Mussels and kelp are both non-fed species, meaning they don’t necessarily require the input of external feed to grow and can survive solely off of nutrients in the ocean (or in the case of kelp, from the sun).
However, the variability in future ocean conditions may limit production capacity of these species. There is an opportunity to improve the resilience and growth of mussels and kelp through genetic selection of individuals that thrive better in a given environment. Both species require a hatchery—a facility for breeding and producing juveniles before they are transferred to their final, grow-out environment. Along the west coast of the US, there are only a few mussel hatcheries and none for kelp. None of those hatcheries for mussels are located in southern California, despite the offshore mussel farm operating in Santa Barbara, CA.
These two presentations touch upon kelp and mussel genetics and the methods for producing faster growing and environmentally tailored individuals for aquaculture production.
Nate Churches is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Southern California (USC) and his work is focused on mussel genetics in southern CA. Specializing in plant and kelp genetics, Gary Molano is also a Ph.D. student at USC. Both Nate and Gary are part of the USC Dornsife Department and Nuzhdin Research Lab.
However, the variability in future ocean conditions may limit production capacity of these species. There is an opportunity to improve the resilience and growth of mussels and kelp through genetic selection of individuals that thrive better in a given environment. Both species require a hatchery—a facility for breeding and producing juveniles before they are transferred to their final, grow-out environment. Along the west coast of the US, there are only a few mussel hatcheries and none for kelp. None of those hatcheries for mussels are located in southern California, despite the offshore mussel farm operating in Santa Barbara, CA.
These two presentations touch upon kelp and mussel genetics and the methods for producing faster growing and environmentally tailored individuals for aquaculture production.
Nate Churches is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Southern California (USC) and his work is focused on mussel genetics in southern CA. Specializing in plant and kelp genetics, Gary Molano is also a Ph.D. student at USC. Both Nate and Gary are part of the USC Dornsife Department and Nuzhdin Research Lab.