Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Lurid Ecologies: Drawing Oysters Reefs with San Francisco Mud

What do you see in these mud-streaked paintings? Oakland-based artist Tanja Geis created them for her new #sciart exhibit, “Lurid Ecologies: Ways of Seeing the Bay.” She used mud from San Francisco Bay to draw reefs of the Olympia oyster, Ostrea lurida. But some viewers see eyes or skulls. There’s even one on the bottom right called “layer cake.” Olympia oysters are the only native oysters on the West Coast of North America, and their populations in San Francisco Bay have plummeted as developers filled in large swaths of the Bay. Through this new exhibit, Geis hopes to shed light on efforts to restore the oysters, and the research biologists at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and other California organizations are doing to uncover ways to help bring them back.

In San Francisco this week? This exhibit is open to the public through Saturday, Aug. 19! You’ll find it at the Embark Gallery in Fort Mason’s Center for Arts & Culture. Read more about the exhibit Meet the Artist: Q&A with Tanja Geis

Wildlife Wednesday: Tug-of-War, Snake Style

Just another day in the field...Smithsonian Environmental Research Center intern Nicholas Morin spotted these two water snakes battling it out over an American eel in Canning House Bay, while doing a survey with our Fish & Invertebrate Ecology Lab. Water snakes are common throughout Maryland and aren't venomous. But beware of approaching or handling: They're known for being "ill humored" and may bite or emit a foul-smelling musk when they feel threatened. Neither of these snakes was quick to back down when lunch was at stake!

Here’s A Sampling of How the Ocean Sounds at Night

Ever wondered what life underwater sounds like? This Bocon toadfish is hardly ever seen by day, since it spends most its time hiding in burrows in the sand near coral reefs or seagrass beds. But after sunset, its humming calls are so loud, they can drown out everything else on tropical reefs. Male toadfish do most of the singing, after they’ve staked out their burrows and are seeking to win over a mate. More than half the fish species on coral reefs are rarely spotted, because they’re small, hidden or nocturnal (sometimes all three). To tap into the “hidden half,” biologists from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and the Smithsonian’s MarineGEO network put recorders on the ocean floor around corals, mangroves and seagrass beds. Some of the loudest species they picked up, like toadfish and snapping shrimp, didn’t appear once to divers! (Photo: Erica Staaterman/SERC) Read more on our blog: https://sercblog.si.edu/?p=8439

Summer Intern Spotlight

Elena Huynh is a #summerintern at SERC-West in San Francisco Bay, and she's setting up duels between marine invertebrates to see who's best at claiming space! 

For more info, check out our intern spotlights here: http://s.si.edu/2uu2jQY

To learn more about internships at SERC, visit the internships page on our website at: https://serc.si.edu/pro_traini…/internships/projectmenu.aspx

Credit: Ryan Greene/SERC

Summer Intern Spotlight

Ryan Greene is a #summerintern at SERC-West in San Francisco Bay, and he's creating science-related media that people can read, watch, hear and even touch! 

For more info, check out our intern spotlights here: http://s.si.edu/2uu2jQY 

To learn more about internships at SERC, visit the internships page on our website at: https://serc.si.edu/pro_traini…/internships/projectmenu.aspx

Credit: Elena Huynh/SERC

Summer Intern Spotlight

Ana Sofia Remis is a #summerintern at SERC-West in San Francisco Bay, and she's putting invasive clams to the test to see how well they can survive in freshwater conditions! 

For more info, check out our intern spotlights here: http://s.si.edu/2uu2jQY 

To learn more about internships at SERC, visit the internships page on our website at: https://serc.si.edu/pro_traini…/internships/projectmenu.aspx

Credit: Ryan Greene/SERC

Summer Intern Spotlight

Jamie Bucholz is a #summerintern at SERC-West in San Francisco Bay, and she's using a system of suspended cages to study how predators shape the face of the "fouling community" (a.k.a. the creatures that grow on docks and boat hulls). 

For more info, check out our intern spotlights here: http://s.si.edu/2uu2jQY 

To learn more about internships at SERC, visit the internships page on our website at: https://serc.si.edu/pro_traini…/internships/projectmenu.aspx

Credit: Ryan Greene/SERC

Some people would freak if they found a black rat snake occupying their workspace. Our scientists love it.

Happy World Snake Day.

Why snakes are the unsung heroes of our experiments

Long-term monitoring "doesn’t look sexy until something like this happens,” says SERC ecologist Andy Chang. Check out the first story in “Tidings of the Sunset Coast,” our new summer series about SERC-West, our marine biology outpost at Romberg Tiburon Center, San Francisco State University. Our first post dives into California's wet winter and the impacts it’s had on the plants and animals living in San Francisco Bay. http://s.si.edu/2sMpzaZ

Marine Biologists in Action: Sea Wall Sampling

Today, SERC researcher Gail Ashton collected experimental panels from the sea wall at SERC-West for the World Harbour Project​. As part of this project, scientists at sites around the globe are testing ways to boost the biodiversity of artificial structures. For more info, check out the WHP website: http://www.worldharbourproject.org/  Photos: Ryan Greene/SERC

Yesterday’s mystery sound was the sound of HUNDREDS of European green crabs (Carcinus maenas) fidgeting in a bucket before being measured and marked. Since 2009, SERC scientists have worked with collaborators from University of California Davis and Portland State University to study how to reduce the invasive green crab population in Seadrift Lagoon, a lagoon just north of San Francisco. These crabs have dramatically disrupted the lagoon’s ecosystem, and that’s why SERC scientists are researching ways to keep them in check. Though our current focus is on population reduction, to learn more about our past interest in studying strategies for full eradication, check out this article from 2011.

UC Davis lab assistant Ian Pritchard measures European Green Crabs with two volunteers. This past week, SERC researchers, collaborators, and volunteers measured and marked thousands of European green crabs in Seadrift Lagoon near Stinson Beach, California. Credit: Ryan Greene/SERC

Seadrift Lagoon has one of the highest densities of European green crabs on the West Coast. Credit: Ryan Greene/SERC

Here's what SERC scientists and volunteers heard in the field last week on California’s coast—can you guess the source of this mystery sound? Check back for the answer Friday at 9pm Eastern/6pm Pacific!

Fine Fish

In the recent issue of Cell Biology, SERC biologist Simon Brandl and Christopher Goatley of the University of New England published a quick guide to cryptobenthic reef fishes. These wonderfully diverse little fishes often go unnoticed in reefs. To celebrate, SERC awarded 5 Tiny Fish awards in categories like "Sneakiest," "Most Stylish," and "Best Innovation in Mating."

https://sercblog.si.edu/?p=8193

Photos courtesy Simon Brandl/SERC

Humans are short and trees can’t talk—that’s why SERC postdoc Uzay Sezen brings a crossbow and liquid nitrogen into the forest with him. Read about how Uzay and the Quantitative Ecology Lab are unraveling the genetics of tree growth in our new blog post! http://s.si.edu/2sQ5ns9

SERC technician Ruth DiMaria just finished a round of zooplankton sampling here on California’s coast. She spent last week leading SERC’s annual zooplankton survey in San Francisco Bay, and then early this week spent a couple days collecting these teeny marine critters in Bodega Bay and Tomales Bay. Monitoring like this helps SERC scientists keep an eye on the spread of invasive species in our coastal waters! 

Happy World Sea Turtle Day!

SERC Scientist Emmett Duffy was surveying marine life for the Marine Global Earth Observatory (MarineGEO) project in Hawaii and filmed this sea turtle. Happy #WorldSeaTurtleDay!

https://twitter.com/JEmmettDuffy/status/866913989405548544