Last updated Jan 20, 2022

The MARINe vouchering effort was designed to archive samples of the invertebrates and seaweeds that are quantified in the core network long-term monitoring surveys. In the field, voucher samples are identified by the team responsible for long-term monitoring surveys at that site, and then collected by a team from California State University Fullerton (following all federal, state, and local laws and permitting procedures).  Invertebrate specimens are preserved in ethanol for documentation of morphological features or future extraction of DNA. Seaweed and surfgrass specimens are pressed for documentation of morphological features and preserved in silica gel for future extraction of DNA. After processing, samples are archived at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC (invertebrates) or the University of California Berkeley Herbarium, both publicly accessible repositories.

The vouchering effort targets nine types of invertebrates including barnacles (Chthamalus spp, Balanus glandula, Tetraclita rubescens, Semibalanus cariosus, Pollicipes polymerus), mussels (Mytilus californianus), anemones (Anthopleura elegantissima, Anthopleura sola) and limpets (Lottia gigantea), six types of seaweed including kelp (Egregia menziesii), rockweed (Fucus distichus, Hesperophycus californicus, Silvetia compressa) and red algae (Endocladia muricata, Neorhodomela larix) and two species of surfgrass (Phyllospadix torreyi, Phyllospadix scouleri). Up to twelve individuals are collected for each species at each site (for species with low abundance at a site, fewer individuals are collected). Small and medium sized individuals are targeted for collection over large individuals, and thus collections are not representative of the full size range of organisms at any site. Photographs were taken of selected individuals at a subset of sites.

Sites for the vouchering effort are chosen to produce an even distribution of sites within the geographic range of the MARINe network and to maximize community diversity along the geographic gradient. Within those parameters, priority is given to sites with higher numbers of permanently monitored target species. 

Click here (PDF) for a list of sites, sampling dates, sample identification codes, and accession numbers.

Click here (PDF) for an overview of the voucher collection and processing protocol.

For more information on the MARINe vouchering effort, contact Jennifer Burnaford (jburnaford@fullerton.edu).