NOAA Science Seminar Series

Title: An Index for the Assessment of Eelgrass Health: A Case Study from James Bay, Québec
Part of the 2021 Knauss Fellows Lunch & Learn Series

Presenter(s): Nick Anderson, Knauss Fellow, National Fish Passage Coordination Specialist, NOAA Office of Habitat Conservation

Sponsor(s): NOAA's Central Library (NCL)

Seminar Contact(s): Library Seminars

Abstract: Indices are a powerful tool for ecological assessment and support ecosystem management. Eelgrass (Zostera marina), or Sishkabash, has steeply declined throughout much of James Bay since the 1980s, threatening the traditional goose-hunting culture of the First Nation Cree communities of northern Quebec. To assess eelgrass health in James Bay we developed an eelgrass health index (EHI) based on underwater video-monitoring observations. The EHI was validated using a survey of expert knowledge and data from U.S. monitoring sites, and when applied, we found that eelgrass health was impaired throughout eastern James Bay.

Bio(s): Nick has been mucking about by the water for as long as he can remember and plans to keep at it. His interest in fish ecology lead him to pursue a Bachelor's in Marine & Freshwater Biology and Master's in Natural Resources from the University of New Hampshire. He is currently a 2021 Knauss Fellow working on fish passage and hydropower with the NOAA Fisheries' Office of Habitat Conservation.

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{Nick Anderson, Knauss Fellow, National Fish Passage Coordination Specialist, NOAA Office of Habitat Conservation}