The HMSC Newsletter

October 1999

Pamela Rogers, Editor

Distinguished Marine Scientist Colloquia for 1999/2000 Announced

Hatfield Marine Science Center colloquia organizers announce the initiation of a new series of lectures and open forum sessions to be given by invited distinguished marine scientists. The talks will range over a wide array of topics dealing with current perspectives in marine science. The commonality among the speakers is their accomplishments in dealing with cutting edge research topics. Lectures will be delivered at 10:00 a.m. in the HMSC Auditorium. Following each presentation, an open forum will be held at 2:00 p.m. in one of the meeting rooms where in-depth questions and discussion on the subject matter can be addressed. Series sponsors are the HMSC, Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, EPA Pacific Coastal Ecology Branch, and Oregon Sea Grant.

October 14 - The inaugural speaker will be Dr. Julia Parrish, Research Assistant Professor, Zoology Department, University of Washington. Her topic is From Fish to Birds: Circling Back on the Road to Conservation. Julia Parrish spent her formative years investigating the costs and benefits to individuals of group membership, principally in schools of fish and colonially nesting seabirds. As a by-product of working on nearshore organisms, Julia discovered many direct and indirect effects of human activities on the organisms she attempted to study. Eventually, she realized that no system is pristine and all roads lead to conservation. Her recent work has been concerned with how to craft lasting conservation solutions in marine systems, and has included development of seabird citizen science, working with the commercial fishing community to reduce bycatch, and managing a multidisciplinary research program on coastal ecosystem health in Oregon and Washington.

November 23 - Dr. Gabrielle Nevitt, University of California, Davis

January 14 - Dr. R. J. Beamish, Pacific Biological Station, Nanaimo, BC

Dates to be Announced:

Dr. Barbara Block, Tuna Research & Conservation Center, Hopkins Marine Station

Dr. Carl Walters, University of British Columbia

HMSC Fall Blood Drive

Monday, October 11

10:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Please mark your calendars for the fall blood drive. This is in the Red Cross self-contained mobile unit that parks by the Education Building. To reserve a time, please contact your building blood drive recruiter or call Pam Rogers in the Director's Office at 7-0212.

If you are unable to give blood, please consider volunteering to help as a registrar or in the canteen. Cookies, crackers and juice are also needed.

Randy Walker, New Physical Plant Manager

The multi-talented Randy Walker has joined the HMSC as our new Physical Plant Manager, after working at Grays Harbor College as the maintenance superintendent for nearly twenty years. He was looking for new challenges and a step up, though the weather won't be much different.

Randy has picked up many skills during his lifetime, as he has been a fisherman, an electrician, a hobby boat builder and aquaculture worker. He is currently building a 45-foot fiberglass yacht to add to his collection of homemade boats. Not bad for a person with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) who finished high school as a functional illiterate! As he matured, he was able to manage this condition and is currently finishing up his bachelor's in Public Administration at Evergreen State College.

Randy has two grown children and two grandchildren, one of whom was born just after his arrival in Newport. For fun he reads history and the classics.

The Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station will begin a search for candidates to fill two newly established positions. It is expected that the openings will be officially announced by November 1, 1999, and the new hires will ideally be in place prior to September 1, 2000.

The Marine Fisheries Ecologist will handle research on ecological relationships among economically important fish. Research will include marine ecosystems and multi-species approaches to fisheries management.

The second position, that of Marine Fisheries Population Geneticist, will be involved in research on population genetics of economically important finfish and shellfish. This will contribute to improving methods for managing marine fisheries.

Linda Conser, on

the phone as usual,

scheduling school

groups

Several HMSC employees were recognized at the 1999 Extension Service Annual Conference held September 13-15 at the new CH2M Hill Center on the OSU campus.

Linda Conser, office specialist in the Sea Grant Marine Education Office, won the Classified Staff Award, which recognizes outstanding and exceptional job performance, continued professional growth, innovativeness and willingness to accept new or extra activities. Linda was nominated by Vicki Osis and received several supporting letters from HMSC staff. She received a desk clock with plaque.

Ken Hilderbrand received the U.S. Department of Agriculture Recognition for 30 years of service to the federal government and Bruce Mate received the same recognition for 20 years of service.

The HMSC Annual Picnic at Moonshine Park A Success (by Carol Cole)

We couldn't have had better weather for cooking, playing, or simply having a good time. The warm temperatures and sunny skies even made the normally cold Siletz river unusually inviting. Youngsters on floats and rafts were able to fool the adults into believing the water was comfortable, so several of the oldsters jumped right in, determined to raft the miniscule "rapids" in style. The wiser ones, however, wore wetsuits or shorties.

The food was as good as expectedmarinated tuna, barbecued pork loin, hot dogs, sweet and tender corn cooked to just the right degree of doneness, and a wide variety of side dishes and desserts. And, as usual, some of us had our priorities straight we scooped up the ice cream on the first go-round. It went well with the tuna.

The organized games and races were well-attended, probably because ringmaster Eric Schindler whipped out his distressed duck whistle and called the circus to order. Eric, by the way, received more compliments than either the tuna or pork! He seemed to have a knack for bringing out the best in the participantsas evidenced by the number of willing (?) wheelbarrow racers who allowed themselves to be dragged across the finish line by their more determined (or more competitive) teammates. Continued

Just like last year, "horseshoe-ers clanked ringers, badminton-ers whistled shuttlecocks, volleyball-ers spiked their cowering opponents, and Frisbee-ers spun saucers out of control. The crazy volleyball games were never scored and there weren't many rules!" And also like last year, many people pitched in to make this picnic a successplanning, organizing, setting up, cooking, taking down and cleaning up. It was a team effort from start to finisha Hatfield effort.

P.S. Last year's "overly enthusiastic-but-no-talent-picnic-organizers" have achieved a greater level of organization. As attendance this year was better than last, we expect even more to attend next year ó we welcome your help. If you'd like to join next year's committee, or have any suggestions to offer, contact Gil.

Jackie Popp Studies Food Habits of Juvenile Salmon

Although Jackie Popp has not sailed on all seven seas, she has covered almost half of them so far in her career: Atlantic, Southern and Pacific. The newest research assistant for Ric Brodeur at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Jackie comes most recently from the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in La Jolla, California. She implemented acoustic visual classification for determining the abundance and distribution of Euphausia superba and served as bioacoustics cruise leader on three seasons of an Antarctic krill/fish survey. Before that she was a research support specialist for the University of California, Santa Cruise, using bioacoustics to study whale foraging ecology, and producing scientific visualizations of foraging whales and their oceanic environment. Her Atlantic experience came while she worked for Cornell University, participating in GLOBEC ecosystem studies, supervising undergraduate researchers in Mexico while establishing a coral reef monitoring project, and training computer graphics specialists to produce scientific visualizations in oceanography.

Here at the Center Jackie is describing the food habits of juvenile salmon inside and outside of the Columbia River plume by examining their stomach contents. Information provided by acoustics and net samples on prey fields will complement stomach content work.

Jackie earned her B.S. in Business from the University of Pittsburgh, accumulating almost more science credits than business credits. Her career interests migrated from medicine to science to accounting to civil engineering, before discovering her true love of oceanography. By that time she was so close to graduation in business that she simply completed her undergraduate degree and went on for additional computer and bioacoustical training.

During the Antarctic missions aboard a Russian research vessel, Jackie learned to read, write and speak very poor Russian. She laughingly shared that during the first trips the Russian captain kept trying to trick her into speaking Russian and revealing her true status as a CIA agent. Over time the shipboard Cold War thawed enough for her to make a true friend who will soon be coming to the U.S. to explore options. Perhaps that is one reason why she lists going to sea as one of her favorite activities, along with watching foreign films, running and travel.

The State of Oregon Charitable Fund Drive (CFD) begins in October. HMSC employees will soon find the donor forms in their mailboxes. Terri Nogler and Melody Pfister will be coordinating the Drive for HMSC this year.

Last year was a record year for donations made by state employees. The $1.4 million collected represented a 10% increase over the previous year. OSU employees contributed $144,441, with an average contribution of $197.86 per employee.

A total of seven agencies represent literally hundreds of nonprofit groups employees can target with a gift, either through payroll deduction or through a one-time cash donation. HMSC employees can keep their donations local by electing to have the money go to any of the fourteen agencies in Lincoln County belonging to the local United Way.

Agencies go through a strict application process to participate in the Charitable Fund Drive. One criterion is that the agency must represent several nonprofit groups. Individual groups cannot become part of the CFD by themselves. Another stringent criterion is that the agency must be

"born" in Oregon and continue to operate only within the state. Sharon Gibson-Alexander, the statewide campaign manager, said this year several new agencies applied, but an exhaustive search revealed that the organizations actually originated outside the state, although their applications indicated otherwise. They were refused admittance to the CFD.

In an effort to recognize people who contribute over $500, the Governor's office has authorized the implementation of the Governor's Cup program. Each contributor who gives between $500 and $999 will receive a Governor's Cup coffee mug as a token of appreciation from Governor Kitzhaber, and all those your contributions help support.

Map Copier

The Valley Library now has a map copier capable of copying sheets up to 40" wide. It makes excellent black and white copies. Please consider this option when you need USGS topographical maps or NOAA charts. We can request the copy and should be able to get in within 3 days. The cost is $1.50 for a topographical map size and $2.50 for larger sheets.

Renewing Books and Keys

Just a reminder that you can renew most items via the Web. You can renew your own items from the http://oasis.orst.edu page. Select the "View Your Circulation Record" from the left sidebar and type in your name and ID. When you click on what you have checked out, you can renew it.

Bycatch Information

The Summer 1999 issue of Marine Technology Society Journal is devoted to articles on bycatch. This is a journal that many of you may not browse regularly.

Gary Sullivan Joins EPA Team

In June, Gary Sullivan began work at the EPA lab as a National Research Council post-doc, working specifically on the impact of green macroalgae on different estuarine habitats. The twelve species he is studying have not been well characterized and there are a number of questions to be asked about these native species. What is their impact on the eelgrass beds? Do they play a role in increasing eutrophication? Are they increasing in amount or just going through part of a regular cycle?

Gary came most recently from San Diego State University where he was working on emergent vegetation in salt marshes. Before that he had earned his Ph.D. from SUNY at Binghamton, investigating submerged freshwater macrophytes. Like many others, Gary has changed his career focus several times, getting two bachelor's, one from Elmira College and one from St. John Fisher College, both in New York. He moved from physical anthropology into construction and then into biology, graduate school, and his present career. For fun he enjoys playing basketball and water sports, such as swimming and snorkling.

USFWS Celebrates National Wildlife Refuge Week Oct 11-16

Nathan Caldwell and the crew at the Oregon Coastal Refuges invites everyone to celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week by coming to the Shell Island Overlook at Cape Arago on Saturday, October 16, from 10-4. They will be talking about pinnipeds, complete with spotting scopes and refreshments.

In addition, they are sponsoring a broadcast on Thursday, October 7, in the HMSC Hennings Auditorium at 9:00 a.m., entitled Watersheds: Rivers Run Through Them. This is designed from school groups from grades 4-8 and US Fish and Wildlife Service biologists will discuss watersheds and how their health impacts aquatic life.

HMSC Fall Seminar Series

From the Sea to the Dinner Plate: How marine food chains provide Oregon consumers with food

Wednesdays, 4:00 -5:00 p.m. in the HMSC Library Seminar Room.

Organizers: Chris Langdon (867-0231) and Dave Sampson (867-0204)

September 29 - The Estuarine Habitat
Ted DeWitt, EPA, HMSC

October 6 - Phytoplankton Production
Dave Nelson, Oceanography, OSU

October 13 - Pelagic Microbial Food Webs
Barry and/or Evelyn Sherr, Oceanography, OSU

October 20 - Zooplankton Communities in Coastal Water
Bill Peterson, NMFS, HMSC

October 27 - Zooplankton Feeding and Swimming
Tim Cowles, Oceanography, OSU

November 3 - The Dark Side of Planktivore Feeding, Schooling and Predator Avoidance
Cliff Ryer, NMFS, HMSC

November 10 - Fisheries Production and Ocean Conditions
Pete Lawson, NMFS, HMSC

November 17 - An Overview of Fishery Management Issues on the West Coast
David Sampson, COMES, HMSC

November 24 - Fishing Communities in Oregon
Ginny Goblirsh, Oregon Sea Grant, HMSC

December 1 - Aquaculture
Chris Langdon, COMES, HMSC

Personnel Notes

Esther Schaeperkoetter-Cochran is a new student worker in the Guin Library. She is a junior at Newport High School and loves languages. She knows or is working on three: Spanish, German and American Sign Language. Esther loves to travel and play the piano, and plans to become a speech pathologist. Welcome aboard!

Bonnie Bahn, one of the smiling faces at the ODFW desk, has recently returned from an Earth Watch expedition to Kenya, Africa, where she did vegetation transects at a wildlife preserve. She learned how to react if charged by an elephant (runif necessary the guide will shoot the elephant), by an rhinoceros (run or stand stillthe rhino is so variable you can't tell which way it will go and since they are protected, the guide won't shoot it), and by a lion (stand still). While there she developed a great love for tomato and cheese sandwiches, since they were served for every single lunch during the three week expedition. She and her daughter also spent several days in Amsterdam on the way.