.

Seabirds, forage fish, and oceanography
Glacial influence on marine ecosystems

 

Professional Experience

  • 2009 - Present     Research Ecologist, USGS Alaska Science Center, Juneau

  • 2007 - 2009          SCEP, USGS Alaska Science Center, Juneau

  • 2001 - 2007           Fishery Biologist USGS Alaska Science Center

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D.    2016      University of Alaska Fairbanks, Juneau, Alaska    Fisheries

  • M.Sc.    2009     University of Alaska Fairbanks, Juneau, Alaska    Fisheries

  • B.Sc.     1998      U.C. Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California                  Biology

Affiliations and Memberships

  • Pacific Seabird Group

  • Kittlitz's Murrelet Technical Committee

  • American Fisheries Society

Honors and Awards

  • 2009 and 2010, Best student presentation, NPRB

Science and Products

link
A Tufted Puffin swimming in the sea in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
By
Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center
link

Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
Learn More
link
Pacific sand lance in a sieve from a purse seine in Prince William Sound

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).
By
Alaska Science Center
link

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).
Learn More
link
A bucket of the trawl catch of forage fish

Terrestrial Influence on Glacial-Marine Food Webs

Where glaciers meet the sea in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), they create unique and productive marine habitats. Ringed by the continent’s tallest coastal mountains, 20% of the GOA coastal watershed is covered by glacial ice and the annual freshwater discharge into the GOA from glacial melt is comparable to that of the Mississippi river.
By
Alaska Science Center
link

Terrestrial Influence on Glacial-Marine Food Webs

Where glaciers meet the sea in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), they create unique and productive marine habitats. Ringed by the continent’s tallest coastal mountains, 20% of the GOA coastal watershed is covered by glacial ice and the annual freshwater discharge into the GOA from glacial melt is comparable to that of the Mississippi river.
Learn More
link
2 Black-legged Kittiwakes, one captured Pacific sand lance

Cook Inlet Seabird and Forage Fish Study

A massive die-off of Common Murres was documented in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) during the fall and winter of 2015-2016 in association with a record-breaking marine heat wave in the GOA.
By
Energy & Wildlife, Alaska Science Center
link

Cook Inlet Seabird and Forage Fish Study

A massive die-off of Common Murres was documented in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) during the fall and winter of 2015-2016 in association with a record-breaking marine heat wave in the GOA.
Learn More
link
Many types of small fish laid out on the table for counting

Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
By
Alaska Science Center
link

Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
Learn More
link
Dead birds on the beach

Seabird Die-offs in Alaska

Beginning in 2015, large numbers of dead seabirds have been appearing on beaches in most marine areas of Alaska. Although seabird die-offs are known to occur sporadically (e.g. 1970, 1989, 1993, 1997/1998, and 2004) in Alaska, these recent die-offs have been distinguished from past events by their increased frequency, duration, geographic extent, and number of different species involved.
By
Alaska Science Center
link

Seabird Die-offs in Alaska

Beginning in 2015, large numbers of dead seabirds have been appearing on beaches in most marine areas of Alaska. Although seabird die-offs are known to occur sporadically (e.g. 1970, 1989, 1993, 1997/1998, and 2004) in Alaska, these recent die-offs have been distinguished from past events by their increased frequency, duration, geographic extent, and number of different species involved.
Learn More

Tracking Data for Kittlitz's Murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris)

This metadata document describes the data contained in the "rawData" folder of this data package. This data package contains all data collected by the Argos System from 47 satellite transmitters attached to Kittlitz's Murrelets captured along the north Gulf of Alaska, during May-July 2009-2015. Five data files are included in the "rawData" folder of this data pa
By
Alaska Science Center

Assessing the Status and Trends of Seabirds and Forage Fish in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

This data release is composed of six datasets regarding colonial seabirds and forage fish at two seabird nesting colonies on Gull and Chisik Islands in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. These data were collected to detect changes in the breeding population of Black-legged Kittiwakes and Common Murres on two nesting colonies in lower Cook Inlet and to compare those counts to baseline counts from 1995-1999.
By
Alaska Science Center

Pelagic Forage Fish Distribution Abundance and Body Condition

Monitoring long-term changes in forage fish distribution, abundance and body condition in the Prince William Sound 2012-2019.
By
Alaska Science Center

Data from Common Murre Die-off Surveys and Necropsies Following the North Pacific Marine Heatwave, 2015-2016

These data are in two tables relating to a die-off of Common Murres in the north Pacific, 2015-2016. The tables provide: 1) beach survey locations, date, time, distance surveyed (kilometers), and number of Common Murre carcasses observed during surveys conducted along the coastline of Alaska to document the 2015-2016 die-off of Common Murres coincident with the North Pacific marine heatwave, and 2
By
Alaska Science Center

Pacific Sand Lance Energy Density, Length, and Age, Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2012-2016

This data set documents the age, length, dry mass energy density, and dry mass of age-0 and age-1 Pacific sand lance captured in Prince William Sound Alaska each July from 2012 to 2016. The analysis of this data was published in von Biela et al. 2019 (doi:10.3354/meps12891).
By
Alaska Science Center
Filter Total Items: 36

Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs

Nearly half of the freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska originates from landscapes draining glacier runoff, but the influence of the influx of riverine organic matter on the trophodynamics of coastal marine food webs is not well understood. We quantified the ecological impact of riverine organic matter subsidies to glacier-marine habitats by developing a multi-trophic level Bayesian three-
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Best practices for assessing forage fish fisheries-seabird resource competition

Worldwide, in recent years capture fisheries targeting lower-trophic level forage fish and euphausiid crustaceans have been substantial (∼20 million metric tons [MT] annually). Landings of forage species are projected to increase in the future, and this harvest may affect marine ecosystems and predator-prey interactions by removal or redistribution of biomass central to pelagic food webs. In parti
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Puffins reveal contrasting relationships between forage fish and ocean climate in the North Pacific

Long-term studies of predator food habits (i.e., ‘predator-based sampling’) are useful for identifying patterns of spatial and temporal variability of forage nekton in marine ecosystems. We investigated temporal changes in forage fish availability and relationships to ocean climate by analyzing diet composition of three puffin species (horned puffin Fratercula corniculata, tufted puffin Fratercula
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Influence of glacier runoff on ecosystem structure in Gulf of Alaska fjords

To better understand the influence of glacier runoff on fjord ecosystems, we sampled oceanographic conditions, nutrients, zooplankton, forage fish and seabirds within 4 fjords in coastal areas of the Gulf Alaska. We used generalized additive models and geostatistics to identify the range of glacier runoff influence into coastal waters within fjords of varying estuarine influence and topographic co
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Avian predator buffers against variability in marine habitats with flexible foraging behavior

How well seabirds compensate for variability in prey abundance and composition near their breeding colonies influences their distribution and reproductive success. We used tufted puffins (Fratercula cirrhata) as forage fish samplers to study marine food webs from the western Aleutian Islands (53°N, 173°E) to Kodiak Island (57°N, 153°W), Alaska, during August 2012–2014. Around each colony we obtain
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Icefield-to-ocean linkages across the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem

Rates of glacier mass loss in the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest (PCTR) are among the highest on Earth, and changes in glacier volume and extent will affect the flow regime and chemistry of coastal rivers, as well as the nearshore marine ecosystem of the Gulf of Alaska. Here we synthesize physical, chemical and biological linkages that characterize the northern PCTR ecosystem, with
By
Ecosystems, Environments Program, Alaska Science Center

Evidence for the assimilation of ancient glacier organic carbon in a proglacial stream food web

We used natural abundance δ13C, δ15N, and Δ14C to compare trophic linkages between potential carbon sources (leaf litter, epilithic biofilm, and particulate organic matter) and consumers (aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish) in a nonglacial stream and two reaches of the heavily glaciated Herbert River. We tested the hypothesis that proglacial stream food webs are sustained by organic carbon releas
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Structure of marine predator and prey communities along environmental gradients in a glaciated fjord

Spatial patterns of marine predator communities are influenced to varying degrees by prey distribution and environmental gradients. We examined physical and biological attributes of an estuarine fjord with strong glacier influence to determine the factors that most influence the structure of predator and prey communities. Our results suggest that some species, such as walleye pollock (Theragra cha
By
Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

Oceanographic gradients and seabird prey community dynamics in glacial fjords

Glacial fjord habitats are undergoing rapid change as a result of contemporary global warming, yet little is known about how glaciers influence marine ecosystems. These ecosystems provide important feeding, breeding and rearing grounds for a wide variety of marine organisms, including seabirds of management concern. To characterize ocean conditions and marine food webs near tidewater glaciers, we
By
Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Alaska Science Center

Status and distribution of the Kittlitz's Murrelet <i>Brachyramphus brevirostris</i> along the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak and Aleutian Islands, Alaska

The Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris is adapted for life in glacial-marine ecosystems, being concentrated in the belt of glaciated fjords in the northern Gulf of Alaska from Glacier Bay to Cook Inlet. Most of the remaining birds are scattered along coasts of the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands, where they reside in protected bays and inlets, often in proximity to remnant glacie
By
Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

Status and distribution of the Kittlitz's murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris in Kenai Fjords, Alaska

The Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris is a candidate species for listing under the US Endangered Species Act because of its apparent declines within core population areas of coastal Alaska. During the summers of 2006-2008, we conducted surveys in marine waters adjacent to Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska, to estimate the current population size of Kittlitz's and Marbled murrelets B.
By
Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

Status and trend of the Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris in Glacier Bay, Alaska

We conducted standardized surveys for marine birds in Glacier Bay in seven years between 1991 and 2008. From our most recent survey, a combination of line- and strip-transect methods completed in 2008, we estimated that 4981 (95% CI 1293–8670) Kittlitz’s Murrelets Brachyramphus brevirostris resided in Glacier Bay during the month of June, together with 12 195 (5607–18 783) Marbled Murrelets B. mar
By
Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

Pre-USGS Publications

Arimitsu, M. L. 2016. The influence of glaciers on coastal marine ecosystems in the Gulf of Alaska. Dissertation, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 154 p.
Arimitsu, M. L. 2009. Environmental gradients and prey availability relative to glacial features in Kittlitz's murrelet foraging habitat. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
link

'The Blob' - The Story of the Pacific Heatwave

About 62,000 dead or dying common murres, the trophically dominant fish-eating seabird of the North Pacific, washed ashore between summer 2015 and...

Read Article
link

Video on USGS Pacific Seabird Research

This video features an overview of USGS and Ecosystems research with a focus on Pacific seabirds. Our scientists at the USGS Alaska Science Center...

Read Article
link

Publication on Ecosystem Response to an Unprecedented Marine Heatwave in the Gulf of Alaska

The 2014-2016 northeast Pacific marine heatwave in the Gulf of Alaska was the longest lasting heatwave globally over the past decade. A new study led...

Read Article

Science and Products

  • Science
    link
    A Tufted Puffin swimming in the sea in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

    Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

    Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
    By
    Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center
    link

    Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology

    Alaska's coastal and offshore waters provide foraging habitat for an estimated 100 million birds comprising more than 90 different species; from loons and seaducks that nest inland, to petrels and puffins that breed on islands off shore. All these birds depend on the sea to provide a wide variety of food types— from clams, crabs and urchins nearshore— to krill, forage fish, and squid offshore. The...
    Learn More
    link
    Pacific sand lance in a sieve from a purse seine in Prince William Sound

    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).
    By
    Alaska Science Center
    link

    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).
    Learn More
    link
    A bucket of the trawl catch of forage fish

    Terrestrial Influence on Glacial-Marine Food Webs

    Where glaciers meet the sea in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), they create unique and productive marine habitats. Ringed by the continent’s tallest coastal mountains, 20% of the GOA coastal watershed is covered by glacial ice and the annual freshwater discharge into the GOA from glacial melt is comparable to that of the Mississippi river.
    By
    Alaska Science Center
    link

    Terrestrial Influence on Glacial-Marine Food Webs

    Where glaciers meet the sea in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), they create unique and productive marine habitats. Ringed by the continent’s tallest coastal mountains, 20% of the GOA coastal watershed is covered by glacial ice and the annual freshwater discharge into the GOA from glacial melt is comparable to that of the Mississippi river.
    Learn More
    link
    2 Black-legged Kittiwakes, one captured Pacific sand lance

    Cook Inlet Seabird and Forage Fish Study

    A massive die-off of Common Murres was documented in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) during the fall and winter of 2015-2016 in association with a record-breaking marine heat wave in the GOA.
    By
    Energy & Wildlife, Alaska Science Center
    link

    Cook Inlet Seabird and Forage Fish Study

    A massive die-off of Common Murres was documented in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) during the fall and winter of 2015-2016 in association with a record-breaking marine heat wave in the GOA.
    Learn More
    link
    Many types of small fish laid out on the table for counting

    Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

    Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
    By
    Alaska Science Center
    link

    Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

    Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
    Learn More
    link
    Dead birds on the beach

    Seabird Die-offs in Alaska

    Beginning in 2015, large numbers of dead seabirds have been appearing on beaches in most marine areas of Alaska. Although seabird die-offs are known to occur sporadically (e.g. 1970, 1989, 1993, 1997/1998, and 2004) in Alaska, these recent die-offs have been distinguished from past events by their increased frequency, duration, geographic extent, and number of different species involved.
    By
    Alaska Science Center
    link

    Seabird Die-offs in Alaska

    Beginning in 2015, large numbers of dead seabirds have been appearing on beaches in most marine areas of Alaska. Although seabird die-offs are known to occur sporadically (e.g. 1970, 1989, 1993, 1997/1998, and 2004) in Alaska, these recent die-offs have been distinguished from past events by their increased frequency, duration, geographic extent, and number of different species involved.
    Learn More
  • Data

    Tracking Data for Kittlitz's Murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris)

    This metadata document describes the data contained in the &amp;quot;rawData&amp;quot; folder of this data package. This data package contains all data collected by the Argos System from 47 satellite transmitters attached to Kittlitz's Murrelets captured along the north Gulf of Alaska, during May-July 2009-2015. Five data files are included in the &amp;quot;rawData&amp;quot; folder of this data pa
    By
    Alaska Science Center

    Assessing the Status and Trends of Seabirds and Forage Fish in Lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

    This data release is composed of six datasets regarding colonial seabirds and forage fish at two seabird nesting colonies on Gull and Chisik Islands in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. These data were collected to detect changes in the breeding population of Black-legged Kittiwakes and Common Murres on two nesting colonies in lower Cook Inlet and to compare those counts to baseline counts from 1995-1999.
    By
    Alaska Science Center

    Pelagic Forage Fish Distribution Abundance and Body Condition

    Monitoring long-term changes in forage fish distribution, abundance and body condition in the Prince William Sound 2012-2019.
    By
    Alaska Science Center

    Data from Common Murre Die-off Surveys and Necropsies Following the North Pacific Marine Heatwave, 2015-2016

    These data are in two tables relating to a die-off of Common Murres in the north Pacific, 2015-2016. The tables provide: 1) beach survey locations, date, time, distance surveyed (kilometers), and number of Common Murre carcasses observed during surveys conducted along the coastline of Alaska to document the 2015-2016 die-off of Common Murres coincident with the North Pacific marine heatwave, and 2
    By
    Alaska Science Center

    Pacific Sand Lance Energy Density, Length, and Age, Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2012-2016

    This data set documents the age, length, dry mass energy density, and dry mass of age-0 and age-1 Pacific sand lance captured in Prince William Sound Alaska each July from 2012 to 2016. The analysis of this data was published in von Biela et al. 2019 (doi:10.3354/meps12891).
    By
    Alaska Science Center
  • Publications
    Filter Total Items: 36

    Tracing biogeochemical subsidies from glacier runoff into Alaska's coastal marine food webs

    Nearly half of the freshwater discharge into the Gulf of Alaska originates from landscapes draining glacier runoff, but the influence of the influx of riverine organic matter on the trophodynamics of coastal marine food webs is not well understood. We quantified the ecological impact of riverine organic matter subsidies to glacier-marine habitats by developing a multi-trophic level Bayesian three-
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Best practices for assessing forage fish fisheries-seabird resource competition

    Worldwide, in recent years capture fisheries targeting lower-trophic level forage fish and euphausiid crustaceans have been substantial (∼20 million metric tons [MT] annually). Landings of forage species are projected to increase in the future, and this harvest may affect marine ecosystems and predator-prey interactions by removal or redistribution of biomass central to pelagic food webs. In parti
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Puffins reveal contrasting relationships between forage fish and ocean climate in the North Pacific

    Long-term studies of predator food habits (i.e., ‘predator-based sampling’) are useful for identifying patterns of spatial and temporal variability of forage nekton in marine ecosystems. We investigated temporal changes in forage fish availability and relationships to ocean climate by analyzing diet composition of three puffin species (horned puffin Fratercula corniculata, tufted puffin Fratercula
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Influence of glacier runoff on ecosystem structure in Gulf of Alaska fjords

    To better understand the influence of glacier runoff on fjord ecosystems, we sampled oceanographic conditions, nutrients, zooplankton, forage fish and seabirds within 4 fjords in coastal areas of the Gulf Alaska. We used generalized additive models and geostatistics to identify the range of glacier runoff influence into coastal waters within fjords of varying estuarine influence and topographic co
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Avian predator buffers against variability in marine habitats with flexible foraging behavior

    How well seabirds compensate for variability in prey abundance and composition near their breeding colonies influences their distribution and reproductive success. We used tufted puffins (Fratercula cirrhata) as forage fish samplers to study marine food webs from the western Aleutian Islands (53°N, 173°E) to Kodiak Island (57°N, 153°W), Alaska, during August 2012–2014. Around each colony we obtain
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Icefield-to-ocean linkages across the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem

    Rates of glacier mass loss in the northern Pacific coastal temperate rainforest (PCTR) are among the highest on Earth, and changes in glacier volume and extent will affect the flow regime and chemistry of coastal rivers, as well as the nearshore marine ecosystem of the Gulf of Alaska. Here we synthesize physical, chemical and biological linkages that characterize the northern PCTR ecosystem, with
    By
    Ecosystems, Environments Program, Alaska Science Center

    Evidence for the assimilation of ancient glacier organic carbon in a proglacial stream food web

    We used natural abundance δ13C, δ15N, and Δ14C to compare trophic linkages between potential carbon sources (leaf litter, epilithic biofilm, and particulate organic matter) and consumers (aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish) in a nonglacial stream and two reaches of the heavily glaciated Herbert River. We tested the hypothesis that proglacial stream food webs are sustained by organic carbon releas
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Structure of marine predator and prey communities along environmental gradients in a glaciated fjord

    Spatial patterns of marine predator communities are influenced to varying degrees by prey distribution and environmental gradients. We examined physical and biological attributes of an estuarine fjord with strong glacier influence to determine the factors that most influence the structure of predator and prey communities. Our results suggest that some species, such as walleye pollock (Theragra cha
    By
    Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

    Oceanographic gradients and seabird prey community dynamics in glacial fjords

    Glacial fjord habitats are undergoing rapid change as a result of contemporary global warming, yet little is known about how glaciers influence marine ecosystems. These ecosystems provide important feeding, breeding and rearing grounds for a wide variety of marine organisms, including seabirds of management concern. To characterize ocean conditions and marine food webs near tidewater glaciers, we
    By
    Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Alaska Science Center

    Status and distribution of the Kittlitz's Murrelet <i>Brachyramphus brevirostris</i> along the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak and Aleutian Islands, Alaska

    The Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris is adapted for life in glacial-marine ecosystems, being concentrated in the belt of glaciated fjords in the northern Gulf of Alaska from Glacier Bay to Cook Inlet. Most of the remaining birds are scattered along coasts of the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands, where they reside in protected bays and inlets, often in proximity to remnant glacie
    By
    Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center

    Status and distribution of the Kittlitz's murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris in Kenai Fjords, Alaska

    The Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris is a candidate species for listing under the US Endangered Species Act because of its apparent declines within core population areas of coastal Alaska. During the summers of 2006-2008, we conducted surveys in marine waters adjacent to Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska, to estimate the current population size of Kittlitz's and Marbled murrelets B.
    By
    Ecosystems, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

    Status and trend of the Kittlitz's Murrelet Brachyramphus brevirostris in Glacier Bay, Alaska

    We conducted standardized surveys for marine birds in Glacier Bay in seven years between 1991 and 2008. From our most recent survey, a combination of line- and strip-transect methods completed in 2008, we estimated that 4981 (95% CI 1293–8670) Kittlitz’s Murrelets Brachyramphus brevirostris resided in Glacier Bay during the month of June, together with 12 195 (5607–18 783) Marbled Murrelets B. mar
    By
    Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Wildlife Program, Alaska Science Center

    Pre-USGS Publications

    Arimitsu, M. L. 2016. The influence of glaciers on coastal marine ecosystems in the Gulf of Alaska. Dissertation, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 154 p.
    Arimitsu, M. L. 2009. Environmental gradients and prey availability relative to glacial features in Kittlitz's murrelet foraging habitat. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
  • News
    link

    'The Blob' - The Story of the Pacific Heatwave

    About 62,000 dead or dying common murres, the trophically dominant fish-eating seabird of the North Pacific, washed ashore between summer 2015 and...

    Read Article
    link

    Video on USGS Pacific Seabird Research

    This video features an overview of USGS and Ecosystems research with a focus on Pacific seabirds. Our scientists at the USGS Alaska Science Center...

    Read Article
    link

    Publication on Ecosystem Response to an Unprecedented Marine Heatwave in the Gulf of Alaska

    The 2014-2016 northeast Pacific marine heatwave in the Gulf of Alaska was the longest lasting heatwave globally over the past decade. A new study led...

    Read Article