The Bay Foundation (TBF), a research based environmental non-profit and affiliate of Loyola Marymount University’s Coastal Research Institute (CRI), constructed a laboratory for abalone research and restoration projects in 2016. This research lab allows TBF to conduct controlled experiments to better understand abalone broodstock conditioning and spawning behavior.
The “Ab Lab” is located at the Southern California Marine Institute (SCMI) in San Pedro where TBF’s research vessel (R/V Xenarcha) is berthed. This location provides easy access to the nearby Palos Verdes Peninsula where TBF’s kelp forest restoration sites are established, and is the region spawned abalone larvae and reared juveniles will be outplanted. Likewise, the lab will serve as a southern California hub for endangered white abalone (Haliotis sorenseni) research and restoration activities.
The Ab Lab’s many successes over the past several years include…