SEAW ORDS TheMarineOption Program Newsletter
February 2022
Volume XXXVII, Number 2
Al oha and W el come to the Febr uar y issue of Seawords!
This month we start off our newsletter saying Aloha ?Oe, a final farewell, to the founding director of the Marine Option Program, Barry Hill. I had the immense pleasure of interviewing Barry's wife, Shirley, and listening to the fond memories and fascinating stories she told about her husband and his life's work (page 4). Read about an unexpected discovery in the deep ocean (page 10), as well as the creative new technology working to combat an invasive species (page 20). Learn about a lesser known yet fascinating phenomenon, vertical migration, on page 16. On page 8, see how a myriad of programs and funding are coming together to improve ocean data for indigenous coastal communities around the world. Finally, allow me to introduce the Creature of the Month (page 12). Known for their unique morphology and "romantic" mating behavior, for the month of February we have... the seahorse! W hat would you like to see more of in Seawords?Send in your thoughts, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @mopseawords!
Abbie Jeremiah, SeawordsEditor 2 | Seawords
Contents 2: LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 4: REMEMBERING BARRY 8: IMPROVING ACCESS TO OCEAN DATA FOR INDIGENOUS COASTAL COMMUNITIES 10: OXYGEN PRODUCERS FOUND IN THE ABYSS 12: CREATURE OF THE MONTH: SEAHORSE 16: VERTICAL MIGRATION 20: ROBOT FISH TACKLES INVASIVE SPECIES 22: MOP CALENDAR
Photo Credits Front Page: Seahorse. By: Mandy Jansen, Flickr. Table of Contents: Lyman's. By: Abbie Jeremiah Back Cover: Coral. By: Mathias Appel, Flickr.
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Barry Hill. Photo provided by Shirley Hill.
Remembering Barry By: Abbie Jeremiah 4 | Seawords
?[Barry] wasa very humbleperson. Helovedtobeabletomakea differenceandpay it forward.? -
Shirley Hill
Barry Hill was the one of the founders of the Marine Option Program and its first director. His life?s work took him to the far reaches of the world, leading and participating in projects in aquaculture, education, and marine affairs--projects which held lasting impressions on those they helped. Over Zoom, I was able to get to know Barry a little better through the fond memories and stories of his wife, Shirley. After being the first in his family to graduate college, Barry joined the Peace Corps in 1964, and was sent to Sierra Leone, West Africa. He went on to work on a government-initiated rice irrigation project in Fiji which eventually led to a fellowship at the University of Hawaii in Agriculture Resource Economics in 1969. While working on his master ?s degree,?he was involved in the early development of aquaculture in Tanzania and the Philippines. "[His work along with Maxwell Doty,] made a big difference to women in Palawan. It changed their lives, helping them to support their families,? said Shirley. In 1970 he completed his master ?s degree and married the love of his life, Shirley Lam, ?We were married for almost 51 years. It's a long time to spend with someone but we had a lot of interesting adventures [together].? Barry then began to work for UH Manoa?s Sea Grant Program as an education specialist. Under the foresight of the Sea
Grant Director (Dr. Jack Davidson) and the Dean of Marine Programs (Dr. John Craven), the Marine Option Program was created.?He was very proud of MOP? he talked to a lot of people from different departments to get ideas, but the most important thing was that most of the ideas came from the students themselves; from their feedback? [MOP] lasted for 50 years because of the students? It?s important to empower the students because [the program] has to be student focused,? stated Shirley. Indeed, the fluid and organic nature of the Marine Option Program, along with dedication from its students and staff is what has allowed it to grow, adapt, and thrive over time. Barry also helped to create the Blue Water Marine Lab, an organization that focused on raising ocean interest and awareness in high school students across Hawai?i. On a captained windjammer, ?the kids were able to learn about marine life, conservation, even sailing. It was about teaching skills and raising interest,? recalled Shirley. In 1977 Barry completed a second master ?s degree in Marine Affairs at the University of Rhode Island. He returned to international agriculture and became an agriculture officer at USAID program in Tanzania, east Africa. In 1980 he went on to work in Lesotho, southern Africa where he was the Agriculture Development Officer.
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Barry Hill, founding director of MOP. Photo provided by Shirley Lam
Shirley recounted some of her most
landscape reminded him of
memorable stories with Barry in Africa,
his later
including escaping a coup d?état in Sierra
consulting work around the world and in
Leone and
his spare time volunteered as a tax
experiencing South
Africa
during apartheid. Living in other cultures
preparer
and ways of governance, they were able to
residents.
share
and
receive
perspectives
with
people all over the world.
years he
for
elderly
Lesotho.? In
continued
and
to
do
low-income
On November 10, 2021, Barry Hill passed away due to complications from
Barry took various other positions
Parkinson?s disease. Shirley reminisced;
around Africa and Washington D.C., always
?he was a very generous man. For him,
working
money is to be used for a purpose?
to
communities
support
and
because if you have an opportunity to earn
marine affairs, before retiring in 1997 and
the money you should also be able to use
moving
it wisely and pay it forward. That is his
to
through
developing
New
agriculture
Mexico, ?where
majestic rock formations and arid
6 | Seawords
the
philosophy.?
Bar r y, thr ough the w or ds of other s: ?More than its first director, Barry continues to be in the minds of former MOPers, synonymous with this undergraduate program? Barry did not lecture or instruct me in the ways of the program and its goals. He simply iterated a few principles and let me take it from there. A little daunting at first, but with his simple guidance, I carried out my work. I hope it made him proud. Later in life, Barry went on to pursue his other goals and dreams, but I never forgot the man who first gave me a chance to become a part of this storied program.?F O ?Barry's stories inspired me to do what I do Return from Africa. Photo provided by Shirley Hill. Above: Barry and Shirley Hill pictured after their return from Africa. Right: Barry encountering a green sea turtle on a SCUBA dive.
today? But I mostly remember how much he supported me with... everything.?C F
?..His guidance, words of wisdom, advice and constant encouragement were beyond appreciated and valued. He believed in me when I didn?t always believe in myself. For that, there are no words? ?A T ?? He was quite simply an amazing person, kind, sincere, saw through the nonsense in life and told it as it was. Nothing was ever a problem with him and he just got on in life despite any adversity. He will be missed by so many and he was the type of person who would touch everyone he came into contact with in some small way.?D M
Diving. Photo provided by Shirley Hill.
In his memory, Shirley has made a generous donation to the Marine Option Program that will be designated specifically to support MOP students. If you would also like to contribute as well, please go to giving.uhfoundation.org to designate your gift to Fund# 120-7160-4 (UH Manoa - Marine Option Program). Check the box for "This gift is in honor/memory of? " and add Barry H. Hill. We are very grateful for the support of the MOP ?Ohana! FEBRUARY 2022
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Red Buoy off Molokai. Photo by: Ed Suominenl, Flickr.
Im p roving access t o Ocean Data for Ind ig enous Coastal Com m unit ies St or y by: Chloe Molou, UHH Seaw ord s Liason 20 | Seawords
The Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS) in UH M?noa?s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) will be collaborating with partners in the Pacific Islands, Pacific Northwest and Alaska to improve access of ocean data for indigenous coastal communities. PacIOOS is in a five-year cooperative agreement with the U.S. integrated ocean observing system through NOAA, with funding provided by National Science Foundation (NSF) Convergence Accelerator Program. Receiving $3.08 million for the first year of the agreement, the project aims to utilize existing, low-cost wave buoy technology to get oceanographic information to coastal communities and provide community-led stewardship of the buoys. They hope to provide new tools and new connections to give local communities critical safety information including wave data for local mariners and fishers. Project partners will be working collectively to overcome some of the current obstacles of observation systems and technologies that are simply too expensive to acquire and maintain in isolation. The partners that will be working on this project include three regional systems of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (including PacIOOS), indigenous partners from villages in the Marshall Islands and American Samoa via the Marshall Islands Conservation Society and the National Park of American Samoa, the Quileute Tribe and Quinault Indian Nation on the coast of W ashington state, 11 whaling villages in the Arctic, and Sofar Ocean, a low-cost buoy and sensor company. During the initial phase of the project, partners will be assessing the needs of their indigenous coastal communities and determining how they may be addressed using existing low-cost Sofar ocean spotter wave buoy technologies. They aim to develop community-led stewardship programs that will allow communities?autonomy in maintaining the instruments and use these instruments to serve data to the community in the ways that work best for them. These indigenous communities will in turn provide feedback on the utility of the systems, as well as providing knowledge of ocean conditions from centuries of their local observations. If funded for phase two of the Convergence Accelerator Program, the team plans to broaden participation and networking to serve the needs of more underserved communities. FEBRUARY 2022
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Count the Ways. Photo by: Mathias Pastwa, Flickr.
OxygenProducersFound intheAbyss Storyby: LucianAnderson, UHMMOPAlumni
Oxygen, a critical ingredient for life on
in the ocean and they play an important role in
Earth, is created from the process known as
the nitrogen cycle. The nitrogen cycle, simply
photosynthesis. Photosynthesis requires light
put, is when nitrogen morphs into various
photons to produce oxygen. Thus far it seemed
chemical forms as it passes through the
that no light meant little oxygen production.
atmosphere and ocean, an endless cycle
However, another method of oxygen
necessary for life.
production may be unfolding. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) are one of the largest groups of organisms found 8 | Seawords
Through AOA, ammonia is oxidized to nitrogen. However, the oxidation process first requires the essential ingredient oxygen.
Interestingly, AOA are found in areas of the deep ocean lacking oxygen. Until recently, it was assumed that the AOA in these areas served no purpose. ?We thought: They just hang out there with no function; they must be some kind of ghost cells,?said biologist Beate Kraft. Kraft added ?These guys are really abundant in the oceans, where they play an important role in the nitrogen cycle. For this they need oxygen, so it has been a long-standing puzzle why they are also very abundant in waters where there is no oxygen.? Don Canfield, a biologist at Southern Denmark University and his colleagues performed an experiment with an AOA species known as Nitrosopumilusmaritimus. The archaea species is found in the ocean, including deep parts of the ocean lacking oxygen. The experiment placed the species in airtight containers where the oxygen was brought to a similar level to that of the deep ocean. Eventually the remaining oxygen was used up by the AOA. Mere minutes later, oxygen levels increased. It appeared that the AOA specimens
Bacteria. Photo by: Magdalena Wiklund, Flickr.
-less environment? The researchers who performed this experiment are not yet sure how the AOA are able to produce their own oxygen. The researchers speculate that it could be a new biological function. "If this lifestyle is widespread in the oceans, it certainly forces us to rethink our current understanding of the marine nitrogen cycle," Kraft stated. She also
were able to produce the oxygen they needed
said she would be going on an expedition to
to survive and oxidize nitrogen. The quantity
observe the effects of AOA on the oxygen
of production was not enough to greatly
depleted areas around the world. The
influence oxygen levels on the experimental
implications from these findings could suggest
scale, rather just enough for the AOA to
there may be even more organisms capable of
survive. However, since they are so abundant
this function and that there may be more to
in the ocean, the question arises: just how
the nitrogen cycle in the ocean than we
much do they impact their seemingly oxygen-
currently understand. FEBRUARY 2022
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Seaw o r d's C r eat u r e o f t h e Mo n t h :
Th e
Sea h 10 | Seawords
Yellow Seahorse. Photo by: Catherine Siverts, Flickr.
o r se By: Al exan dr ya Robin son , UH M M OP Stu den t
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Seahorse Pair. Artwork by: Alyssa Perez, UHM MOP Student.
12 | Seawords
An easily identifiable and iconic ocean denizen is at the forefront of this month?s creature feature. We have selected a very interesting fish with a tail used for grasping to substrates, where the males carry the young, and with an easily recognizable elongated snout which contributes to its name: seahorse. Seahorses (in the family Syngnathidae) are classified as bony fish, despite their unique morphology and poor swimming abilities. There are many varieties of seahorse, between 43 and 55 species, that inhabit shallow waters around the world. Their prehensile tails are used to anchor onto coral, roots, sea grass, or debris in which they can gain some cover. Trying to spot a seahorse in its natural habitat is very difficult because they have adapted highly specific camouflage for their anchoring spots. Living close to the shore, seahorses have adapted to be carnivores, filtering-feeding on abundant zooplankton and even tiny crustaceans. These creatures do not have stomachs, and must continually feed to survive. The food that is consumed is used for the regulation of bodily functions, movement, and for reproduction. During their reproductive time seahorses are monogamous. The females deposit 100 to 300 eggs into a specialized pouch on the males?abdomen where the gestation period takes anywhere between nine days to a little over a month. Once they are pushed out of the father?s abdomen, offspring are miniature versions of the full-grown seahorse. Seahorses are truly unique but currently are under threat. Due to their nearshore habitats, they can become tangled as fisheries by-catch, or even poached for aquariums. Seahorses are also used in folk medicine because they are believed to cure asthma, arthritis, and even baldness. The loss of mangrove forests and sea-grass beds threatens suitable habitats for seahorses. Because of both accidental and purposeful removal of seahorses from their habitat, as well as habitat degradation, many seahorses are listed as threatened species. Seahorse protection groups focus on ensuring that there are suitable habitats for seahorses to reside and spawn in as well as limiting harmful activities such as shrimp trawling. FEBRUARY 2022
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V erti cal M i grati on By: Hal ey Ch asi n, UHM M OP A l umna
Every evening there is a massive synchronous movement of animals from deep in the twilight zone up to the epipelagic or sunlight zone. This nightly migration occurs due to a combination of factors, many of which are still unknown. One possible reason for organisms to participate in this vertical movement is the lure of abundant food while simultaneously evading predators under the cover of darkness. Food is more readily available closer to the surface, and nightfall allows these deep dwelling creatures to stay camouflaged. The diel vertical migration (known as DVM) is a universal phenomenon across fresh, brackish, and marine ecosystems and across latitudes from the arctic waters to the tropics. While most of the ?participants? are zooplankton and other small fish, shrimp, and jellies, larger animals including sharks and whales also contribute to the DVM cycle. 14 | Seawords
Juvenile Fish with Salp Chain. Photo by: Jeff Kuwabara , UHM MOP Coordinator
There are many factors that determine just when the DVM will occur. External cues such as light are cues play a factor. For the most part, creatures rise from the deep during the night time and retreat before dawn. In cases where sunlight is a constant presence or completely absent, changes in migration patterns can be traced to moonlight. Even in the dim light due to cloud cover, zooplankton are still able to detect variations in sunlight intensity and adjust their depths accordingly. Genetic factors could also be at play. Some scientists say that these deep sea creatures (similarly to humans and other animals), have an internal circadian clock that helps them follow a daily cycle. This pattern could be the result of natural selection: migrate or be eaten. It has been observed that some individuals don't migrate on some nights. It is theorized that they are simply still full from previous nights of migration feeding, an idea known as the ?hunger/satiation hypothesis.? It is also thought that temperature and exposure to UV light could damage the DNA of creatures that have adapted to live in darkness. FEBRUARY 2022
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This nightly migration is significant to the function of the world's carbon cycle. When algae-eating organisms leave the shallows during the day, the primary producers (phytoplankton) are able to freely multiply. The scale of the migration is so large that it creates enough turbulence to carry nutrients and other particles across water boundaries to places that wouldn?t otherwise get effective circulation. Some small animals can use the current from the DVM to move to areas with more food or take advantage of the benefits of colder (deeper) waters to grow larger and produce more eggs.
Jelly. Photo by: Jeff Kuwabara , UHM MOP Coordinator
16 | Seawords
Cnetophore. Photo by: Jeff Kuwabara , UHM MOP Coordinator
The DVM?s role in the carbon cycle is that of a giant conveyor belt transporting carbon consumed at the surface down to the depths. Though it is energetically costly for the zooplankton to commute to the surface each night, their nightly feeding removes carbon from the surface of the water and prevents it from escaping back into the atmosphere. FEBRUARY 2022
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Mosquito Fish. Photo by: Katja Schultz, Flickr.
Robot Fish Tack les Invasive Species By: Br enna Loving, UH Windwar d CC MOP St udent 18 | Seawords
Controlling invasive species in any environment has proven to be an ongoing challenge to resource managers. However, biologists and engineers from Australia, the United States, and Italy have teamed up to tackle Australia?s invasive mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) problem with innovative technology, potentially transforming the way we manage marine invasive species for the future. Mosquitofish have become a nuisance since its introduction to the freshwaters of Australia 100 years ago from the United States. Although their introduction was originally intended to manage the mosquito population, the mosquitofish has been largely unsuccessful in this goal. Additionally, they have also been proven to be a detriment to the native populations of frogs, tadpoles, frog eggs, and other freshwater fish of Australia that are vital to maintaining a healthy ecosystem. It has been reported by ABC News that the mosquitofish has cost Australian agriculture $25 million dollars annually, putting the mosquitofish high on the list of the biggest freshwater threats on Earth. W hat could possibly be done to manage such a menace? The natural predator of the mosquitofish, the largemouth bass, would traditionally be a realistic option to introduce to the environment in order to help manage the invasive population. However, due to changing times, introducing a new species would be a risky gamble (as evidenced by the mosquitofish). Thus, a new idea has been presented in the form of robotics. Biologists and engineers have come together to create a robotic largemouth bass to ?scare?the invasive mosquitofish. As their natural predator, the presence of a largemouth bass would theoretically scare mosquitofish away from the surrounding area. Through experiments involving mosquitofish, their tadpole victims, and the robotic bass, scientists have been pleased with the results. It has been revealed that the mosquitofish are effectively terrified by the largemouth bass robot, as evidenced by frantic swimming patterns and huddling of the mosquitofish. Not only have the mosquitofish exhibited anxious behavior patterns when in the presence of the robotic bass, but the population?s anxiety has been observed to last for weeks. The mosquitofish went into survival mode, with males producing less sperm, and females producing fewer eggs. Interestingly, this effect was only seen in the mosquitofish with very little negative effect on the tadpole population. In fact, the tadpoles soon came out of hiding and became more active once the mosquitofish subsided and the largemouth bass robot took over the area. W ith such a successful initial experiment, we could soon see a robotic fish in the wild effectively managing an invasive species. Though the robotic method for tackling invasive species is still in its infancy and will likely take a bit longer to develop on a larger scale, it is encouraging to see such an innovative development on the horizon.
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22 | Seawords
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Vol u m e XXXVII, Nu m ber 2 Editor : Abbie Jer em iah Dr. Cyn th ia H u n ter (em in en ce gr ise) Jeffr ey Ku wabar a (em in en ce gr ise) W r itin g Team : Br en n a Lovin g, Ch l oe M ol ou , Lu cian An der son , Al exan dr ya Robin son , H al ey Ch asin Seawor ds- M ar in e Option Pr ogr am Un iver sity of H awai ?i , Col l ege of Natu r al Scien ces 2450 Cam pu s Road, Dean H al l 105A H on ol u l u , H I 96822-2219 Tel eph on e: (808) 956-8433 Em ail : <seawor ds@ h awaii.edu > W ebsite: <h ttp:/ / www.h awaii.edu / m op> Seawor ds is th e m on th l y n ewsl etter n ewsl etter of th e M ar in e Option Pr ogr am at th e Un iver sity of H awai?i. Opin ion s expr essed h er ein ar e n ot n ecessar il y th ose of th e M ar in e Option Pr ogr am or of th e Un iver sity of H awai?i. Su ggestion s an d su bm ission s ar e wel com e. Su bm ission s m ay in cl u de ar ticl es, ph otogr aph y,ar t wor k , or an yth in g th at m ay be of in ter est to th e m ar in e com m u n ity in H awai?i. an d ar ou n d th e wor l d. All photos ar e taken by M OP unless other wise cr edited.