Title: Analyzing The Frequency of Inundation of Clam Cove Island, Holgate, NJ With Sea Level Rise

As global sea levels continue to rise, there are growing concerns about the frequency of tidal flooding and its impacts in the near future. Frequent inundation of marshes disrupts the natural balance between salt and freshwater. This imbalance will likely cause a change in vegetation, favoring salt and flood tolerant species. For example, a shift in species of marsh grasses, from Spartina Patens to Spartina Alterniflora, is expected to be seen. Marshes are important ecosystems to conserve as they serve a large role in protecting coastal communities from flooding and possible destruction. A regime shift in marsh ecosystems could result in less resilience and protection. Clam Cove Island is one of several barrier marshlands that borders Long Beach Island, New Jersey. In recent years, it has suffered significant erosion. The aim of this research was to analyze the frequency of inundation of Clam Cove with sea level rise. Historic water levels recorded at the Rutgers Field Station in Tuckerton, NJ from 2003-2017 were used to determine how frequently the water elevation was above the surface elevation of Clam Cove, which is about 3 ft above the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88). The results show that water elevations currently exceed this threshold of about 0.3 high tides per year. Expected sea level rise rates under moderate emission scenarios provided by Rutgers University were then used to predict future frequency of inundation events. This analysis found that by 2030, Clam Cove would experience inundation for about 4 high tides per year. This number increases to about 13 times per year by 2050, 107 times by 2070, and 506 times by 2100, which is about 253 days of the year. This research can be used towards sea level rise management strategies and marsh restoration to ensure safety to surrounding coastal communities.

Title: Investigating the Influence of Recreational Vessels on Coastal Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops spp.) in Cape May, New Jersey

Coastal Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) are threatened by various anthropogenic disturbances, especially vessel activity. Vessel implications on coastal marine mammals in areas of high tourism have the potential to negatively impact social, mating, and feeding behaviors or even cause vessel strikes resulting in injury or death. A subset of ongoing photo-identification data collected by Cape May Whale Watch & Research Center in Cape May, New Jersey was analyzed for vessel presence by type and implications in July 2018, June-August 2020, and July-August 2022. Implications were comprised of altered movement patterns, including direction and surface interval change, as well as altered behavior, such as group separation. Recreational vessels occurred simultaneously with Bottlenose dolphins in 27% of observations (n=74). Within observations where vessels were present, jet skis had the greatest implications on groups and occurred simultaneously with Bottlenose dolphins in 41% of those observations (n=30), followed by inboard vessels. In contrast, vessels greater than 19.8m in length were observed the most in 76% of those observations (n=56) but had the least implications on dolphin groups. Additionally, vessel interactions occurred most frequently between 13:30-16:30 and more often when more than one recreational vessel was present at one time. Continued monitoring of the impact of vessel presence on cetaceans is important for an increased understanding of how anthropogenic disturbances alter their behavior, which will allow for the highlighting of specific outreach and enforcement areas in Cape May, New Jersey. Data will be analyzed and included for 2023 by the time of this presentation.

Title: Ecological influences on the abundance of Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) off Cape May, New Jersey

Understanding the biological, social, and environmental variables that contribute to migratory marine mammal species throughout the year is an essential conservation tool, especially given the impact of climate change on ecosystems across the globe. The Northern stock of coastal bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) is migratory, with the northernmost extent of their range reaching the shores of Long Island, New York during the warmer summer months and Cape Lookout, North Carolina in the winter months. Dolphins in Cape May, New Jersey exhibit high site fidelity, with the area serving as a feeding, mating and birthing ground. Data collected with Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center from 2017-2023 will be analyzed to explore different variables including water temperature and depth, group size and calf presence with the number of dolphin observations per month off Cape May, New Jersey. Improved understanding of the variables influencing the abundance of dolphins in our study area can help us determine how changing environmental factors influenced by climate change may affect this population, particularly in terms of seasonal distribution and migration.

Title: Seal Suppers: Decoding Harbor Seal Feeding Habits

Atlantic harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are seasonally migratory pinnipeds that spend November through May overwintering in the salt marshes of Great Bay, New Jersey. To better understand their ecological role while in this estuarine system, food habits analysis was conducted on fecal remains (scat) from the 2022-2023 seal season. This study focused on extraction and identification of sagittal otoliths (fish ear bones) from seal scat; otoliths are a commonly used proxy for prey items because they are not easily digested, and are unique to each fish species. Scat samples were collected from the haul-out site when seals were not present, placed in 100 micron mesh bags, and frozen until processed. For processing, scat was washed through the mesh so that remaining otoliths were retained in the strainer bag, then extracted under a microscope using fine tip forceps. Otoliths were photographed, measured (Image J), and identified using otolith guide books and prior knowledge from previous prey studies in Great Bay. Of the 83 scat samples collected, 61 contained a total of 347 otoliths. Of these, 331 were identified down to the following fish families: Hake (Phycidae; n=142, 41.64%), Herring (Clupeidae; n=99, 29.03%), Flatfish (Pleuronectidae/Scopthalmidae; n=67, 19.65%), Sandlance (Ammodytidae; n=9, 2.64%), or Unknown (n=24, 7.04%). During this season’s collections, some otoliths could not be identified (n=24) and/or were new additions to the known prey items of harbor seals in this area. Further studies will be needed to accurately identify the families of these newer otoliths. As habitat use and foraging patterns can be affected by both natural and anthropogenic impacts, this study on Great Bay harbor seal food habits may help to inform future studies on these animals in a dynamic system.

Title: Micro-Habitat Preference, Stock Origin, and Population Health Assessment Measures for Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis)

Striped bass (Morone saxatilis) are the most sought-after inshore game fish on the east coast, generating tourism, business, and industry for New Jersey. However, there is ambiguity around the micro-habitat preference, migration behavior, and stock origins of this important recreational, commercial, and ecological marine resource. Though the general migration patterns of spawning size striped bass are somewhat understood, there are nuances across fish size and age. The behavior of smaller bass is very different from the larger spawning size bass, and the former’s behavior will vary across different areas. Striped bass have high fidelity to the spawning grounds in which they were hatched. The Jersey shore is not a major spawning ground, but rather a highway of mixed-migratory groups of stripers during spring and fall. The derived proportions from the major (and minor local) spawning grounds of this migratory stock are unclear. With the use of tagging instrumentation, catch logs, and scale and tissue sampling followed by DNA sequence comparisons, clarity maybe gained on 1) changes in migration and location preference and 2) the extent to which each spawning ground contributes to our local mixed-migratory stocks, and possibly illuminate differences between that of the fall and spring groups.

Title: The Environmental Factors Affecting Migration Patterns and Distribution of Bottlenose Dolphins

Bottlenose dolphins, renowned for their intelligence and social behavior, utilize echolocation for communication, navigation, and hunting. They exhibit remarkable adaptability, inhabiting various marine environments like coastal areas, estuaries, and open oceans. Understanding their migration patterns is essential for marine conservation, given their seasonal movements driven by the search for optimal temperatures and abundant food sources, notably evident along the Atlantic coast of the United States. Recent research confirms environmental factors as pivotal influencers of bottlenose dolphin migration patterns. These studies reveal the dolphins' adaptable foraging strategies, which respond to changes in sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a concentration. They exhibit strong habitat preferences, especially in coastal regions with distinct topographical and hydrological features, fostering the formation of core areas with high levels of site fidelity. However, anthropogenic impacts such as vessel traffic and noise pollution significantly alter dolphin distribution and behavior, underscoring the pressing need for conservation efforts. Human activities, including increased boat traffic, coastal development, pollution, climate change, overfishing, underwater noise, and habitat destruction, threaten bottlenose dolphin migration patterns by disrupting traditional pathways, causing habitat loss, and altering prey availability. Therefore, conservation endeavors are imperative to safeguard the long-term survival and welfare of bottlenose dolphin populations, given their intricate relationship with environmental variables like water temperature. This research will investigate the migration patterns and distribution of bottlenose dolphins near Cape May, New Jersey, utilizing photo identification to recognize individual dolphins by distinctive marks on their dorsal fins. By cataloguing and analyzing these features, researchers can track individual dolphins over time, monitoring their movements, behaviors, social interactions, and population dynamics. The study aims to correlate dolphin distribution patterns with environmental variables by combining photo identification with data collection on external factors.

Title: The End of the Line: The Implications of Vertical Line Entanglements in Whales and Sea Turtles in the Greater Atlantic Region

Numerous species of large whales and sea turtles suffer from entanglements in the vertical lines of fixed-fishing gear. In the Greater Atlantic Region, fixed-fishing gear is used in pot/trap and gillnet fisheries in both state and federal waters. Vertical lines can be hundreds of feet long as they connect the fixed-fishing gear set on the seafloor to a buoy that rests on the surface of the water. Vulnerable species, like humpback whales, leatherback sea turtles, and the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whales, have been documented to face entanglement in the vertical lines of fisheries along the coast of the Greater Atlantic Region. Seven years of large whale and sea turtle entanglement data was analyzed and confirmed vertical line entanglements were isolated. Entanglement reports documented different species of large whales and sea turtles suffering from confirmed vertical line entanglements from 2014-2021 along the Atlantic coast. Of the confirmed vertical line entanglements impacting large whales, 60% of the reports involved humpback whales. Leatherback sea turtles accounted for 95.1% of confirmed vertical line entanglements in sea turtles. The vast majority of entanglements have not been able to be traced back to a specific fishery, increasing the difficulty of implementing more robust management measures. Further understanding of the origin of gear involved in the entanglements of large whales and sea turtles in the Greater Atlantic Region will allow us to better manage our commercial fisheries to lessen their impact on vulnerable marine life.

Title: Biodiversity of Our World

From common species of animals and plants that you can find in your backyard to the more uncommon or even endangered fauna and flora that take a little more effort to find, this project seeks to spread information about the diversity of our world. Polaroid pictures will be taken of animals and plants that have been found in South Jersey either in captivity (aquariums, zoos, etc.) or in the wild. These Polaroid pictures will then be strung together on a poster board, and labeled with the genus and species along with general information about the particular creature, such as their preferred habitat, common name, and what its diet consists of. The poster board will also be interactive, as guests will be invited to draw their favorite animal on a post-it note and paste it onto the board. By allowing the audience to engage in an interactive process with the conjoined concepts of art and science, the presentation of the poster board will provide emphasis on how important biodiversity is and, by connecting environmental science to art, wecan develop more of an appreciation for our home on Earth.