Volcanic ash deposition, eelgrass beds, and inshore habitat loss from the 1920s to the 1990s at Chignik, Alaska

Abstract

We quantified the shallowing of the seafloor in five of six bays examined in the Chignik region of the Alaska Peninsula, confirming National Ocean Service observations that 1990s hydrographic surveys were shallower than previous surveys from the 1920s. Castle Bay, Chignik Lagoon, Hook Bay, Kujulik Bay and Mud Bay lost volume as calculated from Mean Lower Low Water (Chart Datum) to the deepest depths and four of these sites lost volume from Mean High Water to the deepest depths. Calculations relative to each datum were made because tidal datum records exhibited an increase in tidal range in this region from the 1920s to the 1990s. Our analysis showed that Mud Bay is quickly disappearing while Chignik Lagoon is being reduced to narrow channels. Anchorage Bay was the only site that increased in depth over time, perhaps due to erosion. Volcanoes dominate the landscape of the Chignik area. They have blanketed the region in deep ash deposits before the time frame of this study, and some have had smaller ash-producing eruptions during the time frame of this study. Remobilization of land-deposited ash and redeposition in marine areas - in some locations facilitated by extensive eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds (covering 54% of Chignik Lagoon and 68% of Mud Bay in 2010) - is the most likely cause of shallowing in the marine environment. Loss of shallow water marine habitat may alter future abundance and distribution of several fish, invertebrate and avian species.