MOCHA: Monitoring Oregon Coastal Harmful Algae
Peter Strutton1, Michelle Wood2, Bich-Thuy Eberhart3, David Foley4, Zachary Forster5, Matthew Hunter5,
Morgaine McKibben1, Gwenn Miller2, Linda O’Higgins6, Bill Peterson6, Vera Trainer3, Jacqueline
Tweddle1, Dawn Wright7
1
College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University
2
Department of Biology, University of Oregon
3
Marine Biotoxin Group, NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center
4
NOAA CoastWatch West Coast Node
5
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
6
NOAA Northwest Fisheries Sciences Center
7
Oregon Department of Agriculture
With initial funding from NOAA’s Oceans and Human Health Initiative, and now from MERHAB, a
collaborative team has been established to monitor and understand the genesis of HABs for coastal
Oregon. The major genera of interest, as for much of the US west coast, are Pseudo-nitzschia and
Alexandrium. This contribution will present an overview of our work to date, including the following
highlights:
1. Identification of regions (hot spots), such as Heceta Bank and the Columbia River outflow that
frequently experience HAB impacts, and linking the existence of these hot spots to the local ocean
conditions.
2. Initial development and evaluation of satellite ‘bloom detection’ products.
3. Quantifying the link between toxins in coastal shellfish, cell counts and the seasonal cycles of
upwelling and bloom initiation.
4. Identification of a significant gradient in the timing of upwelling and the spring bloom, and its
connection to HABs.
5. Field work to map the abundance of dinoflagellate (Alexandrium) cysts in coastal sediments.