Field Sites

Our team conducts in situ (on-site) research and organism sampling at three field sites: the Gulf
Stream near West Palm Beach, Florida; the Oregon Coast System; and the Pacific coast of
Panama. This range of climates and ecosystems provides access to reliable, abundant samples
of gelatinous grazers, a diverse group of jellylike zooplankton. Onsite facilities and equipment
allow us to collect representative data on their interactions with microbial prey. With this
research, we can expand our understanding of these organisms’ role in carbon and energy
cycles.

Gulf Stream Site near West Palm Beach,

Florida

The Gulf Stream research site lies approximately

thirty to forty miles off the coast of Florida. The Gulf
Stream, a fast-moving current of warm sea water
(74°F to 84°F), flows north from the Gulf of Mexico,
pushing nutrients and organisms up along the East
Coast of Florida before bearing east across the
Atlantic Ocean. This wide, warm flow of seawater
supports a diversity of oceanic organisms, including
a fairly reliable supply of gelatinous grazers and other
zooplankton.

The team has been conducting research at this site

for two years. The coast off West Palm Beach
provides easy access to open ocean waters from
the coast via small boats. Here, research divers are
able to collect a wide range of gelatinous grazers
representative of large tropical and subtropical
regions of the ocean.
Oregon Coast System

The Oregon Coast System provides easy access

for studying gelatinous grazers in the northern
Pacific Ocean. The team has conducted research
at various sites along the Newport Hydrographic
Line, a string of research stations off the coast of
Newport, Oregon, since February 2018. In
contrast to warmer climates found at the
Panama and Florida field sites, the Oregon Coast
region offers temperate waters with average
ocean temperatures between 46°F and 53°F. The
sampling line crosses a narrow continental shelf
and is subject to periodic upwelling of cold,
nutrient-rich waters. This site is situated in the
California Current, a large-scale ocean current
stretching along the Pacific Ocean from British
Columbia to Mexico. These conditions create an
ideal ecosystem for an abundance of gelatinous
zooplankton, phytoplankton, and other marine
life.

Organism samples are collected in the open

ocean aboard various oceanographic research
vessels. Researchers and students have access to
laboratories and equipment from the Bluewater
Lab (PI Thompson) at Portland State University
and the Plankton Lab (PI Sutherland) at the
University of Oregon and the Oregon Institute of
Marine Biology (OIMB). Available equipment
includes plankton nets, sorting equipment,
microscopes, cameras, and flow cytometers.
Panama Liquid Jungle Lab, Pacific Coast

The Liquid Jungle Lab (LJL) is located on

Canales de Tierra, an island off the Pacific Coast
of Panama. Operated in cooperation with
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the
station’s environment includes mangroves,
tidal pools, intertidal zones, and coral reefs.
Typical of tropical open ocean environments,
the island shelf is home to a wide range of
gelatinous grazers and microbes. Panama’s
warm waters range from 75°F to 84°F
year-round. During the dry season, tradewinds
and coastal currents cause upwellings of
nutrient-rich water. Resulting plankton blooms
make this an ideal season to study gelatinous
grazers.

LJL provides a wet lab, biology and chemistry

dry labs, diving lockers, boats, and a conference
room. Amenities for researchers include
dormitories, meals, and wireless internet. LJL’s
laboratory sampling and in situ SCUBA diving
methods eliminate challenges typical of
studying fragile organisms far offshore. Since
2007, the team has been observing and
collecting an abundance of pelagic tunicates,
pteropods, and other gelatinous grazers onsite.