Background
Biomolecular technologies offer significant potential to transform marine management, but the development and application of molecular tools in marine ecosystems has been siloed within agencies, making it difficult to integrate long term datasets.
The West Coast OBON is a project within the OBON Program within the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. We will work toward method harmonization and data integration of ’Omics ocean observing platforms on the North American West Coast in support of sustainable marine management.
Goal
Facilitate the adoption and harmonization of molecular tools by biomonitoring programs to develop an unprecedented overview of marine ecosystem dynamics
Objectives
1) align eDNA methods to improve comparability of ocean observing platforms
2) develop bioinformatic work flows and metadata standards to facilitate eDNA method adoption
3) establish best practices for large scale biomolecular monitoring
Key Priorities
Short term
Complete eDNA sampling methods comparison experiment to identify optimal approaches
Sequence mitogenomes of ecologically important taxa to improve DNA reference libraries
Disseminate recommended protocols for eDNA work
Longer term
Assess water quality & ocean acidification/ hypoxia impacts
Identify and forecast HABs
Identify trophic drivers of fish assemblage dynamics
Map spatio-temporal distributions of protected species
Partners
Nastassia Patin, CalCOFI & SCCWRP
Erin Satterthwaite, CalCOFI & CA Sea Grant, SIO, UCSD
Zachary Gold, NOAA PMEL
Brice Semmens, CalCOFI, SIO, UCSD
Noelle Bowlin, CalCOFI, NOAA SWFSC
Andrew Thompson, CalCOFI, NOAA SWFSC
Rasmus Swalethorp, CalCOFI, SIO, UCSD
Susanna Theroux, SCCWRP
Stephen Weisberg, SCCWRP
Clarissa Anderson, SCCOOS, SIO, UCSD
Mark Ohman, CCE-LTER, SIO, UCSD
Francisco Chavez, MBARI
Kathleen Pitz, MBARI
Katherine Barbeau, CCE-LTER, SIO, UCSD
Moira Decima, CCE-LTER, SIO, UCSD
Jeff Bowman, SIO, UCSD
Bob Miller, SBC-MBON, UCSB
Andrew Allen, CalCOFI, SIO, UCSD & JCVI
Kelly Goodwin, NOAA AOML
Gabrielle Canonico, NOAA IOOS