Project:

Association Between Water Pollution and Seaweed Species Richness on Long Island

Students:

Jackie Caruso, Daniella DelPonte, Alexandra Marshall, Payton Stevens

School:

St. Dominic High School,

Mentors:

Pamela Shanley

Abstract:

Nitrogen levels in the water are increasing around the world (“Global Nitrogen: Cycling out of Control”). This increase is detrimental to aquatic ecosystems and the organisms that reside there. To determine the impact that nitrogen polluted waters have on the species richness of seaweed, samples of the macroalgae were collected from Manhasset Bay and Huntington Bay. Samples collected from both locations were identified through iNaturalist, and samples that were not identified by iNaturalist were identified through DNA barcoding. The water from the two locations was also evaluated using LaMotte pollution test kits for levels of pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrate, and phosphate. The results indicated that a higher level of nitrogen pollution can be associated with a lower richness in species of seaweed. This is most likely due to the fact that high nitrogen levels can cause more nitrogen-tolerant seaweeds to outcompete the nitrogen-sensitive seaweeds, which can lead to a decline in the di

Poster:

Team samples: