This tide pool represents the variable intertidal habitat of rock gunnels (Pholis gunnellus). My research investigated how environmental salinity influences osmoregulatory stress in these small marine fishes. A field assessment characterized the salinity and physical conditions of tide pools, followed by a laboratory experiment measuring oxygen consumption of rock gunnels exposed to low, control, and high salinities. Understanding how rock gunnels respond physiologically to changing salinity provides insight into how intertidal fishes cope with environmental variability. It may help us better understand their persistence in changing coastal ecosystems.
