Oregon’s many winding rivers meet the Pacific Ocean in gorgeous estuaries scattered along the coastline. These estuaries are critical habitat for salmon, water birds, Dungeness crab, and oysters, and are deeply connected to the local economies of coastal communities. These estuaries are also the primary habitat of eelgrass — a fully aquatic flowering plant. We may overlook eelgrass as the creepy thing under the waves that brushes against your foot while wading through the water, but it is actually incredibly important to coastal ecosystems. It protects against erosion, absorbs pollutants, provides breeding grounds for many fish and invertebrate species, and can act as carbon sinks. Unfortunately, eelgrass is disappearing because of dredging, development, and sea level rise. The good news is that researchers are actively investigating how to best restore eelgrass habitat. Olivia Boisen, a fifth year PhD student in the department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences, is one of these researchers. As part of her research in the lab of Scott Heppell, Olivia is investigating several estuary sites along the Oregon coast where restoration practices are being implemented. Through this work she is able to determine the effectiveness of certain restoration practices on eelgrass recovery, and subsequently how various fisheries species respond.
What is Inspiration Dissemination?
Inspiration Dissemination is an award-winning radio program that occurs Sunday nights at 7PM Pacific on KBVR Corvallis, 88.7FM. Each week on the program, we host a different graduate student worker from Oregon State University to talk about their lives and passion for research here at the university. By presenting these stories, we can present the diverse, human element of graduate research that is often hidden from the public view.
Please find us on social media!
Twitter: twitter.com/kbvrID
facebook: www.facebook.com/InspirationDissemination/
Blog: blogs.oregonstate.edu/inspiration/
Radio Station: www.orangemedianetwork.com/kbvr_fm
Host University: oregonstate.edu
This show was founded in 2012 by Joey Hulbert and Zhian Kamvar. It has been made possible by all the current and former hosts of the show, Orange Media Network, the KBVR-FM students and staff, and of course the amazing graduate students at Oregon State University.