This federal Project Grant award of $308,631 from the National Science Foundation's Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050) supports research to understand the causes of the recent invasion and persistence of pyrosomes, a type of colonial zooplankton, in the California Current Ecosystem. The project combines analysis of historical plankton samples, ocean circulation models, and biological population models to determine the roles of ocean physics and ecological interactions in shaping pyrosome abundance and dynamics. The work is being conducted by the University of California, Santa Cruz and will provide mechanistic insights to predict how plankton communities respond to climate change. In addition, the project supports undergraduate and graduate student training, as well as the development of K-12 educational resources on next generation science standards related to the research. The project period runs from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2027.
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