Fishery performance indicators, desert stream invertebrates, and more: Weekly published research, June 8

Each week we share the latest peer-reviewed publications coming from the College of the Environment. Over the past week, seven new articles co-authored by members of the College of the Environment were added to the Web of Science database, including studies of jellyfish numbers in the Puget Sound, surface ocean carbon dioxide in the Southern Ocean, and more. Check them out!

New Chair named for Earth and Space Sciences

Professor Bruce Nelson has been named Chair of the Department of Earth and Space Sciences, effective July 1, 2015 and subject to approval by the Board of Regents. Nelson, a geochemist who specializes in the tools of isotope geochemistry, is known for his expertise in a wide range of Earth science topics, including volcanology, sedimentary transport, tectonic history, and environmental contamination to name a few.

College of the Environment honors graduates by helping fund on-campus water savings

Big congratulations are in order for all of this year’s College of the Environment graduates – you’ve reached the goal you set for yourself years ago when you became part of the UW community! We appreciate all of your contributions to the College and extend our well wishes and hopes for your continued success after graduation. In honor of our 2015 graduates, the College will jointly fund a student project that will build a rainwater collection and purification system in More Hall’s Construction Materials Laboratory with the University’s Campus Sustainability Fund.

Warmer, lower-oxygen oceans will shift marine habitats

Great white sharks require plenty of oxygen as metabolic fuel, and even more in warmer waters. They are among marine animals whose distributions will likely shift to meet their oxygen needs under climate change.

A research team that includes scientists from the College of the Environment’s School of Oceanography found that warmer ocean temperatures and decreasing levels of dissolved oxygen as a result of climate change will increase metabolic stress on marine animals. These new findings suggest that warmer water will speed up animals’ metabolic need for oxygen, but will simultaneously hold less of the oxygen needed to fuel their bodies.

Ocean Modeling Forum to bring human element to herring fishery, others

The Ocean Modeling Forum, a collaboration between the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences and NOAA Fisheries, is attempting to bring together multiple science models and people who care about a particular ocean resource or fishery to decide what’s most important for its vitality and the communities it serves. The Forum will address ocean management issues, facilitating conversations among a multitude of stakeholders, and will focus their primary efforts on the Pacific herring fishery in the coming months.