Life Sciences Commons^™

Interannual Decline, Compensatory Exploitation, And Conservation Of The Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab Population In Winter, Rom Lipcius, Marcel M. Montane

Reports

No abstract provided.

Shallow Water Resource Use Conflicts: Clam Aquaculture And Submerged Aquatic Vegetation, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

No abstract provided.

Sweetpepper Bush Clethra Alnifolia L., Gene Silberhorn

Reports

The Wetland Flora Technical Report series provides concise information regarding the identification, growth habits, distribution, habitat, ecology and wetland indicator status for the title species. Illustrations are also included to aid in specimen ident

Preliminary Observations Of Barndoor Skates (Raja Laevis) On Georges Bank, Todd Gedamke, William D. Dupaul

Reports

An article published in Science magazine last year (Casey and Myers, 1998) has generated increased concern about the status of the barndoor skate (Raja laevis) in the North Atlantic. Very little information is available and a better understanding of the barndoor's life history, distribution and abundance is necessary for proper management. This document serves to provide preliminary data from an ongoing study that may aid in the current understanding of the barndoor skate population ..

Development Of An Expert System Based On A Tidal Prism Water Quality Model For Small Coastal Basins In Virginia, Albert Y. Kuo, Sung-Chan Kim, Kyeong Park, M. Dale Phillips

Reports

No abstract provided.

What Does It Take To Become A Marine Scientist?, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

Note: This material may not meet current educational standards and is presented as part of the Institute's historical publications.

Strawberry Bush, Bursting Heart Euonymus Americanus L., Gene Silberhorn

Reports

The Wetland Flora Technical Report series provides concise information regarding the identification, growth habits, distribution, habitat, ecology and wetland indicator status for the title species. Illustrations are also included to aid in specimen ident

Estimation Of Relative Abundance Of Recreationally Important Finfish In The Virginia Portion Of The Chesapeake Bay : Annual Progress Report July 1998 - June 1999, Patrick J. Geer, Herbert M. Austin

Reports

Measures of juvenile abundance are presently in wide use as a key element in the management of the Atlantic States' coastal fishery resources. Estimates of the relative interannual abundance of early juveniles (age-0) generated from scientific (fishery-independent) survey programs have been found to provide a reliable and early estimator of future year class strength (Goodyear 1985, Lipcius and Van Engel 1990). After a review of previously available indices of juvenile abundance for important fishery resource species in the Chesapeake Bay, the Chesapeake Bay Stock Assessment Committee (CBSAC), a federal/state committee sponsored and funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration …

Ecological Functions Of Constructed Oyster Reefs Along An Environmental Gradient In Chesapeake Bay: Final Report, Fx O'Beirn, Mark Luckenbach, Roger L. Mann, J Harding, J Nestlerode

Reports

Oyster reef habitat restoration within the Chesapeake Bay has as its objectives not only the enhancement of the commercially important oyster stocks, but also the restoration of associated assemblages of organisms and, most importantly, the restoration of ecological functions associated with natural reef communities. Despite our efforts to date, many uncertainties still exist with respect to achieving these restoration goals. These include long-term information on the temporal sequence of community development on new reef substrate, evaluating oyster recruitment patterns (a) across restored reef systems and (b) in relation to resident brood stocks.

In this study we sought to characterize the …

The Crest, Summer 1999, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

Table of Contents:

• New Research Aquarium System
• Finfish Aquaculture at VIMS
• Virginia Creates State Research Reserve System
• Pollution-Laden Sediments In Constant Flux
• Survey of Mid-Atlantic Sea Scallop Closed Areas
• Pfiesteria Update
• New Computer Program Helps Planners Balance Growth, Protection
• Virginia Sea Grant to Administer Commercial Fishery Resource Program
• VIMS Stranded Sea Turtle Project Underway Coastal Sediments Offer Clues to Climate Change, Pollution
• Seemingly Barren Habitat Proves Vital for Economically Important Virginia Fish (juvenile flounder)

Evaluation Of Fixed Gear For The Capture Of Summer Flounder In Coastal Waters Of Virginia, Robert A. Fisher, David Rudders

Reports

No abstract provided.

Juvenile Fish And Blue Crab Stock Assessment Program Bottom Trawl Survey Annual Data Summary Report Volume 1998, Patrick J. Geer

Reports

The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has conducted a trawl survey dating back to 1955. Over the years methods and objectives have varied according to funding sources and state and/or federal mandates.· The present thmst of the program is to provide juvenile indices of relative abundance for recreationally, commercially, and ecologically important fish and invertebrates. These measures of juvenile abundance are widely used as a key element in the management of the Atlantic States' coastal fishery resources. Estimates of juveniles (age-0) have proven to be a reliable and early indicator offuture year-class strength. A review of previously available indices …

Chesapeake Bay Oyster Restoration : Consensus Of A Meeting Of Scientific Experts, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science, Wachapreague, Virginia, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science, Chesapeake Research Consortium

Reports

A small group of oyster experts from Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina met at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science Eastern Shore Laboratory, Wachapreague, VA on January 18, 1999 to recommend measures to restore and protect the oyster resource of the Chesapeake Bay.

A Preliminary Study Of Predation On Blue Crabs By Three Fish Predators In A Seagrass Bed, R J. Orth, Jacques Van Montfrans, James Fishman

Reports

This report serves as a preliminary assessment of potential feeding impacts on blue crab prey inhabiting a seagrass bed in the York River by three species of recreationally and commercially important fish (striped bass, croaker, and red drum). We also provide an historic perspective indicating possible changes in relative abundance of these predatory fish between the period 1978-1980 and 1998. In no way do we intend for this report to reflect an accurate, bay-wide assessment of these relationships; the extremely limited temporal and spatial scope of this effort precludes such conclusions. However, this report supports the contention that habitat-specific predation …

Fish And Fisheries Of The Seaside Of The Eastern Shore Of Virginia, John A. Musick, John J. Norcross, David Hata

Reports

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Striped Bass Stocks In Virginia: Monitoring Studies, 1993-1998 Completion Report 1 September 1997 - 31 October 1998, Philip W. Sadler, Robert E. Harris Jr., Jason Romine, John E. Olney Sr.

Reports

To document continued compliance with Federal law, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) Anadromous Program (AP) has monitored the size and age composition, sex ratio and maturity schedules of the spawning striped bass stock in the Rappahannock River since December 1981 utilizing commercial pound nets and, since 1991, variable-mesh experimental anchored gill nets. Spawning stock assessment was expanded to include the James River in 1994 utilizing extant commercial fyke nets and variable-mesh experimental gill nets. The use of fyke nets was discontinued after 1997. Tagging programs have been conducted in the James and Rappahannock rivers since 1987 in conjunction …

Jewelweed, Touch-Me-Not Impatiens Capensis Meerb., Gene Silberhorn

Reports

The Wetland Flora Technical Report series provides concise information regarding the identification, growth habits, distribution, habitat, ecology and wetland indicator status for the title species. Illustrations are also included to aid in specimen ident

Analysis Of Historical Distribution Of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (Sav) In The James River, Ken Moore, David J. Wilcox, R J. Orth, Eva Bailey

Reports

Analyses of historical photography and ground surveys dating from the 1930s indicate that approximately 1645 hectares of SAV have been historically present in shallow water regions throughout the James River. This compares to 77 hectares of vegetation reported in 1997 and a James River Tier I SAV restoration goal of 107 hectares (areas mappped with SAV from 1971- 1991). Overall, the temporal and spatial patterns of loss of SAV populations in the James River suggest declines occurred first in the tidal freshwater regions of the upper James beginning approximately 50 years ago, and then subsequently in the lower James beginning …

Increasing The Probability Of Success In Restored Forested Wetlands, Kirk J. Havens, Gene Silberhorn

Reports

This study investigated survival and growth of two distinct ecotypic populations, with varying tolerance to waterlogging, of four species, Taxodium distichum (L.) Richard, Carpinus caroliniana Walt., Quercus michauxii Nutt. and Quercus pagoda Raf. (Syn. Q.falcata var. pagodifolia Ell.).

Results Of Modifications To Sea Scallop Dredge Twine Tops To Facilitate The Reduction Of Finfish Bycatch: Georges Bank Closed Area Ii Experimental Fishery September-October 1998, William D. Dupaul, David B. Rudders, David Kerstetter

Reports

No abstract provided.

Monkey-Flower Mimulus Alatus Ait., Gene Silberhorn

Reports

The Wetland Flora Technical Report series provides concise information regarding the identification, growth habits, distribution, habitat, ecology and wetland indicator status for the title species. Illustrations are also included to aid in specimen ident

Status Of The Major Oyster Diseases In Virginia 1998 A Summary Of The Annual Monitoring Program, Lisa M. Ragone Calvo, Eugene M. Burreson

Reports

No abstract provided.

Gloucester County Shoreline And Tidal Marsh Inventory, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Sharon Dewing, George Thomas, Rose Laird

Reports

This inventory is intended to serve as a useful planning tool for managers, planners, regulators, and environmentalists with an interest in Gloucester County. This report documents conditions measured in the County of Gloucester using remote sensing techniques. Two separate activities have occurred in tandem to develop this inventory of tidal marsh, and shoreline features. First, a delineation of tidal marshes within the county used high end image processing software along with color infra-red imagery to delineate the boundaries oftidal marshes'within 33 georeferenced scenes. The process calculates the amount of tidal marsh measured within each river segment in acres. Second, the …

Mortality And Pathophysiology Studies Of Blue Crabs Infected With The Parasitic Dinoflagellate Hematodinium Perezi, Jeffrey D. Shields

Reports

On the eastern seaboard of the USA, populations of the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, experience recurring epizootics of a parasitic dinoflagellate. The parasite, H ematodinium perezi, fulminates in the summer and autumn causing mortalities in high salinity embayments and estuaries. In laboratory studies, we experimentally investigated host mortality due to the disease, assessed differential hematological changes in infected crabs, and examined proliferation of the parasite. Mature, overwintering, non-ovigerous, female crabs were injected with 103 or 105 cells of H. perezi. Mortalities began 14 dafter infection, with a median time to death of30.3 ± 1.5 d (se). Subsequent mortality rates were …

A Comparative Field Study Of Crassostrea Gigas And Crassostrea Virginica In Relation To Salinity In Virginia, Gustavo W. Calvo, Mark Luckenbach, Eugene M. Burreson

Reports

No abstract provided.

Estimation Of Juvenile Striped Bass Relative Abundance In The Virginia Portion Of Chesapeake Bay, January 1998-December 1998 : Annual Progress Report, Herbert M. Austin, A. Dean Estes, Donald M. Seaver

Reports

The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has conducted a juvenile striped bass seine survey from 1967 through 1973 and from 1980 through the present. The primary objective has been the monitoring of the relative annual recruitment success of juvenile striped bass in the spawning and to the nursery areas of Lower Chesapeake Bay. Initially (1967-1973), the survey was funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and when reinstated in 1980 with funding from the National Marine Fisheries Service-under the Emergency Striped Bass Study program Commencing with the 1988 annual survey, support of the program has been jointly made …

Shell Games, Juliana Harding, Roger L. Mann, Vicki P. Clark

Reports

Shell Games is a collection of three classroom activities using Chesapeake Bay bivalve shells to illustrate ecological and biological concepts through hands-on-activities.

Enhancement Of Seed Oyster Recovery And Redeployment: Final Report, William Magann

Reports

Today's task involved loading harvesting bag with 1,220 lbs of ballast stone and hanging in test frame. This test will test support straps for fraying or unraveling and test overall for bag durability.

Comparing Oyster Seed Growth Rates Using A Floating Upweller System (“Flupsy”) Vs. Traditional Taylor Floats, Jeff Gardner

Reports

The fisheries Grant R G 99-20 to Study Oyster seed Growth using a FLUPSY (floating upweller system) vs. traditional bag/float system was a ve1y successful project. We were able after two years to reach interesting and informative conclusions. A "Report Summary "section is attached following this narrative.

Efficiency Of Haul-Seine Cull Panels A Comparison Of Size Selectivity And Relative Release, Christian Hagar

Reports

In the summer of 2000, two methods of reducing haul-seine bycatch were tested on the York River, located on the southwestern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Both methods allowed sub-marketable fishes to escape the haul-seine's pocket through a 4' diameter metal panel containing 298 rings with 2" diameters. The release methods differed due to the placement of this panel. The first method placed the panel in the side of the pocket. It released approximately 33% of the croaker< 252 mm (9.9 ") and 65% of the spot < 206 mm (8.1 "). The second method placed the panel at the end of a funnel that was connected to the pocket. This arrangement released 16% of the croaker < 252 mm (9. 9 ") and 46% of the spot <206 mm (8.1 "). Unfortunately, the funnel directed so many large fishes toward the panel that the mechanism became overcrowded and small fishes were prevented panel access. Statistical analysis of method 1 's release of submarketable croaker and spot revealed probabilities of occurrence of< .0005. This study shows great promise. Continued refinement of panel placement and design promises a significant means of release for sub-marketable fishes. Sparing sub-marketable fishes will increase catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) and allow large numbers of juvenile fishes to survive, which are currently harvested before their growth potential is maximized.