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Theses/Dissertations

Estuary

OES Theses and Dissertations

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Phytoplankton Dynamics In The Very Low Salinity Region Of The James River Estuary, Virginia, U.S.A., Changho Moon Oct 1987

Phytoplankton Dynamics In The Very Low Salinity Region Of The James River Estuary, Virginia, U.S.A., Changho Moon

OES Theses and Dissertations

During summer and autumn discharge from the James River estuary, Virginia, was less than 120 m3sec-1. There was a peak phytoplankton biomass in the very low salinity region (defined as the location where surface salinity measured less than 0.5$ 0/00) and this peak represented five to ten times greater biomass than adjacent waters. The peak biomass occurred independent of the tidal state and the location of nutrient inputs. It disappeared during winter and spring, and nutrient limitation was not responsible for the low phytoplankton biomass, indicating there were physical, not chemical controlling factors.

The peak biomass …