WEBVTT 00:05.733 --> 00:10.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% California's north-central coast is famous for its natural splendor. 00:12.933 --> 00:17.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Here, on the very edge of the North American continent, steep cliffs meet the vast 00:20.100 --> 00:22.133 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% Pacific Ocean. 00:22.133 --> 00:27.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Only 50 miles northwest of San Francisco's famous Golden Gate Bridge, yet light years 00:29.700 --> 00:34.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% away from the hustle and bustle of the human world, lies a magical underwater island few 00:36.633 --> 00:39.633 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% people have ever heard of. 00:39.633 --> 00:41.200 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% It's sensory overload. 00:41.200 --> 00:45.300 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% I've never seen so much color, I didn't know where to look. 00:45.300 --> 00:50.266 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% Pinks, purples, oranges, even blues and greens, it's just mind blowing. 00:52.266 --> 00:55.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Every single square inch of reef is covered by some sort of invertebrate. 00:55.366 --> 00:59.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% In some places you've got sponges growing on top of corals on top of anemones. 00:59.400 --> 01:03.733 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% There was the biggest school of fish that I've ever seen. 01:03.733 --> 01:04.733 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% Anywhere. 01:04.733 --> 01:06.866 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% It's truly amazing. 01:06.866 --> 01:11.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% This is the Cordell Bank - an underwater oasis that is an ecological Eden. 01:13.800 --> 01:18.800 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% It is a shallow bank located at the edge of the continental shelf. 01:21.066 --> 01:25.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% Cordell Bank is the seabird capital of the Northern Hemisphere. 01:25.700 --> 01:27.766 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Seabirders come from all over the world. 01:27.766 --> 01:32.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Europe, Asia, Africa, just to do pelagic seabird trips out to Cordell Bank. 01:35.200 --> 01:40.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It's been documented that whales and seabirds will migrate from thousands of miles away 01:41.766 --> 01:45.933 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% to feed at Cordell Bank because the ocean there is so productive. 01:45.933 --> 01:50.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We receive birds from New Zealand, turtles from Indonesia, albatross from Hawaii, they 01:54.233 --> 01:56.566 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% all come here to feed. 01:56.566 --> 02:01.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Something's got to be right for all of these birds, these whales to come here. 02:02.700 --> 02:06.500 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% What makes this unique location so special? 02:06.500 --> 02:11.500 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% And what is done to research and protect this place? 02:33.766 --> 02:38.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Major funding for this program was provided by the Batchelor Foundation, encouraging people 02:40.100 --> 02:44.366 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% to preserve and protect America's underwater resources. 02:46.933 --> 02:50.433 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And by The William J. & Tina Rosenberg Foundation, The Do Unto Others Trust, and by the following. 03:01.333 --> 03:06.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Hidden beneath a surface that is often shrouded in fog, the Cordell Bank is located 20 miles 03:08.166 --> 03:13.166 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% due west of the Point Reyes Lighthouse. 03:15.100 --> 03:19.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It is a pretty spectacular place in that it has the bank, which is about four miles across 03:21.266 --> 03:25.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% by about nine and a half miles long, which comes up a couple hundred feet from the soft 03:25.333 --> 03:27.466 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% sediment of the continental shelf. 03:27.466 --> 03:32.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So, you've got this feature, in the middle of all of the soft sediment that provides 03:32.100 --> 03:37.100 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% hard substrate for organisms to live on. 03:38.233 --> 03:39.833 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% The shallowest point is 115 feet. 03:39.833 --> 03:42.700 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% But from there, it drops. 03:42.700 --> 03:47.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Most of the shallow area on the bank is between 130 and 160 feet. 03:49.966 --> 03:54.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% For centuries, this underwater gem lay hidden beneath the waves. 03:57.866 --> 04:02.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% George Davidson, who worked for the U.S. Coast Survey, was the first to discover the bank 04:04.433 --> 04:08.800 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% in 1853 - shortly after California became part of the United States. 04:10.766 --> 04:15.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Sixteen years later he sent out the accomplished surveyor Edward Cordell to map the bank, 04:16.933 --> 04:19.266 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% which would later be named after him. 04:21.200 --> 04:24.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And then from that point forward, it was a landmark for mariners who are coming back 04:25.133 --> 04:30.133 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% into San Francisco Bay. 04:36.200 --> 04:41.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% But it would be more than a century later before anyone else decided to further explore 04:41.800 --> 04:44.300 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% the area. 04:44.300 --> 04:47.833 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% In 1977, divers with the non-profit research association Cordell Expeditions began to look 04:50.800 --> 04:53.700 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% beneath the surface. 04:53.700 --> 04:57.800 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% We need to give a lot of that credit to Dr. Bob Schmieder. 04:57.800 --> 05:02.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% He started diving out there with a group of volunteer divers for almost 10 years, recording 05:04.433 --> 05:07.300 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% just the spectacular biodiversity that's down on the bank. 05:07.300 --> 05:12.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And for those of us who just look at the surface of the water from the shore, we would have 05:12.066 --> 05:15.833 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% no idea that that was out there. 05:15.833 --> 05:20.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Bob brought those images back and went to Washington, D.C. and this was right when the 05:22.866 --> 05:24.900 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Marine Sanctuary Program was getting started and he said, "You know, this is really a place 05:24.900 --> 05:29.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that deserves to be recognized and deserves to be protected because it's such a spectacular 05:30.333 --> 05:32.366 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% place." 05:32.366 --> 05:37.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Acknowledging its ecological importance, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 05:39.166 --> 05:43.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% established the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary in May of 1989. 05:46.066 --> 05:51.066 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% The big driver was the prohibition of oil and gas exploration, which is one of our primary 05:52.100 --> 05:54.066 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% regulations. 05:54.066 --> 05:57.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We also have regulations that prohibit the disturbance of the seabed. 05:57.533 --> 06:02.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% In 2015, the sanctuary boundaries were expanded to areas surrounding the bank. 06:05.533 --> 06:10.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The sanctuary includes part of the continental shelf, from the deep slope habitat and then 06:10.266 --> 06:15.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% to the north, a prominent submarine feature called Bodega Canyon. 06:15.033 --> 06:19.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It's all below the surface so it's really hidden from view and I think people are shocked 06:19.900 --> 06:24.733 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% when they learn that right off the California coast there's this area of incredible underwater 06:24.733 --> 06:26.800 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% beauty. 06:26.800 --> 06:30.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% National Marine Sanctuaries are important to protect, not just for people to visit and 06:32.333 --> 06:37.133 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% to see, but also because of the habitats that they protect. 06:37.133 --> 06:42.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% At Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary our science program is to understand the resources 06:44.100 --> 06:47.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in the sanctuary and understand how they might be changing so that we can provide the best 06:47.466 --> 06:52.266 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% science information available for the best conservation. 07:06.833 --> 07:11.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Since 2004, experts regularly conduct research at sea as part of ACCESS, which is short for 07:15.066 --> 07:20.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% "Applied California Current Ecosystems Studies." 07:22.466 --> 07:25.133 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% It's a collaboration between Greater Farrallones National Marine Sanctuary, Cordell Bank National 07:25.133 --> 07:27.866 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Marine Sanctuary, and Point Blue Conservation Science. 07:27.866 --> 07:32.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So, it's unique in that it's a public - private partnership and we each bring some resources 07:32.733 --> 07:36.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and expertise together, and we're able to do much more than we could independently. 07:36.866 --> 07:41.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the object is to study the ocean health and that ocean ecosystem in the sanctuaries. 07:45.100 --> 07:50.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We try and sample the same time frame every year so that we can look at changes over time. 07:52.800 --> 07:57.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And to do that we survey three times a year, usually around May, July and September for 07:58.666 --> 08:01.266 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% six to ten days at a time. 08:01.266 --> 08:05.366 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% We want to hit the beginning of upwelling, the middle of upwelling, and right after upwelling. 08:07.333 --> 08:11.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Wind-driven coastal upwelling is a physical process and North America's Pacific coastline 08:13.933 --> 08:17.833 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% is one of four major upwelling regions in the world. 08:17.833 --> 08:22.833 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% We have a persistent north wind blowing down the coast of California. 08:24.800 --> 08:28.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And you would think that wind would drag the water along with it, well it does, but we're 08:30.033 --> 08:33.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% living on an earth that's rotating, and so the surface layer of the ocean, the top 100 08:35.566 --> 08:38.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% feet or something, is pushed offshore and you have to replace that water with something, 08:38.966 --> 08:41.866 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% so you replace it with water from underneath. 08:41.866 --> 08:46.733 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% That cold water welling up from the deep is rich in nutrients. 08:46.733 --> 08:51.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% These nutrients fuel tiny surface-dwelling ocean plants known as phytoplankton, which 08:52.900 --> 08:55.100 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% form the base of the marine food chain. 08:55.100 --> 09:00.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It's like when you put plant food to your lawn, upwelling works like that. 09:02.166 --> 09:05.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It upwells strongest and most persistently in Point Arena, and then it flows south and 09:06.400 --> 09:08.833 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% as it does that the phytoplankton develops. 09:08.833 --> 09:12.666 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% It takes about three to five days for a good phytoplankton bloom. 09:12.666 --> 09:17.666 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And the water will change colors-starts looking green or maybe a little brown, typically green. 09:17.666 --> 09:22.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And by the time that's happened the water's moved 100 miles down the coast, which 09:22.433 --> 09:24.700 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% happens to be where Cordell Bank is. 09:24.700 --> 09:29.000 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% And there are a lot of organisms, krill for example, they will feed on these drifting 09:29.000 --> 09:31.033 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% plants. 09:31.033 --> 09:35.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And of course they're eaten by fish and the fish are eaten by seals or the whales can 09:35.866 --> 09:37.766 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% be eating krill directly. 09:37.766 --> 09:41.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So it's a whole ecosystem building up from those drifting plants. 09:41.133 --> 09:43.633 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% That is really the driver if you will. 09:43.633 --> 09:48.633 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% What makes Cordell Bank and many other places along the west coast of California so productive 09:50.666 --> 09:54.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that then draws organisms from all over the Pacific to come and feed in this area. 09:57.000 --> 10:01.400 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% The ACCESS research team studies how the various oceanographic conditions influence the distribution 10:03.000 --> 10:05.200 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% and abundance of animals. 10:05.200 --> 10:09.366 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% When we are at sea we have two teams. 10:09.366 --> 10:13.300 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% A team that works on the flying bridge of the vessel. 10:13.300 --> 10:16.166 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% We have two marine mammal observers, one on each side. 10:16.166 --> 10:19.133 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% So, that's a humpback whale. 10:19.133 --> 10:23.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And they're scanning in a 90-degree quadrant on their side for marine mammals. 10:23.900 --> 10:28.900 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Then we have one seabird observer on one side and she's scanning her 90-degree quadrat as 10:30.300 --> 10:32.366 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% well, and one data recorder. 10:32.366 --> 10:37.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So when they see a seabird or marine mammal they call out a series of codes. 10:38.266 --> 10:42.600 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Common murre one, zone two, water. 10:42.600 --> 10:46.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% That gets entered into the computer with a GPS location. 10:46.066 --> 10:51.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Our area here is actually probably one of the best places on the west coast for foraging 10:52.600 --> 10:54.633 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% birds and mammals. 10:54.633 --> 10:59.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We observe humpback whales and blue whales and fin whales, grey whales. 11:01.300 --> 11:05.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And seabirds like western gulls, common murres, shearwaters, storm petrels. 11:07.066 --> 11:10.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Some of those are resident birds that breed in this area, but some of them migrate from 11:10.500 --> 11:13.200 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% thousands of miles away to feed in the productive waters here. 11:13.200 --> 11:18.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We get species from all over the Pacific including: Indonesia, New Zealand, Alaska, Hawaii. 11:22.000 --> 11:27.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% For example, albatross will have chicks on the nest in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, 11:30.233 --> 11:35.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% they will come all the way to Cordell Bank to find food, and then they turn around and 11:37.200 --> 11:40.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% go back, and then they feed their chick all within the breeding season coming all the 11:41.966 --> 11:44.966 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% way to Cordell Bank and going all the way back to the Hawaiian Islands. 11:44.966 --> 11:47.600 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% And they'll do that several times throughout the nesting season. 11:47.600 --> 11:51.866 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% It's really the best restaurant on the west coast. 11:51.866 --> 11:55.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We can be working and suddenly there's a breaching whale right next to us. 11:55.433 --> 12:00.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Or we're working and we see an ocean sunfish and those are pretty amazing fish to see. 12:02.833 --> 12:07.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We have these predetermined transect lines that we survey repeatedly each time we go 12:07.333 --> 12:09.366 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% out. 12:09.366 --> 12:13.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The spacing of the lines are so that we don't double count things, but we want to have them 12:14.933 --> 12:19.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% close enough together so that we're doing a full coverage. 12:24.166 --> 12:29.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The boat stops at multiple stations along these transect lines so experts can sample 12:29.900 --> 12:31.100 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% the water column. 12:31.100 --> 12:33.133 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% The second team works on the back deck. 12:33.133 --> 12:38.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We're sampling for the prey, the zooplankton and the krill and the fish. 12:40.033 --> 12:44.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the stations are selected so that we can sample all across the continental shelf, and 12:47.633 --> 12:52.433 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% then the shelf break, and then we sample beyond the shelf break. 12:52.433 --> 12:55.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The shelf break is an important feature for seabirds and marine mammals feeding. 12:55.933 --> 13:00.900 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% A lot of the food gets concentrated when the water upwells there, so that's a hot spot 13:01.766 --> 13:03.700 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% for seabirds and marine mammals. 13:03.700 --> 13:08.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We deploy several nets, a larger net that we use to monitor zooplankton in the upper 13:09.000 --> 13:11.033 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% water column. 13:11.033 --> 13:15.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And one time on every line, we deploy a really large net, and we send that net about 13:16.300 --> 13:18.800 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% 200 meters depth to sample for krill. 13:18.800 --> 13:23.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And that goes back to the lab where all the krill get counted and sized and identified, 13:23.733 --> 13:25.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% there's a couple different species that we have. 13:25.933 --> 13:30.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% All the zooplankton goes to a specialist who will sort that sample and identify all the 13:31.800 --> 13:33.900 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% organisms in that sample. 13:33.900 --> 13:37.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And so we're able to kind of quantify the water that we filter with the net and how 13:37.733 --> 13:42.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% much plankton is in that net and so we get an estimate of the prey availability to the 13:44.200 --> 13:46.166 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% seabirds and marine mammals. 13:46.166 --> 13:50.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We sample the prey directly using nets or indirectly using hydroacoustics. 13:51.833 --> 13:55.166 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% So this computer is the hydroacoustic computer. 13:55.166 --> 13:59.533 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Here we have a fancy fish-finder. 13:59.533 --> 14:04.500 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And we- that operates at three different frequencies, and what it allows us to do is identify where 14:06.033 --> 14:08.966 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% fish, or where the krill concentrate. 14:08.966 --> 14:11.866 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% And then we're also doing oceanographic sampling. 14:11.866 --> 14:16.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So look at the temperature and salinity and oxygen in the water. 14:16.600 --> 14:21.200 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% And the objective is to understand the ocean ecosystem health. 14:21.200 --> 14:26.200 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% So we're looking at the distribution and abundance of the predators, the seabirds, and the marine 14:26.666 --> 14:28.666 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% mammals. 14:28.666 --> 14:31.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We look at the prey availability through the zooplankton, the krill and the fish, and then 14:31.733 --> 14:34.466 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% we look at the physical conditions in the ocean. 14:34.466 --> 14:39.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% By compiling these various layers experts gain a better understanding of how everything 14:40.366 --> 14:44.266 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% in the ecosystem ties together. 14:44.266 --> 14:49.266 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% And that's really how we can identify those hots spots of where we can allow certain things 14:51.266 --> 14:54.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% to happen, where we really shouldn't be allowing certain things to happen. 14:56.700 --> 15:00.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% While the sanctuary is actively protecting local resources, it still faces global stressors 15:01.633 --> 15:04.900 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% that might threaten the area in the future. 15:04.900 --> 15:09.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% One concern is lowered dissolved oxygen levels in the water caused by climate change. 15:12.033 --> 15:17.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% While low oxygen levels can occur naturally, human impacts have increased the frequency 15:18.333 --> 15:21.600 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% and severity of low-oxygen zones worldwide. 15:21.600 --> 15:26.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% If there were a really reduced level of oxygen at Cordell Bank like they've seen in other 15:28.566 --> 15:31.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% places like in Oregon, it could be really detrimental to the animals, the organisms 15:31.766 --> 15:36.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that live on the bank, so we've been monitoring hypoxia, which means low oxygen, at Cordell 15:37.633 --> 15:39.800 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% Bank for the past few years. 15:39.800 --> 15:43.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We haven't seen a huge die off, but we want to be monitoring and be able to catch things 15:43.933 --> 15:46.766 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% before we get to that point. 15:46.766 --> 15:51.766 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% The ACCESS research team, together with experts from the University of California, Davis Bodega 15:53.833 --> 15:58.100 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Marine Laboratory, use a variety of sensors to measure the dissolved oxygen levels throughout 15:59.366 --> 16:01.866 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% the sanctuary. 16:01.866 --> 16:06.800 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Under normal conditions, surface waters are saturated with dissolved oxygen from the atmosphere. 16:09.233 --> 16:13.666 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Dead surface-dwelling plants and animals sink to the depths and use up oxygen during decomposition, 16:15.566 --> 16:20.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% making the water that upwells from the deep naturally low in dissolved oxygen. 16:22.533 --> 16:27.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The animals that live down at depth in Cordell Bank, it's been millennia - ages that 16:28.900 --> 16:30.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% they've lived there, they've adapted to it and everything works fine. 16:30.633 --> 16:34.866 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% The concern of course is if we change that. 16:34.866 --> 16:39.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% As ocean surface temperatures rise with global climate change, the amount of dissolved oxygen 16:40.733 --> 16:43.133 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% the water can hold goes down. 16:43.133 --> 16:48.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It also becomes more difficult for the oxygen to reach the colder, deep-water layers. 16:49.700 --> 16:53.466 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% The surface of the ocean gets warmer and it becomes more stratified. 16:53.466 --> 16:57.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So you need more energy to mix up the cold water and the warm water and that also means 16:57.900 --> 17:02.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that you will mix the oxygen from the surface down to depth more slowly. 17:02.866 --> 17:06.766 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% As a result of that, the oxygen at depth gets a bit lower. 17:06.766 --> 17:11.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Meanwhile you're decomposing just as much material, but you're not topping it off with 17:11.400 --> 17:14.600 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% oxygen as rapidly if you have surface warming. 17:14.600 --> 17:18.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% We do see episodes every year of hypoxia on the shelf. 17:18.066 --> 17:19.766 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% In one case we had a report 17:19.766 --> 17:22.733 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% from a fisherman collecting crab that the crab were dead. 17:22.733 --> 17:25.366 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% So it can get low enough to cause impact. 17:25.366 --> 17:30.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% At this stage that's an unusual event, but that is the fear we have for the future if 17:32.333 --> 17:36.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% climate change continues to decrease the oxygen of the deep water in the ocean. 17:39.466 --> 17:44.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Another climate change related impact affecting the oceans worldwide is ocean acidification 17:46.366 --> 17:50.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% - an increase in the acidity of the water caused by rising carbon dioxide levels. 17:53.200 --> 17:57.966 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Ocean acidification is the change in the ocean chemistry which makes carbonate less available 17:57.966 --> 18:02.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% to animals that build shells and it can cause their shells to dissolve, or they may have 18:02.900 --> 18:07.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% more difficulty building shells, it may be a stressful environment for them. 18:07.400 --> 18:11.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% So, this could really affect the entire food chain. 18:11.933 --> 18:16.800 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% So we are starting to see impacts especially on some of the larval forms that are out there 18:16.800 --> 18:21.800 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% and they're extremely vulnerable in the early stages of their life. 18:23.866 --> 18:26.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% If acidification started to impact things like krill who use the carbon to form their 18:28.800 --> 18:30.466 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% carapace, 18:30.466 --> 18:33.433 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% if those krill were to go away, salmon would be negatively impacted. 18:33.433 --> 18:38.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Our whole ecosystem would kind of get tilted, if these impacts of ocean acidification continue. 18:40.366 --> 18:44.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It would affect everything from the plankton in our local ecosystem to the top predators, 18:45.100 --> 18:49.433 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% like the whales and seabirds. 18:51.400 --> 18:56.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% To measure the acidity of the water in the sanctuary, University of California Davis 18:57.966 --> 19:01.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Ph.D. Candidate Carina Fish collects water samples during the ACCESS research trips. 19:03.766 --> 19:08.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And that helps us understand how changes in the water column have been going on for the 19:08.466 --> 19:10.533 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% past, say, decade or so. 19:10.533 --> 19:15.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Carina is also studying how ocean acidification may impact a species of deep sea corals that 19:17.733 --> 19:22.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% was recently discovered in the depths of the Bodega Canyon, which lies north of the Cordell 19:22.666 --> 19:25.666 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% Bank. 19:25.666 --> 19:30.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Named after their skeleton, bamboo corals are long lived and slow growing. 19:30.566 --> 19:33.766 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% We've seen them as deep as 1800 meters. 19:33.766 --> 19:36.133 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% It's very cold and it is also very dark. 19:36.133 --> 19:39.400 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% The water down there is probably around like four degrees celsius. 19:39.400 --> 19:44.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% They rely solely on the marine snow falling from above as their food source. 19:46.866 --> 19:51.000 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Marine snow is made up of dead phyto and zooplankton - tiny marine plants and animals that are 19:51.900 --> 19:54.100 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% sinking down into the deep. 19:54.100 --> 19:58.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We're not seeing - the polyps would be on top of the skeleton, so this is 19:58.166 --> 20:01.900 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% just the actual bone-like structure of them. 20:01.900 --> 20:04.966 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And the reason why I'm so particularly interested in the skeleton is because it has a lot of 20:04.966 --> 20:07.066 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% history that it records in it. 20:07.066 --> 20:12.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% So the chemistry of this organic node, this black part here, records the life cycle of 20:13.900 --> 20:16.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% the coral and also the environment in which it grew up in and the diet that it ate. 20:16.433 --> 20:20.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% They're going to be anywhere from like 100 years old to 400 years old. 20:20.166 --> 20:22.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% So that's actually the beauty of deep sea corals. 20:22.933 --> 20:26.033 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% It's not just the past maybe decade or so that we've been monitoring. 20:26.033 --> 20:29.933 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% They give us a nice 400-year record. 20:29.933 --> 20:34.933 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% The fear is that as ocean acidification worsens in the upper layers of the ocean, it will 20:36.333 --> 20:39.833 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% impact the zooplankton the corals rely on as a food source. 20:39.833 --> 20:44.800 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% It could either be there are less amount of the available food or it could be the nutritional 20:46.200 --> 20:48.633 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% value of that food sinking down isn't as high. 20:48.633 --> 20:51.666 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% So that's what I'm investigating currently. 20:51.666 --> 20:56.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The corals rely on the plankton, and the plankton rely on the ocean conditions. 20:56.100 --> 20:59.833 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And so if you're able to understand the oceanographic conditions that you're seeing, the plankton 20:59.833 --> 21:02.833 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% communities that you're seeing, and the corals themselves, 21:02.833 --> 21:04.333 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% you can actually understand better 21:05.500 --> 21:07.666 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% holistically what the ecosystem is doing. 21:09.633 --> 21:11.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It's really important as stewards of the sanctuary for us to be able to know how the 21:11.866 --> 21:13.900 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% sanctuary's doing. 21:13.900 --> 21:18.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% What are the status and trends, so that we can make decisions about management 21:19.900 --> 21:22.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that we can use to better protect the resources in the sanctuary. 21:22.433 --> 21:27.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% As with any remote or deep place in the ocean, much is left to explore inside the Cordell 21:28.566 --> 21:31.166 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% Bank National Marine Sanctuary. 21:31.166 --> 21:33.200 align:left position:30% line:83% size:60% There is a whole lot to discover. 21:33.200 --> 21:38.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% 'Cause every time we go down there, we find organisms that have never been described. 21:51.666 --> 21:56.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Until a local group of technical divers became interested in exploring the site, there had 21:58.733 --> 22:01.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% been almost zero scuba diving on Cordell Bank, since the Cordell Expeditions team first explored 22:03.366 --> 22:05.700 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% it in the 1970s. 22:05.700 --> 22:07.633 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% Lots of helium. 22:07.633 --> 22:10.566 align:left position:30% line:89% size:60% POV's good. 22:10.566 --> 22:15.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% It had kind of become like this mythical place. 22:15.066 --> 22:16.233 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% Everybody had heard about it. 22:16.233 --> 22:17.733 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% It was supposed to be amazing. 22:17.733 --> 22:19.666 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% It was impossible to get to. 22:19.666 --> 22:24.333 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% And so we always talked about diving it. 22:24.333 --> 22:29.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% BAUE, or Bay Area Underwater Explorers, is a local affiliate group to a global organization 22:33.166 --> 22:36.866 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% called Global Underwater Explorers. 22:36.866 --> 22:41.400 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% One of the things that drives us all is just the urge to explore. 22:41.400 --> 22:45.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Documenting underwater life, and basically sharing that with the world so that they realize 22:45.600 --> 22:48.733 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% there's a reason to conserve what's under there. 22:48.733 --> 22:53.700 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Diving on the Cordell Bank requires a highly specialized skill set, due to the challenging 22:55.300 --> 22:58.766 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% depths, currents, weather conditions, and remoteness of the site. 22:58.766 --> 23:03.733 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% It take's special training, practice and more importantly being very familiar with the type 23:04.966 --> 23:07.033 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% of conditions that are out there. 23:07.033 --> 23:11.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Most of the divers have ten or so years of experience doing these kinds of dives on the 23:13.133 --> 23:15.166 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% California coast. 23:15.166 --> 23:18.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% It's typically very cold, low to mid 50s Fahrenheit. 23:18.933 --> 23:23.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We need the wind and waves to be safe enough to get the divers on and off the boat, and 23:25.200 --> 23:28.300 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% probably the biggest unpredictable factor is the fog. 23:28.300 --> 23:31.200 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% The fog can move in without any notice. 23:31.200 --> 23:34.100 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% And so all of our diving is done live boating. 23:34.100 --> 23:38.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% There's a down line to get the divers to the structure, they will go wherever the dive 23:38.766 --> 23:39.933 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% is going to take them. 23:41.900 --> 23:44.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And then when they're on their way back up they'll shoot a marker buoy so that we can 23:44.366 --> 23:47.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% tag that marker buoy and then follow them wherever the currents would take them 23:47.733 --> 23:49.633 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% and pick them up. 23:51.700 --> 23:54.700 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% In 2013, after years of research, planning and preparation, the BAUE team was ready to 23:57.200 --> 23:59.266 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% dive in. 23:59.266 --> 24:03.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% We worked closely with NOAA, and the Cordell National Marine Sanctuary team in particular, 24:06.300 --> 24:11.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% really to identify not just the regulatory steps required to go out there, but also to 24:11.200 --> 24:13.566 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% identify a mutually beneficial goal. 24:13.566 --> 24:18.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% They are a great group of individuals who have been collecting important information 24:20.566 --> 24:23.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% from the top of Cordell Bank for us, and it's been really a fantastic partnership. 24:25.066 --> 24:29.366 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% We've collected images, videos, species, samples. 24:29.366 --> 24:34.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% That first year, we got three days in a row of perfect conditions for diving and it was 24:35.900 --> 24:38.400 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% everything that we imagined and so much more. 24:38.400 --> 24:40.566 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% And we got out to the bank and it was like, "Wow! 24:40.566 --> 24:42.600 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% I can't believe we're actually here." 24:42.600 --> 24:46.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% As soon as we dropped in the water and we're coming on the bottom and I see just fish 24:46.733 --> 24:48.533 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% as far as the eye can see, in every single direction. 24:48.533 --> 24:50.666 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% You're like a kid in the candy store. 24:52.700 --> 24:55.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It's of upmost importance that the public understands that these places exist and efforts 24:57.100 --> 24:59.766 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% to protect these places really do have a meaningful impact. 24:59.766 --> 25:04.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Our hope is that by some of the work that we've done we can help kind of create that 25:04.200 --> 25:09.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% awareness for people that aren't necessarily going to get to see it themselves. 25:12.600 --> 25:17.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% California's Cordell Bank is a national treasure - one dedicated individuals and 25:19.600 --> 25:24.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% organizations are working hard to explore, understand, and protect for many generations 25:27.233 --> 25:29.766 align:left position:40% line:89% size:50% to come. 25:29.766 --> 25:33.833 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% As a marine sanctuary, that's really our mission, is to maintain these ocean areas in the best 25:35.366 --> 25:39.533 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% possible condition that we can. 26:12.833 --> 26:17.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Major funding for this program was provided by the Batchelor Foundation, encouraging people 26:19.166 --> 26:23.433 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% to preserve and protect America's underwater resources. 26:26.000 --> 26:29.533 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And by The William J. & Tina Rosenberg Foundation, The Do Unto Others Trust, and by the following.