The Blue in Point Blue
June 28, 2025
The ocean produces roughly half of the Earth’s oxygen and plays a vital role in maintaining the livable world we all enjoy. But it is an incredibly dynamic system, changing quickly from year to year, often serving as the canary in the coal mine for climate change and shifts in our global systems. Seabirds and marine life—from the Pacific Basin all the way to Antarctica—are on the frontlines of these rapid changes, flashing early warning signs about our planet’s health.
Since 1968, Point Blue staff have been out in the field collecting marine data to grasp these changes. Over the last six decades, scientists from the organization have studied breeding and survival success of marine birds, mammals, and sharks off California, and studied penguin colonies in Antarctica. Having access to these long-term studies with uniform data has allowed our team’s scientists to detect shifts early on and shape ocean conservation policy.
“All our planetary life support systems are tied to the ocean,” said Dr. Annie Schmidt, Antarctica Program Director. “The reality is we can’t have a livable planet without a healthy ocean.”
For nearly 30 years, Point Blue’s scientists have conducted demographic studies of Adélie Penguins in Antarctica to understand their breeding and foraging patterns and the environmental conditions that impact population growth. The team then uses these findings to evaluate what’s happening in the marine environment in the region.
“Field work and long-term monitoring are so crucial for us to understand multi-decade changes,” added Schmidt. “Adélie penguins live up to 20 years, so we need to be on the ground throughout their entire lifespan. These rich places provide us with an incredible opportunity to collect unique datasets and knowledge about marine ecosystems.”
Community science partnerships have also been essential for fieldwork to yield marine conservation wins. Since 2011, the Coastal Marine team has partnered with the Morro Coast Audubon Society to monitor seabird populations along the central California Coast and document human-caused disturbances in the area. The team then uses that data to conduct targeted outreach.
“We’re entering our 15th year of collecting data on seabirds on the Central Coast and our partnerships with community members have been invaluable,” said Dan Robinette, Coastal Marine Program Leader. “For example, community members saw that kayakers were disturbing a seabird population so we worked to engage the kayak community. Conservation efforts are often not successful without the right community buy-in and education.”
Point Blue’s fieldwork on the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge has also been instrumental for marine conservation. For 57 years, Point Blue staff have maintained a presence on the Islands, collecting data to understand one of the most biodiverse marine systems in the world. Since the program began, over 1,000 people from 47 different countries have spent time living on this rugged land. The work has evolved over the years to address new environmental challenges, and these efforts have paid off: species that were once nearly extinct are now thriving.
“I’ve had the privilege of witnessing firsthand that if you protect a place, wildlife has a chance to recover,” said Pete Warzybok, Principal Scientist and Farallon Program Leader. “Before I started working on the Farallones, fur seals were almost entirely hunted out. Then in 1996, we saw the first seal pup born. Last year, that number exploded to 2,000 pups. Simply preserving the land as a safe refuge and providing stewardship has led to the flourishing of fur seals, and it has been remarkable to witness.”
Now, with long-standing US Fish and Wildlife Service budget challenges having come to a head, Point Blue faces a devastating choice of having to leave the island for the fall and winter for the first time in almost six decades—potentially losing valuable data and opportunities for budding scientists to kick off their careers. With no scientists present during the upcoming fall bird migration, there is a greater risk that people may illegally come too close to the island and disturb the wildlife.
“Working on the Farallones is a life-altering experience,” Warzybok concluded. “Many people who are now leaders at Point Blue or who are running their own labs at universities began their careers as volunteers or interns on the Islands. These types of field experiences train the scientists of the future, and losing that opportunity would have devastating impacts for science.”
Despite these potential setbacks, Point Blue remains committed to shaping the next generation of ocean conservation, ensuring science, partnerships, and innovation drive the protection of these cherished places.
“Our oceans team has widened our focus dramatically since the program began,” said Dr. Jaime Jahncke, Director of the California Current Group. “Our work was originally limited to seabird ecology. We then realized we needed to have a better understanding of the environmental effects on marine life. And after the 2005 heatwave tragically killed many bird chicks, we saw we needed to address how our warming world is impacting different species. This work is more important than ever and we will continue to evolve to meet these new challenges.”