MINT – the MMS Intertidal Team

MMS biologists on the MINT team continue to support the study of rocky intertidal communities along the coast of California (maps).

The MMS Intertidal Team, or MINT, is one of nine monitoring teams that collect data for MARINe , the Multi-Agency Rocky Intertidal Network MARINe.gov. MINT biologists team up with biologists from five university campuses (UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Barbara, UCLA, UC Davis, and California State University Fullerton) to monitor mussels, sea stars, algae, and other intertidal plants and animals along the coast.

MINT has been active since 1991, when MMS, the County of Santa Barbara and scientists at UC Santa Barbara set up shoreline inventory sites at nine locations from Vandenberg AFB to Carpinteria. MMS funds 24 sites along the mainland, from San Luis Obispo County to Orange County. MMS sponsors university biologists to conduct the monitoring and coordinate MARINe projects. MINT biologists monitor turf algae, rockweed, acorn and goose barnacles, mussels, surf grass, sea stars, black abalone, limpets, and motile invertebrates (crabs and snails) along the mainland at MMS-funded sites. The National Park Service and many other organizations monitor MARINe sites on the islands and other sections of the mainland (see MARINe.gov for information on the other MARINe partners).

In addition to providing field support twice a year at MMS-funded sites, the MINT team leads special projects for MARINe, including reviews of protocols, development of new techniques, equipment development; and sponsoring an annual Taxonomic Workshop for MARINe field teams.

Special projects:

The MINT team worked with UCLA to test aerial photography methods for use in sampling rocky intertidal communities. They tested an unmanned18 foot blimp and a remote-controlled mini-helicopter (below). Both are remotely-controlled by a joystick from the ground.

In a separate survey, the State of California, Office of Spill Prevention and Response flew 4 MMS sites with their winged aircraft while shots at several hundreds of feet above the site put the MMS sites in perspective with other rocky formations along the coast (see below).

University Scientists working with MINT:

Four key scientists have been instrumental in shaping the work being done in rocky intertidal habitats along our coast. Dr. Pete Raimondi (University of California, Santa Cruz); Dr. Rich Ambrose (UCLA), Dr. Jack Engle (UC Santa Barbara) and Dr. Steve Murray (California State University at Fullerton) (left to right below) have worked with MMS and other biologists to develop the sampling approaches and monitoring strategies that have become the basis of MARINe. Countless hours of effort have been put in by these scientists studying, analyzing, and working to understand the dynamics of the rocky intertidal habitats off our coast.

These scientists, their technicians, and students have monitored MMS-funded sites in the field with MINT biologists since 1991. The success of a long term monitoring program such as this is due in large part to the consistency of effort provided by technicians dedicated to accurate, systematic collection of data.

Mussel Recovery Study:

The MMS Intertidal Team (MINT) has studied rocky intertidal communities since 1991. MINT continued the MMS-funded long term study of four rocky intertidal communities in northern and central California from 1985-1998 to determine the recovery time needed for mussel beds following a major disturbance.

MINT team members collect data at a central California site in 1998. MINT team members are pictured with Melissa Wilson (UCSC) and Dick Wilhelmsen (former MMS manager) after a day of work. A point intercept sampling method is used to determine dynamics of disturbed mussel beds.

Shoreline Inventory Study:

From 1991 to 2000, MINT members, with the help of then UCSB scientists Rich Ambrose, Pete Raimondi, Jack Engle and their technicians Jessie Altstatt and Melissa Wilson, collected data at the Santa Barbara County mainland sites as part of the MMS/County of Santa Barbara Shoreline Inventory Study. These data have been placed into the MARINe database.

MINT is funded directly by MMS as an in-house study.