Marine Fungi

Current Projects

Saltmarsh Restoration

It is estimated that three-quarters of the Nation's marine harvestable species are at some point in their life cycle dependent on estuarine habitats for food and shelter or as migratory routes and spawning grounds. Salt marshes are known to provide important vegetated habitats for many species of fish and invertebrates, some of which are of commercial and/or recreational importance; as well as for many types of wading birds and endangered species, such as manatees and sea turtles. Additionally these habitats may help clean coastal waters by binding sediments, and provide coastal defense from erosion. Salt marshes, however, are declining worldwide, with 73% of the nation's estuaries moderately or severely degraded between 1940 and 1983. This is primarily due to human-induced disturbances: runoff of nutrients and sediments from human activities on land, boating, land reclamation and other construction in the coastal zone, dredge-and-fill activities and destructive fisheries practices. The loss of these valuable habitats gives urgency to protect and conserve these important resources. Salt marsh restoration efforts are on the increase. However, the costs of restoration programs are often very high and, unfortunately, there are as many failures as there are successes. Therefore strategies need to be developed to increase the success rate of restoration projects.

Project Links

Gulf of Mexico - Assessment of fungal diversity on beaches

Marsh Function - A pilot study to develop quantitative marsh function assessment measures in various restoration projects being planned along the Mississippi Gulf coast

Sea Grant - Diversity and Role of Root-Associated Fungi in Saltmarsh and Seagrass Plants and Implications for Restoration Success

CREST - The role of root associated fungi in saltmarsh restoration success

Fungi Saltmarsh - Assessment of fungal diversity of Gulf Coast saltmarshes

Colonization and succession of new habitats: Implications for the success of artificial reefs.

Artificial reefs can provide shoreline stabilization, increased fishing yield, expanded oyster habitat, water quality improvement, and pollution abatement. Unfortunately, colonization and succession of primary producers on hard substrates in the turbid northern Gulf of Mexico is an under-studied process, and this has major trophic implications.

The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MSDMR) has many artificial reef projects, both in planning and underway. This study is being undertaken in partnership with MSDMR to study the colonization and species succession of two of those reefs; both constructed using concrete rubble created by the demolition of local bridge structures after Hurricane Katrina. Our research will investigate the colonization and succession of a range of organisms spanning the trophic spectrum; namely bacteria, fungi, algae, benthos and nekton. Additionally we will investigate the nutrient transformation trophic linkages and production rates of these colonizers. Furthermore we will investigate the reefs to determine if they are pollution sinks or sources, and nutrient sinks or sources.

This project is being funded by CIAP and results can be seen at MS Artificial Reefs.

https://sites.google.com/site/msartificalreefs/home

The Master's thesis resulting from this research is available as:

Salamone, Amy Leigh, "Fungal Biofilm Colonization and Succession on Artificial Reefs in the North-Central Gulf of Mexico" (2012). Master's Theses. 548.

https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/548

This is a mirror of the Marine Fungi website (http://ocean.otr.usm.edu/~w529014/index.htm) developed by Dr. Jinx Campbell during her time in the Department of Coastal Sciences at the Gulf Coast Research Lab. Some links in that website may continue to function for an indeterminate time, others may get removed. This mirror site will serve as a repository for a subset of the Marine Fungi website pages that are an important historical record of research conducted in northern Gulf Coast saltmarsh habitats on decomposer and root fungi.