Thursday, November 18, 2010

Two Barges on the Coos River, Oct 25, 2010

Five scientific divers from the Oregon Coast Aquarium inspected two barges for invasive tunicates on the Coos River on October 25th, 2010.    Because the barges were suspected of hosting the invasives, the owners had towed them eight miles up the Coos River to soak in fresh water.   This inspection was to check on the results of the two-weeks of fresh water soaking.

Monday, November 15, 2010

USFS Invasive Tunicate Survey: The Triangle-Winchester Bay, OR 9-28-2010 & 9-29-2010

Underwater surveys for invasive tunicates of the Triangle at Winchester Bay were undertaken by a USFS team of scientific divers on Sept. 28 and 29, 2010. They searched specifically for the non-native colonial tunicate Didemnum vexillum. D. vex has the potential to establish large colonies on firm natural or artificial surfaces. It can overgrow invertebrate life and make feeding difficult for species that depend on prey that has been smothered.