• Vantuna Research Group
• Current Research
• Estuarine Ecology

Estuarine Ecology

Current projects include:

• Fisheries Inventory and Utilization of San Diego Bay

• Beach Seine Surveys

 

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Fisheries Inventory and Utilization of San Diego Bay

(funded by the Port of San Diego)

The VRG has surveyed the estuarine fishes of San Diego Bay in 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2012 for the Port of San Diego. The goals of the current study were to update the previous study and address the following objectives:

• Identify, determine and quantify the utilization of the fishery populations in San Diego Bay

• Identify habitats that support juvenile fish species and describe nursery utilization

• Determine geographic and/or habitat areas of San Diego Bay that support significant populations of fish species utilized as forage by endangered avian species

To adequately assess the status of all components of the ichthyofauna of the San Diego Bay, four Ecoregions of San Diego Bay including North, North-Central, South-Central, and South were sampled and inventoried. Reports include data on fish species composition and abundance, including species diversity and abundance by bay Ecoregion, ecological importance of species, nursery area function, fish assemblage structure, water quality parameters, fish density and biomass estimates.

 

Survey of Surf Zone Fishes in Los Angeles County

(Funded by Occidental College)

Each fall semester as a part of Occidental Biology Course BIO260 - Biodiversity of Marine Ecosystems, students conduct beach seine surveys in several estuarine and open coastline sites in the Southern California area. Sites surveyed have ranged from Crystal Cove in Malibu to the Port of Los Angeles. The survey data is then compiled and analyzed for undergraduate independent research projects.