Skip to main content
Ocean Networks Canada

Ocean Networks Canada

Search form

Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn iconYouTube iconFlickr iconInstagram icon

Menu

  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Jobs & Opportunities
    • Events & Workshops
    • Contact Us
    • Support Us
    • Annual Report 2019-2020
    • Organization
      • Leadership
      • Staff
      • Boards
      • Committees
    • Funders, Associate Members & Partners
      • Funders
      • Associate Members
      • Partners
  • Science
    • Science
    • Active Research
    • Highlights
    • Science Plan
      • Summary
      • Science Themes
    • Publications
      • General Interest
      • Academic
    • Getting Involved
      • Proposals
  • Innovation Centre
    • Innovation Centre
    • About the Innovation Centre
    • Success Stories
    • Contact Us
    • Smart Ocean™ Systems
      • Sensors and Instruments
      • Technology Demos
      • Ocean Observing Systems
      • Earthquake Early Warning
    • Partners & Networks
      • Industry Network
      • Global Partnerships
      • R&D Support
      • Students in Industry
    • Atlantic Partners
  • Learning
    • Learning
    • Learning Highlights
    • Learning Events
    • Partnerships
    • Contact Us
    • Ocean Sense
      • Community Observatories
        • Cambridge Bay
        • Campbell River
        • Kitamaat Village
        • Prince Rupert
      • Teacher Info
      • Student Info
      • Resources & Lessons
    • Get Involved
      • For Students
        • For Undergrads & Grads
      • For Educators
        • Educator Opportunities
      • For Communities
      • Ship2Shore
      • Citizen Science
        • Coastbuster
        • Digital Fishers
      • Youth Science Ambassador
    • Resources
      • Learning at Home
      • Educator Resources
      • Ocean Alive!
      • Oceanography 101
      • About the Observatories
      • Research Ideas
      • Student Reports
  • Observatories
    • Observatories
    • Arctic
    • Atlantic
    • Pacific
    • Mobile Platforms
    • Infrastructure
      • Data Facilities
      • Platforms
      • Devices & Sensors
      • Cables & Connectors
    • Expeditions
      • Wiring the Abyss
      • Expedition Logs
      • Maintenance Processes
    • Notices
      • Information for Mariners
      • Alerts
  • Data & Tools
    • Data & Tools
    • Highlights
    • Data Quality
    • Preview & Download
      • Preview & Visualize
      • Data Download Tools
      • State of the Ocean Plots
      • Ocean Report Card
    • Apps & Services
      • Mobile Apps
      • OPeNDAP Web Services
      • Related Sources
      • Earthquake Data Dashboard
    • Data Help
      • Usage Policy
      • Tutorials & Help Pages
      • Request Help
  • Sights & Sounds
    • Sights & Sounds
    • Terms of Use
    • Video
      • Live Video
      • Video Highlights
      • Video Archives
    • Images
      • Maps
    • Audio
      • Audio Highlights
      • Audio Archive
  • News
    • News
    • Stories
    • Newsletters
    • Calendar
    • Media Relations
      • Backgrounders
      • Downloads
      • In the News
      • News Releases
      • Media Contacts

About Us

You are here

  1. Home
Aug 15, 2013

Introduction to Saanich Inlet

​A satellite image of the saanich inlet.

Saanich Inlet at a Glance:

  • Region: Southeastern coast of Vancouver Island, in an inlet just north of Victoria, B.C. 
  • Number of Instrument Platforms: 4
  • Depth: 100 m
  • Location: Latitude: 48o 39.054' N, Longitude: 123o 29.203' W
  • Seafloor Composition: Variable: soft, sandy, and gravel sediments.  
  • Principal Research: Low Oxygen Ecology, Inlet Renewal and Chemical Cycles, and Forensics.
Map of Ocean Networks Canada installations in Saanich Inlet, BC.

Map of Ocean Networks Canada installations in Saanich Inlet, BC.

Environment/Ecosystems

Just to the north of Greater Victoria, the largest metropolitan area on Vancouver Island, many residents of the South Island are familiar with the annual salmon spawning occurring through Saanich Inlet into Goldstream Park. While the abundance associated with this event is hard to miss, what many take for granted is the incredible marine diversity which lays below the surface of the inlet itself, and the dynamic oxygen conditions which make it such an interesting ecosystem.

The warming of surface waters in the spring cause dense ‘blooms’ of diatoms and dinoflagellates (types of photosynthetic ‘phytoplankton’) to form. These blooms feed the growth of predatory plankton species (known as zooplankton), which, in turn, support the abundance of secondary and tertiary consumers such as herring, hake, Pollack, dogfish and salmon.

This rapid growth also results in significant plankton die-off, with countless plankton bodies sinking to the floor of the inlet and undergoing decomposition by bacteria who rapidly consume available oxygen. A layer of oxygen poor water is thus created at depth until replenished with oxygen rich water in the fall. This biologically dynamic and seasonally variable environment has been studies for over 80 years.

A flurry of activity caught on camera as herring school in the Saanich Inlet.

What Makes Saanich Inlet Unique?

The seasonal variations in dissolved oxygen, complex biogeochemical cycles, diverse benthic ecosystem, abundant plankton and active lower trophic levels make Saanich Inlet is an ideal place to study the effects of changes in the oxygen content on ocean biodiversity.

Principal Research:

Low Oxygen Ecology, Inlet Renewal, and Chemical Cycles:

Brilliantly-coloured diatoms caught under the microscope.

Dense populations of zooplankton and fish respond to conditions in the inlet that change throughout the year. Studies of the temporal variations in the vertical distribution of oxygen and nutrients and the response of various biological communities to these variations will be monitored by network sensors. Associated research can be found in the following study briefs:

  • AUV used to map and study key parameters of oxygen cycling 
  • Saanich Inlet Digital Camera suggests significant changes on continental shelf as ‘Dead Zone’ grows
  • Photography in near real-time helps researchers assess biorhythms in Saanich Inlet.
  • Sediment trap used to monitor plankton fossilization in Saanich Inlet 

Media Links

Data from ONC’s Salish Sea observatories allow University of Guelph students access to the sea

Dead pigs used to investigate decomposition in low oxygen environments (Article by the BBC)

Videos

Richard Dewey, expedition leader for the Tully expedition, recaps a successful day a sea:

Naturally Occurring Low Oxygen Basins:

Caged Pig Forensic Time-lapse:

Dr. Gail Anderson introducing the Ocean Forensics Project:

 

Saanich | inlet | saanich inlet | venus | plankton | oxygen | anoxia

Printer-friendly versionPDF version

Related Stories

New research explains why Saanich Inlet is good for the climate
Jul 31, 2020

Oceans 2.0: An Internet of Things for the Ocean
Feb 9, 2018

Saanich Inlet and the science of dead zones
Nov 28, 2016

Monitoring Saanich Inlet and the Strait of Georgia: Fall inshore expedition (2016)
Oct 31, 2016

The extent of habitat compression and hypoxia in Saanich Inlet from the 2016 hypoxia cycle
Oct 28, 2016

A Tenth Anniversary Inshore Maintenance Cruise
Jun 1, 2016

A decade of discovery in Saanich Inlet
Feb 28, 2016

Calendar of Events

January 2021

  • « Prev  
  •   Next »
S M T W T F S
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Newsletter

Sign up for our monthly e-newsletter:

 

Tweets Follow @Ocean_Networks

 

 

Highlights

  • Audio
  • Data
  • Learning
  • Science
  • Video

Reading Room

  • Active Research
  • Backgrounders
  • FAQs
  • Glossary
  • News Briefs
  • News Stories
  • Newsletters
  • Publications

Cool Stuff

  • Apps
  • Digital Fishers
  • iBooks & e-Pubs
  • Live Video
  • Maps
  • Images
  • State of the Ocean

Data & Tools

  • Apps
  • Data Plots
  • Data Search
  • Data Policy
  • Data Help
  • OPeNDAP Web Services

Opportunities

  • Calendar
  • Educator Opportunities
  • Global Partnerships
  • Industry Network
  • Jobs
  • Staff List
  • Technology Services

Sites & Instruments

  • Arctic Sites
  • Northeast Pacific Sites
  • Salish Sea Sites
  • Notice to Mariners

Follow Us

Facebook iconTwitter iconLinkedIn iconYouTube iconFlickr iconInstagram icon

Sign up for our newsletter

Feedback

CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.

                              

About Us | Contact Us | Media Relations | Legal Notices

©   Ocean Networks Canada. All rights reserved.  2474 Arbutus Road, Victoria, BC, V8N 1V8 | 1.250.472.5400