Routine monitoring at the Monterey Wharf
Every Wednesday, a member of EBL travels down to the Monterey Commercial Wharf- MWII and collects water samples from phytoplankton net tows and a Van Doren. These water samples are taken back to the lab for analyses which include nutrients, chl-a, RAI, and cell counts. For more information please visit https://habs.sccoos.org/monterey-wharf.
Weekly Updates
Below are some images of phytoplankton we have observed during our weekly RAIs. Descriptions for each sampled week are listed below the gallery.
5.17.2023
This morning the sky was filled with clouds and it was misting. There was a slight breeze at my site. I was not able to see the mountains in the distance due to the fog. There were large slow rolling waves on the surface of the water moving in the direction towards the wharf. The water this week was a slightly darker green than last week with a visibility of 2.5m. Chlorophyll significantly increased from last week. Pseudo nitzschia was abundant. Navicula was common. Dinophysis was present. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Pseudo nitzschia, Alexandrium, Dinophysis, and Akashiwo sanguinea.
5.10.2023
On my drive to the sampling site it drizzled. This morning it was windy and smelled fishy. The sky was filled with clouds. There was no fog and I could see the horizon clearly. The surface water was wavy. The water this week was bluer than last week with a visibility of 7.0m. Chlorophyll significantly decreased from last week. Diatoms dominated the water column. Pseudo nitzschia was abundant. Tintinnids were common. Species that were present in the water were Chaetoceros and Leptocylindrus. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Pseudo nitzschia, Dinophysis and Akashiwo sanguinea.
5.3.2023
This morning my sampling site was chilly and cloudy. Driving down to the wharf it was drizzling however during sampling it did not rain. The surface of the water was relatively calm and glassy looking in the distance. The sun hid behind the clouds half of the time I was sampling. There were several boats docked and many birds to keep me company. The water this week was slightly greener than last week with a visibility of 3.5m. Chlorophyll increased from last week. Diatoms dominated the water column. Chaetoceros, Pseudo nitzschia, and Skeletonema were common in the water. Meanwhile, Thalassiosira, Detonula, Leptocylindrus, and Asterionollopsis were present in the water. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Pseudo nitzschia and Dinophysis.
4.26.2023
The sky was covered in clouds and misting. Blankets of fog covered the water and horizon. Several boats were docked near my site. There was more bird poop at my sampling site than usual. There was a slight breeze. The surface of the water was relatively calm. The water this week was a darker green than last week with a visibility of 4.0m. Chlorophyll slightly decreased from last week. Skeletonema was abundant in the water. Both Chaetoceros and Pseudo nitzschia were common in the water. Meanwhile, Detonula was present. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Pseudo nitzschia and Dinophysis.
4.19.2023
Sampling this morning was very pleasant. The sky was clear and sunny. In the distance, there was a very slight blanket of haze/fog lining the horizon but you could still see the mountains. Several boats were docked near my site and there was a paddle boarder this morning. The surface of the water was relatively calm with small bubbles on the surface. The water this week was a lighter green than last week with a visibility of 3.5m. Chlorophyll decreased from last week. Both Chaetoceros, Pseudo nitzschia, and Skeletonema were common in the water. Meanwhile, Thalassiosira, Lauderia, and Asterionellopsis were present. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia, Alexandrium, and Dinophysis.
4.12.2023
This morning was sunny but cold and very windy. The birds this morning were keeping me company. There were 5 boats docked near my sampling site. The surface water had lots of waves. In the distance, there were many white caps. In addition, there was fog along the horizon. The water this week was a much darker green than last week with a visibility of 2.0m. Chlorophyll significantly increased from last week. Both Chaetoceros and Asterionellopsis were common. While, Psuedo nitzschia seriata, Lauderia, Thalassiosira, Detonula, and Skeletonema were present in the water. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia and Dinophysis.
4.5.2023
The wharf was sunny and relatively warm. This week, I had a visiting scientist from France join me during sampling. We saw an octopus being eaten by a seabird! There were small waves on the surface of the water. The water this week was greener than last week with a visibility of 2.5m. Chlorophyll stayed relatively the same as last week. Both Thalassiosira and Skeletonema were common in the water. While Asterionellopsis was present in the water. The HAB species that were present in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia, AlexandriumandDinophysis.
3.29.2023
There slight breeze on the wharf and the water was murkier than usual. There were also many seabirds and large pieces of plastic floating on the surface of the water. Large rolling waves and swells formed right under the dock. Nearly half of the sky was covered with clouds; dark clouds covered the mountains in the distance. The water this week was much greener than last week with a visibility of 1.25m. Chlorophyll increased from last week. Both Chaetoceros, Psuedo nitzschia and Coscinodiscus were present in the water. Thalassiosira was common in the water. The HAB species that were present in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia.
3.22.2023
California lately has been experiencing lots of rain. This morning it was raining heavily at the wharf. The water this week was bluer than two weeks ago with a visibility of 6.5m. Chlorophyll decreased from two weeks ago. Diatoms still dominated the water column. Coscinodiscus was present in the water. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia and Dinophysis.
3.1.2023
This week the water sample was filled with lots sediment. The wharf was very windy (25 mph winds!). The water this week was a slightly darker green than last week with the same visibility of 2.5m. Chlorophyll decreased from last week. Diatoms dominated the water column. Chaetoceros and Thalassiosira were common in the water. The HAB species that were observed in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia and Dinophysis.
2.15.2023
This weeks water sample was diverse with diatoms. Chaetoceros (looks like spiny ringlets with hairs) was abundant while Ditylum (looks like a cattail plant) and Lauderia were present. The harmful algae bloom (HAB) species that were present in the water this morning included Psuedo nitzschia, Dinophysis, and A. sanguinea.