Life Sciences Commons^™

Biology And Ecology Of Larval Lobsters (Homarus Americanus): Implications For Population Connectivity And Larval Transport, Eric R. Annis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The connectivity of marine populations and the degree to which they are considered open or closed has important implications for the ecology, management, and resilience of commercially harvested species. Larval exchange is a primary determinant of the level of connectivity between populations, and this thesis examines the intrinsic and extrinsic factors influencing larval transport and the distribution of larvae of the American lobster (Homarus americanus). The potential for larval transport is directly proportional to the planktonic larval duration. Our field data suggest development times in situ were up to three times faster than previous laboratory development times, indicating that potential …

Relating Water And Otolith Chemistry In Chesapeake Bay, And Their Potential To Identify Essential Seagrass Habitats For Juveniles Of An Estuarine-Dependent Fish, Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion Nebulosus), Emmanis Dorval

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

A quantitative understanding of habitat use of estuarine-dependent fishes is critical to the conservation of their most essential habitats. Because recruitment and fitness may be influenced by the quality of juvenile habitats, developing methods to quantify habitat-specific survivorship is pivotal to such understanding. An initial step to quantify survivorship is to validate the habitat-specific natural tags contained in otoliths. To this aim I investigated the variability in the chemistry of surface waters and otoliths of juvenile spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus, in five seagrass habitats of Chesapeake Bay, namely: Potomac, Rappahannock, York, Island, and Eastern Shore. I measured Mg, Ca, …

Cultivation Of Wrack Collected Seagrasses, Irene Arpayoglou

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Study Of The Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea Virginica: (1) Dermo Tolerance, Survival, Growth, Condition And Hsp70 Expression In Different Geographic Stocks; (2) Heat Tolerance And Effects Of Sublethal Heat Shock On Survival And Hsp70 Expression Of Infected And Uninfected Oysters, Vincent G. Encomio

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The diseases Dermo and MSX have devastated Chesapeake Bay populations of the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica. The protozoan Perkinsus marinus, which causes Dermo, is particularly problematic since it persists over a wide range of salinities and temperatures. An objective of this dissertation was to determine whether specific wild oyster stocks had developed natural resistance to Dermo and if several parameters (survival, growth, condition and energy reserves) were associated with resistance. Another objective was to characterize heat shock protein (hsp70) expression in the eastern oyster. Heat shock proteins such as hsp70 protect organisms from thermal stress and other stressors, and this …

Pathobiology Of Mycobacteria In Striped Bass (Morone Saxatilis), David T. Gauthier

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Striped bass (Morone saxatilis) in Chesapeake Bay, USA, are experiencing an epizootic of mycobacteriosis. This disease, caused by bacteria in the genus Mycobacterium, causes granulomatous lesions of the skin and viscera. Diseased fish are often emaciated, and fish with skin lesions may be significantly disfigured. The overall goal of this work was to examine aspects of the pathobiology of mycobacteria in striped bass via laboratory exposure studies and cellular assays. Striped bass were injected intraperitoneally with a sublethal dose of Mycobacterium marinum, M. shottsii, or M. gordonae and sampled for histology and bacteriology at regular intervals to 45 weeks post-injection …

Survival And Habitat Preferences Of White Marlin (Tetrapturus Albidus) Released From The Western North Atlantic Recreational Fishery, Andrij Z. Horodysky

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Natural Dermo Resistance And Related Defense Mechanisms In Eastern Oysters, Crassostrea Virginica, With Implications For Restoration, Shawn Michael Stickler

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

American oyster (Crassostrea virginica) stocks on the East Coast in general, and in Chesapeake Bay in particular, have been in decline over the past half-century in large part due to Dermo disease, caused by the protist parasite Perkinsus marinus. Efforts to restore oysters for their ecological and economic value have centered on the development and use of hatchery-based seed selectively bred for disease resistance. Selective breeding could benefit from the incorporation of oysters from wild stocks that have developed "natural Dermo resistance", but few such stocks have been identified and verified. This dissertation describes reciprocal common-garden experiments carried out at …

Metapopulation Dynamics, Habitat Quality, And Spatial Scale: Variation In Reproductive Output Of The Baltic Clam, Macoma Balthica, In Shallow Systems Of The Chesapeake Bay, Kristen Adams Delano

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Diel Activity Patterns, Space Utilization, Seasonal Distribution And Population Structure Of The Yellow Stingray, Urobatis Jamaicensis (Cuvier, 1817) In South Florida With Comments On Reproduction., Daniel P. Fahy

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The yellow stingray, Urobatis jamaicensis is the most common elasmobranch in the coastal waters of Southeast Florida. Despite their common occurrence the ecology of yellow stingrays remains poorly understood. In particular, yellow stingray daily movements, space utilization, seasonal distribution and population structure have not been described. This study was conducted to address the lack of knowledge of these fundamental life history parameters and to provide further information on the ecology of U. jamaicensis in coastal waters of Broward County, Florida.

The activity patterns and space utilization of U. jamaicensis were assessed by manual tracking with ultrasonic telemetry. Telemetry tracking of …

An Investigation Of Dissolved Organic Matter In A Shallow Coastal Bay Subject To Aureococcus Anophagefferens Blooms, Jean-Paul Simjouw

OES Theses and Dissertations

Aureococcus anophagefferens, the pelagophyte responsible for brown tide blooms, was identified in Chincoteague Bay in 1997 and has “bloomed” there since at least 1998. Aureococcus anophagefferens is capable of using dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) substrates to support growth, and this utilization is hypothesized to give the organism a competitive advantage relative to other phytoplankton when inorganic nutrient concentrations are low or depleted. Because previous studies suggest dissolved organic matter (DOM) is important in initiating and sustaining brown tide blooms, a field study of the variations in DOC concentration and DOM composition was performed at …

Ichthyofaunal And Dietary Analysis Of Sympatric Piscivores In A Chesapeake Bay Littoral Zone: Including Bioenergetic Models Of Growth And Diel Temperature Sanctuary Use, Christian Harding Hager

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The first section of this dissertation describes the ichthyofaunal community of a mesohaline Chesapeake Bay April--November. Fish assemblages were sampled using two seine gears, a small seine that sampled 352 m 2 and a 914m haul-seine that sampled 144,473 m2. The small seine collected 32 finfish species. The larger gear captured 31 finfish species, including 17 that were not sampled by small gear. Sampled diversity was greater but density estimates were similar to those determined previously by other investigators using flume-net, drop-ring, and otter trawl techniques. Nocturnal abundance of larger fishes far exceeded daylight. Fish abundance and size distribution varied …

Evaluating Restored Oyster Reefs In Chesapeake Bay: How Habitat Structure Influences Ecological Function, Janet A. Nestlerode

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

A shortage of shell resources for restoring reefs of the Eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, has led to widespread use of substitute materials. The effectiveness of such alternative substrates as habitat for reef-associated fauna other than oysters is largely unresolved. I investigated the habitat value of oyster shell, surf clam (Spisula solidissima) shell, and pelletized coal ash reefs for benthic and nektonic communities. Oyster recruitment, survival, and growth were monitored on reefs of oyster and surf clam shell near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay and York River, USA. Oyster shell supported greater oyster growth and survival and offered the highest degree …

Stability At Hydrothermal-Vent Mussel Beds: Dynamics At Hydrothermal Vents: Evidence For Stable Macrofaunal Communities In Mussel Beds On The Northern East Pacific Rise, Jennifer Carolyn Dreyer

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Vegetation Dynamics Of A Tidal Freshwater Marsh: Long-Term And Inter-Annual Variability And Their Relationship To Salinity, Sarah B. Davies

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Spatial Variations In Benthic Invertebrate Assemblages In And Around The Georges Banks Closed Areas, Andrew Clayton Walker

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Reproductive Biology Of American Shad, Alosa Sapidissima, In The Mattaponi River, Aaron Reid Hyle

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Parasitism In Deep-Sea Chemosynthetic Mussels: Parasitism In Bathymodiolus Mussels From Deep-Sea Seep And Hydrothermal Vents, Megan E. Ward

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.