Webinar on Rocky Intertidal Habitats

Coastal ecologist Silke Bachhuber in the field.

CoastWatch and Oregon Shores are offering a webinar on basic rocky shore ecology, with a focus on the south coast, including Cape Arago.  The webinar, “Exploring Oregon’s Rocky Intertidal Habitats,” featuring coastal ecologists Zechariah Meunier and Silke Bachhuber, takes place on Thursday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m.  This is one of a series of webinars providing information about key coastal habitats, focusing on Coos County and the south coast but of interest coastwide, which we are offering with support from the City of Coos Bay and the Pacific Power Foundation.

Oregon’s rocky intertidal habitats are among the most productive and diverse coastal ecosystems in the world. In particular, cobble beaches and rocky shores have immense spiritual, commercial, environmental, and recreational value to Oregonians. Join two marine biology graduate students from Oregon State University to learn more about the intertidal. Silke and Zech will discuss the ecology of rocky intertidal habitats and the unique adaptations of the organisms that live there, with a focus on the South Coast and specific reference to Cape Arago. They will exhibit their research and highlight some of the amazing places, animals, and algae that you can find on a visit to the coast.

Zechariah Meunier is a PhD candidate and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow in the Department of Integrative Biology at Oregon State University.  He studies community and meta-ecosystem dynamics in coastal habitats. His dissertation research focuses on rocky intertidal ecosystems of Oregon, California, and Nova Scotia. He investigates factors that influence larval supply, nutrient delivery, succession, and stability.

Silke Bachhuber is a PhD student in the Lubchenco-Menge Laboratory at Oregon State University, advised by Professor Bruce Menge. Her work in Oregon, California, and New Zealand focuses on understanding trophic resilience and predator-prey relationships in rocky intertidal food webs, with a focus on the impact of climate change and ocean acidification. She also studies the effects of Sea Star Wasting Syndrome on intertidal sea star species, as well as the ecological effects of predator loss. Her broad research interests currently center around the effects of ocean acidification and temperature on coastal marine ecosystems, and how scientists and communities can work together to protect our most vulnerable ocean habitats.

To register for this event, or for more information, contact Jesse Jones, CoastWatch volunteer coordinator, jesse@oregonshores.org.