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Author

Gabriela Montaño-Moctezuma

Other affiliations: Oregon State University
Bio: Gabriela Montaño-Moctezuma is an academic researcher from Autonomous University of Baja California. The author has contributed to research in topics: Kelp forest & Kelp. The author has an hindex of 10, co-authored 29 publications receiving 338 citations. Previous affiliations of Gabriela Montaño-Moctezuma include Oregon State University.

Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a recent extreme warming event (2014-2016) of unprecedented magnitude and duration in the California Current System allowed them to evaluate the response of the kelp forest community near its southern (warm) distribution limit.
Abstract: Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of marine heatwaves. A recent extreme warming event (2014-2016) of unprecedented magnitude and duration in the California Current System allowed us to evaluate the response of the kelp forest community near its southern (warm) distribution limit. We obtained sea surface temperatures for the northern Pacific of Baja California, Mexico, and collected kelp forest community data at three islands, before and after the warming event. The warming was the most intense and persistent event observed to date, with low-pass anomalies 1°C warmer than the previous extremes during the 1982-1984 and 1997-1998 El Ninos. The period between 2014-2017 accounted for ~50% of marine heatwaves days in the past 37 years, with the highest maximum temperature intensities peaking at 5.9°C above average temperatures for the period. We found significant declines in the number of Macrocystis pyrifera individuals, except at the northernmost island, and corresponding declines in the number of fronds per kelp individual. We also found significant changes in the community structure associated with the kelp beds: half of the fish and invertebrate species disappeared after the marine heatwaves, species with warmer affinities appeared or increased their abundance, and introduced algae, previously absent, appeared at all islands. Changes in subcanopy and understory algal assemblages were also evident; however, the response varied among islands. These results suggest that the effect of global warming can be more apparent in sensitive species, such as sessile invertebrates, and that warming-related impacts have the potential to facilitate the establishment of tropical and invasive species.

96 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a transdisciplinary modeling approach for the Huave Lagoon System (HLS), Mexico was developed to identify ecosystem-level management alternatives capable of diminishing fishing impacts to the HLS.
Abstract: We developed a transdisciplinary modeling approach for the Huave Lagoon System (HLS), Mexico. This lagoon was selected because it has been used sustainably in various complimentary ways by different ethnic groups since pre-Hispanic times. Over the last few years, however, the ecological impact of artisanal fisheries in the region has grown significantly, thus endangering the balance between society and nature. Because the Huaves and the Zapotecs are ancestral fishing cultures with a profound knowledge of ecosystem resources and local property rights, the aim of this study was to identify ecosystem-level management alternatives capable of diminishing fishing impacts to the HLS. We used a consensus-building process and applied the user's traditional ecological knowledge (TEK). Our counterintuitive results show that specific management strategies should be considered for each particular fishing seascape within the HLS while taking into account the differences among ecological structures and fishery dynamics. The insights from this research aid in defining holistic management policies and support spatial allocations of use rights in local fisheries.

58 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Results show that crab predation may be important in organizing intertidal communities, despite multiple ecological mechanisms promoting sea urchin survival, and that substrate refuges significantly reduced mortality on juvenile urchins.
Abstract: We evaluated the effects of potential predators from intertidal habitats on Strongylocentrotus purpuratus survival using laboratory experiments and assessed abundances of main predatory species along the Pacific coast of North America. The interactive effects of urchins’ and predators’ sizes in mediating predation were quantified. Habitat complexity (substrate pits, adult spine canopy) was manipulated to examine its effects on predation of most susceptible individuals (<14 mm). Pachygrapsus crassipes was identified as a major predator of urchins up to ≈30 mm. A positive effect of predator size on consumption of progressively larger urchins was detected, probably due to a mechanical limitation on crabs’ ability to consume large prey. Larger claws of males with respect to females of comparable sizes facilitated the handling of larger prey. Substrate refuges significantly reduced mortality on juvenile urchins. These results show that crab predation may be important in organizing intertidal communities, despite multiple ecological mechanisms promoting sea urchin survival.

49 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results suggest that coastal communities that are dependent on kelp forests will be more impacted in the southern portion of the California Current region, highlighting the urgency of implementing adaptive strategies to sustain livelihoods and ensure food security.
Abstract: The changing global climate is having profound effects on coastal marine ecosystems around the world. Structure, functioning, and resilience, however, can vary geographically, depending on species composition, local oceanographic forcing, and other pressures from human activities and use. Understanding ecological responses to environmental change and predicting changes in the structure and functioning of whole ecosystems require large-scale, long-term studies, yet most studies trade spatial extent for temporal duration. We address this shortfall by integrating multiple long-term kelp forest monitoring datasets to evaluate biogeographic patterns and rates of change of key functional groups (FG) along the west coast of North America. Analysis of data from 469 sites spanning Alaska, USA, to Baja California, Mexico, and 373 species (assigned to 18 FG) reveals regional variation in responses to both long-term (2006-2016) change and a recent marine heatwave (2014-2016) associated with two atmospheric and oceanographic anomalies, the "Blob" and extreme El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Canopy-forming kelps appeared most sensitive to warming throughout their range. Other FGs varied in their responses among trophic levels, ecoregions, and in their sensitivity to heatwaves. Changes in community structure were most evident within the southern and northern California ecoregions, while communities in the center of the range were more resilient. We report a poleward shift in abundance of some key FGs. These results reveal major, ongoing region-wide changes in productive coastal marine ecosystems in response to large-scale climate variability, and the potential loss of foundation species. In particular, our results suggest that coastal communities that are dependent on kelp forests will be more impacted in the southern portion of the California Current region, highlighting the urgency of implementing adaptive strategies to sustain livelihoods and ensure food security. The results also highlight the value of multiregional integration and coordination of monitoring programs for improving our understanding of marine ecosystems, with the goal of informing policy and resource management in the future.

42 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
07 Feb 2020-Science
TL;DR: Despite increasing climate-change advocacy and the overwhelming evidence demonstrating social and ecological impacts of climate change, political denial and inaction are jeopardizing society's ability to respond adequately to the multifaceted consequences of the accelerating pace of climate-driven loss of marine forests.
Abstract: Marine kelp forests, among the most productive ecosystems on our planet, are in danger. The increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme climatic events such as marine heat waves is compromising kelp forests' capacity to produce goods and services (such as biomass of commercial fisheries, coastal protection, nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration, and recreational opportunities) that are worth billions of dollars to humanity. However, despite increasing climate-change advocacy and the overwhelming evidence demonstrating social and ecological impacts of climate change, political denial and inaction are jeopardizing society's ability to respond adequately to the multifaceted consequences of the accelerating pace of climate-driven loss of marine forests.

41 citations


Cited by
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01 Jan 1981
TL;DR: It is suggested that the reproductive season of certain long—lived, patch—dependent species is moulded by the disturbance regime, and the necessary and vital connection between disturbance which generates spatial pattern and species richness in communities open to invasion is discussed.
Abstract: The mussel Mytilus californianus is a competitive dominant on wave—swept rocky intertidal shores. Mussel beds may exist as extensive monocultures; more often they are an everchanging mosaic of many species which inhabit wave—generated patches or gaps. This paper describes observations and experiments designed to measure the critical parameters of a model of patch birth and death, and to use the model to predict the spatial structure of mussel beds. Most measurements were made at Tatoosh Island, Washington, USA, from 1970—1979. Patch size ranged at birth from a single mussel to 38 m2; the distribution of patch sizes approximates the lognormal. Birth rates varied seasonally and regionally. At Tatoosh the rate of patch formation varied during six winters from 0.4—5.4% of the mussels removed per month. The disturbance regime during the summer and at two mainland sites was 5—10 times less. Annual disturbance patterns tended to be synchronous within 11 sites on one face of Tatoosh over a 10—yr interval, and over larger distances (16 km) along the coastline. The pattern was asynchronous, however, among four Tatoosh localities. Patch birth rate, and mean and maximum size at birth can be used as adequate indices of disturbance. Patch disappearance (death) occurs by three mechanisms. Very small patches disappear almost immediately due to a leaning response of the border mussels (0.2 cm/d). Intermediate—sized patches (<3.0 m2) are eventually obliterated by lateral movement of the peripheral mussels: estimates based on 94 experimental patches yield a mean shrinking rate of 0.05 cm/d from each of two principal dimensions. Depth of the adjacent mussel bed accounts for much of the local variation in closing rate. In very large patches, mussels must recruit as larvae from the plankton. Recovery begins at an average patch age of 26 mo; rate of space occupation, primarily due to individual growth, is 2.0—2.5%/mo. Winter birth rates suggest a mean turnover time (rotation period) for mussel beds varying from 8.1—34.7 yr, depending on the location. The minimal value is in close agreement with both observed and calculated minimal recovery times. Projections of total patch area, based on the model, are accurate to within 5% of the observed. Using a method for determining the age of patches, based on a growth curve of the barnacle Balanus cariosus, the model permits predictions of the age—size structure of the patch population. The model predicts with excellent resolution the distribution of patch area in relation to time since last disturbance. The most detailed models which include size structure within age categories are inconclusive due to small sample size. Predictions are food for large patches, the major determinants of environmental patterns, but cannot deal adequately with smaller patches because of stochastic effects. Colonization data are given in relation to patch age, size and intertidal position. We suggest that the reproductive season of certain long—lived, patch—dependent species is moulded by the disturbance regime. The necessary and vital connection between disturbance which generates spatial pattern and species richness in communities open to invasion is discussed.

1,082 citations

01 Jan 2010
TL;DR: A 23-year database of calibrated and validated satellite altimeter measurements is used to investigate global changes in oceanic wind speed and wave height over this period and finds a general global trend of increasing values of windspeed and, to a lesser degree, wave height.
Abstract: Wind speeds over the world’s oceans have increased over the past two decades, as have wave heights. Studies of climate change typically consider measurements or predictions of temperature over extended periods of time. Climate, however, is much more than temperature. Over the oceans, changes in wind speed and the surface gravity waves generated by such winds play an important role. We used a 23-year database of calibrated and validated satellite altimeter measurements to investigate global changes in oceanic wind speed and wave height over this period. We find a general global trend of increasing values of wind speed and, to a lesser degree, wave height, over this period. The rate of increase is greater for extreme events as compared to the mean condition.

737 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose a balanced Nexus framework that attempts to equally weight sectoral objectives to reveal cross-sectoral connections and changes in those connections as a consequence of single sector interventions.

253 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors surveyed the global literature relating to the local and traditional ecological knowledge (LTK) of marine environments and analyzed what knowledge has been collected and with what aims and results, and suggested how such an infrastructure might be advanced through collaborative projects and bridging institutions that highlight the importance of trust-building and the involvement of communities in all stages of research.
Abstract: Local and traditional ecological knowledge (LTK) is increasingly recognized as an important component of scientific research, conservation, and resource management. Especially where there are gaps in the scientific literature, LTK can be a critical source of basic environmental data; this situation is particularly apparent in the case of marine ecosystems, about which comparatively less is known than terrestrial ones. We surveyed the global literature relating to the LTK of marine environments and analyzed what knowledge has been collected and with what aims and results. A large proportion of LTK which has been documented by researchers consists of species-specific information that is important for traditional resource use. However, knowledge relating to marine ecology, environmental change, and contemporary resource management practices is increasingly emphasized in the literature. Today, marine LTK is being used to provide historical and contemporary baseline information, suggest stewardship techniques, improve conservation planning and practice, and to resolve management disputes. Still, comparatively few studies are geared toward the practicalities of developing a truly collaborative, adaptive, and resilient management infrastructure that is embracive of modern science and LTK and practices in marine environments. Based on the literature, we thus suggest how such an infrastructure might be advanced through collaborative projects and "bridging" institutions that highlight the importance of trust-building and the involvement of communities in all stages of research, and the importance of shared interest in project objectives, settings (seascapes), and outcomes.

221 citations