A dynamic bedforms habitat for the forage fish Pacific sand lance, San Juan Islands, WA, United States

Abstract A well-defined and heavily sampled sand bank, the San Juan Channel sand wave field, located within the San Juan Archipelago of the United States Pacific Northwest region, is a benthic habitat for the forage fish Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes personatus). This field is characterized by differing size bedforms, ranging from ripples to waves, that consist of well-sorted and aerated coarse- to fine-grain sand. This field has been estimated to harbor over 106 million sand lance and is considered a major foraging habitat for upper trophic level species including birds, fish, and mammals.