How sea critters and wind turbines co-exist
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| URI Ph.D. student Emmanuel Oyewole conducting field work at the South Fork Wind farm turbines. (Photos courtesy Emmanuel Oyewole) |
As lobsters migrate to colder waters due to climate change, Jonah crabs are becoming one of the most important species for fisheries in Southern New England.
“As the biomass of the American lobster declines due to climate-related changes and shifting ocean conditions, many fishermen have adapted by targeting other valuable species, and the Jonah crab has become a major alternative,” said Emmanuel Oyewole, a first-year Ph.D. student in the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography.
“The Jonah crab used to be considered a bycatch
species and thrown back because lobster was so lucrative. As lobsters became
less abundant, people started to realize that the Jonah crab is a viable and
delicious alternative.”
Oyewole is conducting a study that is partly funded by a
grant from The Nature Conservancy into how offshore wind farm structures are
impacting the growth and habitats of Jonah crabs.
Oyewole prepares Jonah crab muscle
samples for analysis in URI’s Ocean Ecogeochemistry Laboratory.
“Ecologically, Jonah crabs also play an important role in
the marine food web,” said Oyewole, who is from Ilé-Ifẹ̀, Nigeria, a town in
the southwestern part of the country. “They are both predators and prey,
helping to maintain balance within benthic ecosystems. Because they are closely
connected to seafloor habitats, they can help us understand how offshore wind
farm structures may influence local biodiversity, habitat use, and the
productivity of fisheries.”
When turbine foundations are installed on the seafloor,
their hard surfaces become desirable habitats for marine organisms to attach,
grow, and live, just as they do on natural rock or reefs. As algae, barnacles,
mussels, and other small marine life, settle on these structures, these smaller
organisms attract larger species such as crabs and fish that come to feed,
hide, or seek shelter.
“The turbines can create a kind of ‘mini ecosystem.’ They
provide food and habitat, which can draw marine life into the area and
potentially change how species use the surrounding environment,” said Oyewole.
“The question is whether they are increasing the overall amount of marine life
in the ocean by creating new production or simply concentrating animals that
were already living in the surrounding areas.”
The data Oyewole collects and analyzes will benefit
the Commercial Fisheries Research
Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by local commercial fishermen.
For the last year, Oyewole has conducted field work twice a month, long before sunrise. Boarding lobster vessels at Point Judith, Rhode Island, he has accompanied fishermen as they haul ventless traps from 10 stations near the Revolution Wind and South Fork Wind sites.
“One of the most important things I have learned from
commercial fishermen is that the end product of research is just as important
as the research process itself,” said Oyewole. “Research should not only answer
scientific questions, but it should also be useful to the people and
communities most affected by it.”
Oyewole’s conversations with the fishermen have helped
inform his research.
“This project has been shaped by listening to their
experiences, concerns, and needs. Their knowledge of the water, species
behavior, and changing fishing patterns provides insight that scientific
sampling alone can’t capture,” he said. “Even as data collection continues,
their support remains a critical part of the work.”
Rather than completing his fieldwork first and starting lab
work later, Oyewole’s project is designed to accomplish both phases
concurrently.
“While we are collecting samples, we will begin processing
them in the lab for tissue-specific stable isotope analysis,” said Oyewole.
“Field sampling, lab analysis, and data interpretation will build on each other
over time.”
With the guidance of Associate Professor Kelton McMahon,
Oyewole performs tissue-specific stable isotope analysis on the crabs in the
Ocean Ecogeochemistry Laboratory on URI’s Narragansett Bay Campus.
“The isotope analysis helps us understand where these crabs
have been living and feeding at different times of their lives,” said Oyewole.
“Different parts of the ocean can leave slightly different chemical
‘signatures’ in an animal’s tissues, almost like a natural geographic
fingerprint. This will enable us to trace whether the crabs are living and
feeding around the wind farm long enough to benefit from the habitat or whether
they are simply moving in temporarily from surrounding areas.”
McMahon has been impressed with Oyewole dedication and
research prowess.
“Emmanuel is intellectually independent, technically
skilled, and deeply committed to producing science that informs real
conservation and management decisions by fisheries,” said McMahon. “His work
addresses a timely question about offshore wind development and marine resource
dynamics.”
Having grown up in a region where fisheries are both
economically important and environmentally vulnerable, Oyewole saw firsthand
the challenges communities face in balancing resource use with long-term
sustainability.
“My research at URI has shaped my desire to develop
practical, science-based management strategies that protect aquatic resources
while also supporting local livelihoods,” said Oyewole. “My goal is to build a
career at the intersection of marine ecosystem science and the sustainability
of fisheries, with a particular focus on African waters, especially in my home
country of Nigeria.”
