Climate change and related weather phenomena are expected to have a strong influence on coastal insular systems. Prince Edward Island (PEI), along with several other coastal areas in the Canadian Maritimes, has been identified as a sensitive system due to its exposure to increased frequency of events like storms, surges and coastal erosion. If these changes affect the shape and physical appearance of the littoral, it is likely that invertebrate communities associated with sedimentary bottoms will exhibit a response that will reflect this variation. Unfortunately, little information is available about these communities of invertebrates because, despite their importance, these habitats have not been thoroughly studied. Veronique documented the abundance and distribution of sedimentary intertidal communities in PEI’s north shore, one of the most sensitive areas to erosion on the Island. In particular, she focused on the influence of seaweeds on the density of invertebrates, in distinctive sandy beaches. She took samples from several beach types—associated to dune, sandstone and till—and compared the number and diversity of invertebrates found in areas that were bare sand and those with seaweed.

The main goal of the project was to find a link between type of sandy beach (something directly related to erosion levels) and variation in seaweed distribution. Invertebrates associated to seaweed may be more important for the entire community in some types of beaches than in others. This information will be useful to identify and quantify potential relationships between changing physical features (e.g., beach profile, erosion levels), and population and community parameters. These relationships may become a cornerstone for subsequent monitoring of these habitats and their potential alteration as a result of climate change and other local or regional scale phenomena.

The data gathered for this project could be very important if we can show that the invertebrate population on the high part of the beach can be used as indicators of whether or not the types of beach are structured differently.

At first, I was interested in doing some marine-related research. When I was presented with a few ideas, research on erosion/climate change really caught my eye because I am very interested in being involved with finding solutions to help preserve our planet.

This project will, hopefully, result in new data and will contribute to the creation of a database for future research on finding new and better ways to preserve the beaches of PEI.

Going out in the field to scout out good spot for sampling and to take pictures.

One of the most exciting things so far was attending a meeting at which the group CCARG discussed the current research being done at UPEI. It was great to be able to meet new people who shared my enthusiasm for climate change, and it was very exciting to know that I was part of such a project.