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Point Reyes National Seashore is one of only 10 national seashores in the National Park Service (NPS) system and the only national seashore on the west coast. Surrounded almost entirely by the Pacific Ocean, Tomales Bay, and Drakes Estero, water and marine life play a key role in the climate and ecosystems of Point Reyes. The intact coastal, estuarine, wetland, marsh, and riparian ecosystems of the Seashore make it a superb location for long-term monitoring, and studies that measure change in environmental conditions.
Over the last seven years Point Reyes National Seashore Association (PRNSA), in partnership with the NPS, has funded 30+ internship opportunities for early-career scientists to get hands-on experience while contributing to research and conservation projects. These studies and internships become an increasingly important and sobering task in the face of anthropogenic climate change.
The 15-mile-long Tomales Bay is a unique marine-coastal estuary and a designated Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. Unlike many Pacific coast estuaries, approximately 90% of the Tomales Bay’s surface area is subtidal, thus becoming a remarkable habitat for a variety of waterbirds. Because the surrounding watershed has limited human development, the bay supports special status species, including red-legged frogs and tidewater gobies.
Since the late 1990s, the Tomales Bay Marine Station (TBMS) at Sacramento Landing has supported scientific research of marine and terrestrial areas via workspace, housing, and boat access. From the effects of climate change on native oysters to the population ecology of white sharks, the countless researchers, students, and interns supported by the TMBS over the last 20 years have contributed greatly to the marine science field.
A recent expansion includes a wet lab and triples the amount of researcher space to enable more intensive study of marine life. This renovation also supports the next generation of scientists by exposing them to new marine environments and tools, challenging them with real world research questions, and introducing them to potential career paths with national parks.
The endangered black abalone live in the intertidal zone off the coasts of California and Baja California. Their history is intricately connected to human history. They went from one of the most ubiquitous species in Southern California tidepools to critically endangered in just a few years. Researchers and policymakers have worked tirelessly for the past 30 years to develop innovative strategies and collaborative rescue efforts to recover them. In this two-part podcast series, host Theodora Mautz interviews a variety of scientists and changemakers to discover the challenging yet optimistic recovery trajectory of black abalone.
In part one of the Natural Laboratory Black Abalone podcast series, host Theodora Mautz dives into the science and history of black abalone from multiple perspectives. Join us to learn how this species went from an iconic presence in California’s intertidal zone, to federally endangered in just a few years.
In this second episode of the Natural Laboratory Black Abalone podcast series, host Theodora Mautz speaks with a handful experts on strategies, lessons learned, and next steps for black abalone recovery. Join us as we learn about what happened next to this resilient species, and why we should care.
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Each year, nearly 150 independent research projects are conducted within the boundaries of Point Reyes National Seashore, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and Tomales Bay. These areas are a natural laboratory for research projects that provide information for conservation inititatives and park management. To support the National Park Service’s work in marine and estuarine ecosystems, the Neubacher Marine Science Fund was created to support independent marine research projects conducted in and around the Seashore. The 2023 Neubacher Fund grantees are:
Assessing juvenile Dungeness crab habitat use to inform vulnerability to global change (2021) – UC Santa Cruz
Response of Resident North American River Otters (Lontra canadensis) to Wetland Restoration at Drakes Beach, Point Reyes National Seashore, California (2021) – River Otter Ecology Project
Does Epigenetic Variation Help Pisaster Ochraceus (Ochre Sea Star) Survive During Mass Mortality? (2019) – Lauren Scheibelhut (Post-Doc), UC Davis
Reconstructing Coho Salmon (Oncorhycnhus Kisutch) Provenance and Use of Tomales Bay Via Microchemical Analyses of Salmon Otoliths: A Pilot Study (2019) – Rachael Ryan (Ph.D. Student), UC Berkeley
Physiological and Behavioral Responses of Northern Elephant Seals to Global Change (2019) – Ellen Lam (Ph.D. Student), UC Berkeley
Understanding the Consequences of Burrowing Crabs for Plant Community Composition and Restoration in Northern California (2019) – Janet Walker (Ph.D. Student), UC Davis
Developing a Baseline Food Web of Coastal Ecosystems in Point Reyes National Seashore Prior to Top Predator Recovery (2019) – Joseph Jackson (MS Student), Sonoma State University
The Eelgrass Filter: Effects of Habitat Structure and Predation on Non-native Species (2019) – Benjamin Rubinoff (Ph.D. Student), UC Davis
Seasonal Food Habits of the North American River Otter (Lontra Canadensis) in Tomales Bay and Drakes Bay, California (2017) – River Otter Ecology Project and Marin Academy
Population Ecology of White Sharks (Carcharodon Carcharias) Off Central California (2017) – Paul Kanive (Ph.D. Student), Montana State University
Rapid Large-Scale Eelgrass Monitoring Using High-Resolution Remote Sensing (2016) – Max C. N. Castorani (Post Doc), Tom W. Bell (Ph.D. Candidate), UC Santa Barbara
Local Adaptation and the Future of Kelp in Point Reyes National Seashore (2016) – Jordan A. Hollarsmith (Ph.D. graduate student), Bodega Marine Lab, UC Davis
Restoration Genetics of the Endangered Tidewater Goby, Eucyclogobius Newberryi, in Support of Reintroduction and Recovery in and Around Point Reyes National Seashore and Golden Gate National Recreation Area (2015) – David Jacobs, Professor, UCLA, with two undergraduates
Understanding the Effects of Climate Change and Biological Invasions on Native Oysters in Tomales Bay (2014) – Jason Sadowski (Ph.D. Candidate), UC Davis and Bodega Marine Laboratory
Seasonal Trends in Kelp-Herbivore Interactions at Point Reyes (2014) – Nicholas Burnett, Dept. Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley
Does Tomales Bay Pacific Herring (Clupea Pallasii) Prefer Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) for Spawning? What Does Eelgrass Do for Pacific Herring and Do Predators Gain an Advantage When Eelgrass Populations are Diminished? (2014) – Hali Rederer (MS Student), Sacramento State University
Self-Recruitment and Population Connectivity Along the Northern California Coast (2013) – Erin Satterthwaite (Ph.D. Candidate), UC Davis and Bodega Marine Lab
