Nestled between the SoCal Coast and the Channel Islands, lies the Santa Barbara Channel, a haven of biodiversity and nutrient richness. From the mysterious floating canopies of the kelp forests to the vast array of organisms thriving in this environment, its pristine waters are critical for conserving the surrounding ecosystems. On Monday, March 25, naturalist and conservationist, a true steward of the sea, Holly Lohuis visited the Mesa to share her compelling story. She took the audience on a journey around the world, chronicling her career trajectory, exploration of our water planet, and conservation efforts in Cate’s own backyard of the Santa Barbara Channel.
Lohuis grew up landlocked in Sacramento, California and only visited the North Coast once or twice each year, recalling that the ocean “became almost like an imaginary friend.” She had always felt a deep connection to the sea and marine life, despite an upbringing amidst the era of Jaws. Especially in great white shark territory, Lohuis was fearful as a child of what lay in this untamed body of water, over 80% of which has still yet to be explored. Yet, she wanted to overcome this fear and “dive into the knowledge of understanding.” She believes in the transformative powers of learning and found her calling for education at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). She started off working as a deckhand on local boats, went on to become a certified diver, and was invited to go on expeditions by the mid-90s.
In honor of Women’s History Month, Lohuis acknowledged the women who had been instrumental mentors for her along the way. Her mother was extremely compassionate towards animals and taught a young Lohuis about caring for the environment. Lohuis also recounted doing a report in fifth grade about Dr. Sylvia Earle, a leading marine scientist of oceanography, whose career and meaningful work she had been following for decades. Her dream came true when she was given the opportunity to dive with Dr. Earle for a research project. Today, she continues to live by their example in her career and capacity as a mother, her “most important job.”
Whether living in Fiji, engaging with visitors about marine life, spending her last several winters in Antarctica as a naturalist in a small passenger vessel, or sitting side by side with the most intelligent animal on the planet (killer whale), Lohuis has been all over the globe, eager to teach and learn more herself. Some of her most distinguished work has been done with oceanographic explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau. Together as dive buddies, they filmed a PBS special on the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, investigating coral reefs that had yet to be fully mapped. This is the most remote island chain in the world, and the team was put to the test, free diving with predators like Galapagos sharks. The amount of plastic she discovered on and around the islands was incredibly disheartening. Witnessing tens of thousands of seabirds dead due to their consumption of nonbiodegradable plastic was jarring and changed her forever, but Lohuis saw it as a profoundly motivating testament to the attention the environment needs.
She stated, “Our planet is changing at the hands of humans, and we need to do everything we can to protect this beautiful water planet. Hope is what gets us out of bed in the morning; you have to be motivated and inspired to know that your actions really do matter.”
Lohuis has not stopped in her mission to promote community engagement and conversation to protect endangered species. The Channel Islands (the ones you can see from Sunset Bench) have many stories of recovery, including that of the Channel Island fox, which was the fastest mammal to get off of the endangered species list. She also emphasized the importance of connection and preservation, namely regarding the Pygmy seahorse, which lives on coral reefs that are unfortunately the most degraded ecosystem on the planet. She informed the Cate community about different whale populations and how many species, such as the blue whale, are “ecosystem engineers.” The largest animals on Earth, blue whales can grow up to 100 feet long and fertilize the surface of the ocean, the importance of which has only recently been appreciated.
Technological advancements in whale identification have also made tracking whales and migration patterns much easier for the scientific community. Lohuis acknowledged the help of artificial intelligence in identifying whales based on their unique markings. She mentioned the Happy Whale Database, where people can photograph whales and upload them in real time to add them to the database. Now, the scientists are over 90% certain that every humpback whale in the North Pacific is in the database, which is 26,000 whales, versus only 2,000 ten years ago. Lohuis notes this as a “great conservation success,” while simultaneously recognizing the great deal of modern threats whales still face today.
Although she has been all over the world, on land and underwater, Lohuis discussed that some of her most fulfilling work takes place right here in Carpinteria and Santa Barbara. After returning home from her travels, she was thrilled to spearhead the campaign to make Santa Barbara one of only eleven Whale Heritage Areas in the world, putting it on the international map. A story she shared at the end of her talk that speaks to her passion was during a whale watching trip where she took a group out, and they watched the same whale for over an hour, getting spouted on and taking selfies. In the end, she captured a photo, uploaded it to the database, and even formed a personal connection with the whale.
She reflected, “It just gave me a sense of feeling very proud to share my passion, to share my enthusiasm, hoping to motivate people to think about their own environmental footprint.”
Comments