Mussel Abundance Increased After Sea Star Disease

Scientist sampling mussel bed in Amalik Bay, Katmai.

NPS/Monique LaFrance Bartley

The Pacific blue mussel (Mytilus trossulus) is a bivalve that resides along shores of the north Pacific Ocean. Mussels are an important source of food for a variety of nearshore species such as sea otters, sea ducks, and sea stars. A long-term marine monitoring program that documents variation in the nearshore food web allowed us to examine changes in mussel abundance in relation to two significant disturbances to the coastal ecosystem of the north Pacific: the recent Pacific marine heatwave (PMH, 2014–2016) and an outbreak of sea star wasting (SSW). Sea stars, temperature, and mussels were surveyed approximately annually since 2005 in four regions of the northern Gulf of Alaska: Katmai National Park and Preserve, Kachemak Bay, Kenai Fjords National Park, and western Prince William Sound. In general, mussel abundance increased following the decline in sea stars, which are predators of mussels. In contrast, the PMH had no direct effect on mussel abundance. However, elevated temperatures may have indirectly positively affected mussels through effects on their competitors. Mussels compete with other invertebrates and macroalage for space in intertidal habitats, including the rockweed, Fucus. Previous findings documented that Fucus declined after the onset of the PMH, which opened up space in the intertidal for mussel recruits to settle. As a common and important prey species for a variety of animals, changes to mussel abundance may affect the abundance or performance of other nearshore consumers of mussels.

Also see:
Evidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting, Prince WIlliam Sound Science Center, 2023

Evidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting

Abstract

Mussels occupy a key middle trophic position in nearshore food webs linking primary producers to predators. Climate-related environmental changes may synergistically combine with changes in predator abundance to affect intertidal ecosystems. We examined the influence of two major events on mussel (Mytilus trossulus) abundance in the northern Gulf of Alaska: the recent Pacific marine heatwave (PMH, 2014–2016) and an outbreak of sea star wasting (SSW). We investigated how mussel abundance changed since the onset of SSW and whether the density of predatory sea stars or PMH-related temperature metrics explain variation in mussel abundance. Sea stars and mussels were surveyed since 2005 approximately annually in four regions of the northern Gulf of Alaska: Katmai (KATM), Kachemak Bay (KBAY), Kenai Fjords (KEFJ) and western Prince William Sound (WPWS). Mussel percent cover in the mid-intertidal increased 1-3 years after declines in sea stars at all regions and in the low-intertidal at KATM, KBAY, and KEFJ, but not at WPWS. After the onset of SSW, large (≥20 mm length) mussel density and mussel bed width increased at KATM but not the other regions. Total mussel densities, including recruits, did not differ before and after the onset of SSW. The total number of sea stars significantly explained variation in mussel metrics, but the proportions of the three sea star species examined did not. We did not find strong evidence for direct effects of temperature on mussels. The effects of the PMH and the SSW outbreak appear to have combined, with increased temperatures indirectly benefiting mussels in concert with relaxed top-down pressure from sea stars, allowing for increased mussel abundance. Changing mussel abundance may affect intertidal local productivity and the abundance or performance of other nearshore consumers of mussels.

Traiger, S. B., J. L. Bodkin, H. A. Coletti, B. Ballachey, T. Dean, D. Esler, K. Iken, B. Konar, M. R. Lindberg, D. Monson, B. Robinson, R. M. Suryan, and B. P. Weitzman. 2022. Evidence of increased mussel abundance related to the Pacific marine heatwave and sea star wasting. Marine Ecology : e12715