‘Robomussels’ Monitor Climate Change

Northeastern University scientist Brian Helmuth and other researchers have developed "robomussels" that monitor climate change. The tiny devices have miniature built-in sensor that track temperatures inside the mussel beds.

By embedding the robots into mussel beds around the globe, the researchers have built a database that enables scientists to pinpoint unusual warming and develop strategies to protect vital marine ecosystems.

“They look exactly like mussels but they have little green blinking lights in them,” said Helmuth. “They enable us to link our field obser­va­tions with the physiological impact of global climate change on these ecologically and economically important animals.”

Because mussels rely on external sources of heat such as air temperature and sun expo­sure for their body heat, mussels act as a barometer for climate change. Using field­work along with mathematical and computational models, Helmuth forecasts the patterns of growth, reproduction, and survival of mussels in intertidal zones.

The robo­mussels’ near-continuous measurements serve as an early warning system. Mussels are a major food supply for many species, including lobsters and crabs. The marine species also functions as filters along near-shore waters, clearing large amounts of particulates.

"Losing mussel beds is essen­tially like clearing a forest,” says Helmuth. “If they go, everything that’s living in them will go."

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