Hakai Institute

@hakai.org

Scientific research institution on the coastal margin of British Columbia, Canada | Part of the Tula Foundation

The Sentinels Alliance is in the spotlight at UBC this week, the first to be featured in their new Partners for Purpose series on partnerships driving real-world change. Hakai is a proud partner of Sentinels, which continues to be a model for the power of collaborative science. tinyurl.com/4m5chsyx

Breaking down research silos to understand a shifting Salish Sea

The Sentinels of Change Alliance shows what’s possible when collaboration is a foundation, not an add-on

ubctoday.ubc.ca

Seagrass meadows are critical for climate mitigation and biodiversity—but protecting them starts with knowing what to measure. A new BioScience paper coauthored by Hakai's Margot Hessing-Lewis outlines global priorities for monitoring sea. Full paper🔗 tinyurl.com/mpbe7byw

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Now entering its sixth year, a research partnership between the Mamalilikulla First Nation Guardians has documented centuries-old red tree corals, glass sponges, basket stars, and endangered sunflower sea stars in the Gwa̲xdlala/Nala̲xdlala Marine Refuge: tula.org/tula-quarter...

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New research led by Dalhousie, with help from Hakai, reveals that killer whales and Pacific white-sided dolphins may be cooperatively foraging off northern Vancouver Island. Using drones and underwater tags, researchers captured whales following dolphins on deep dives. Paper: tinyurl.com/yu3r4b3c

Calvert Island became an underwater classroom this fall as stewardship divers from six First Nations trained at the Hakai Institute. Participants sharpened species ID and scientific diving skills to boost kelp monitoring along B.C.’s coast. Full story: tinyurl.com/52d82v4f

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Chris Harley, a marine biologist at the University of British Columbia, is working with the Hakai Institute on laboratory tests to look at the effects of ocean acidification on several species, notes a new feature article in Business in Vancouver. Read more here:

B.C.'s oceans are turning acidic faster than once thought, finds study

Coral records reveal B.C. ocean acidity amplified 50 per cent more than previously thought, threatening a $452-million shellfish fishery

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Bull kelp can stretch 30+ meters, but it starts as tiny life stages vulnerable to warming seas and acidification. Hakai researchers are testing where those vulnerabilities—and pockets of resilience—lie to help guide future restoration.

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HIRING: Hospitality Support – Calvert Island This seasonal role (spring–fall) supports kitchen service, housekeeping, guest services, and day-to-day operations that keeps the Calvert Island Ecological Observatory running smoothly. Job Description & Application: ca.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=f...

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Parasitic barnacles that turn hermit crabs into near-zombies? New UBC/Hakai research that surveyed 4,200 crabs at 65 sites shows these parasites are widespread across B.C., vulnerable to heat waves, and may be multiple cryptic species. Read more 🔗 tinyurl.com/4tfb5fjj

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In Nunatsiavut, Labrador, changing rivers and shorter winters are reshaping how Inuit communities connect to the land. The Nunatsiavut Rivers Project—supported by Hakai—braids Inuit knowledge with geospatial science to map these shifts. Read more: tinyurl.com/4fxu87zx

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When the ocean heats up, urchin love life cools down. New Hakai-linked study shows that even modest, non-lethal warming can suppress purple sea urchin reproduction — a twist that could temporarily help kelp forests recover. But both kelp and urchins feel the heat. 🔗 tinyurl.com/2s46j5v8

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Can some sunflower stars resist disease? Hakai researchers, with DFO, are testing stars from Calvert Island for Vibrio pectenicida resistance and how warmer waters affect infection. A step toward protecting these vital marine predators!

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What did Vancouver Island’s forests look like after the last ice age? New research from northern Vancouver Island shows forests didn’t all respond the same way as the climate warmed—each landscape told its own story. 🔗 tinyurl.com/bddr9fuw

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13 years of seaweed work around Calvert Island led to 67 brown algae species – and two new to science! Meet Protohalopteris petersonii & Petrospongium munckiae, named for Hakai founders Eric Peterson & Christina Munck. 🔗 tinyurl.com/2784tas5

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On Calvert Island, nearly 370 diverse species of seaweed flourish where ocean currents and climate zones converge. Scientists are documenting this kaleidoscope of green, brown, and red algae using pressed specimens and DNA barcoding. Full story 🔗 tinyurl.com/e9yzacrx

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A new multimethod study involving Hakai Institute researchers uses samples from 6400 BCE to 1500 CE to provide the most complete picture of parasite infections in past populations to date—revealing a major shift during the Roman and Medieval periods 🔗 tinyurl.com/9shazh42

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Strengthening Indigenous stewardship from the seafloor up! Last week, guardians from six coastal B.C. Nations joined a 5-day diving workshop at Calvert Island to build kelp survey + ID skills. Hosted by @hakai.org with support from WWF-Canada, @psfca.bsky.social, DFO & ECCC.

Smiles after a successful first dive of the day.Dan Abbott of Reef Check (overseen by a humpback whale!) introduces kelp survey methods in the classroom.Participants Carter Burtlake and Mariyah Dunn-Jones working on species ID skills between dives.Dives provided opportunities to practice species ID, counts, and filling in datasheets underwater.

Archaeological research at the Tsalwadi site on Vancouver Island reveals that people were fishing and making stone tools along the Woss River up to 14,000 years ago—offering one of the earliest records of human activity on the island's coastline. 🔗 tinyurl.com/59rzrn8y

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