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In 2015, PSF funded the deployment of 20 beanies on seals near Big Qualicum Hatchery, in Deep Bay,
and in other local seal rookeries. The seals living near the Big Qualicum River hatchery had the
opportunity to feed on 36,900 Coho smolts containing PIT tags. Seals began feeding on tagged Coho
during the first night after their release from the hatchery. The data were immediately transmitted
back to UBC. After years of development, the system worked perfectly. Results of the study showed
that only some of the seals appeared to be specialised feeders on juvenile salmon, that they fed
mostly at dusk, and overall, only 6.1% of the tagged Coho were preyed upon by these local seals.
4. Using Citizen Scientists to assess
oceanographic conditions
One of the serious challenges in studying marine waters
is how to determine what is happening in different places
at the same time — in other words being 'everywhere
at once.' Typically, large oceanographic vessels conduct
annual surveys in limited number of places a few times
a year. Dr. Eddy Carmack, a retired scientist from the
Institute of Ocean Sciences in Sidney, BC, came up with
the idea of equipping small private vessels that would
follow specified sampling schedules and locations to
capture the dynamics of the Salish Sea. This "citizen
science" fleet became our answer to how to essentially
be "everywhere at once" and capture the fine-scale
dynamics of the Strait of Georgia.
Vessels from local communities were contracted and
then outfitted with the equipment necessary to conduct
surveys (Figure 6). This "mosquito fleet" has been
operating since 2015, sampling 2 -3 days per month in
8-10 overlapping areas of the Strait. In one day, these
citizen scientists collect oceanographic data, plankton
and water samples from about 60 sites (Figure 7).
The data collected are then transmitted automatically
via a mobile app called Community Fishers. The app,
developed by Ocean Network Canada (ONC), allows
fishers and volunteer citizens to upload data to ONC's
world-leading data management system, Oceans 2.0. From
there, the data are archived, processed and visualized for
scientists and the public around the world (Figure 8).
Figure 6. Steveston Citizen Scientist Billy McMillan lowers a
secchi disk into the water to test for turbidity or water murkiness.
Murkiness can block light and prevent plants that support
salmon prey from growing.
Figure 4. An outfitted seal heads back to sea. Photos by Dennis Frost. Figure 5. A close-up of the beanie and 3D-backpacks.
Pit-Tag Reader
Accelerometer
Magnetometer
Depth
Temperature
Liminosity
Salinity
