Human Impacts on Coastal Ecosystems Lab and Cruise

Your Experience

During the Human Impacts on Coastal Ecosystems Lab and Cruise, students will investigate human effects on our local marine ecosystems. The lab includes a closer look at ocean imbalance with an emphasis on eutrophication in the ocean. Students will examine fouling plates to distinguish native, non-native, and invasive species in the Dana Point harbor. Students will also participate in a fish necropsy during which they will study a specific organ. Using scientific tools including water quality probes, iPads, quadrats, and microscopes, students will discover the magnitude of ecological disturbance on our coastline due to humans. During the cruise aboard our research vessel, the R/V Sea Explorer, students will be introduced to our local birds and marine mammals that live near shore. Students will be able to make connections between what humans do on land and how it affects our coastal ecosystem. Using oceanographic equipment, students will take biological samples to study how humans impact benthic or bottom dwelling organisms, chlorophyll productivity, and harmful plankton blooms.