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Ecological Interactions Between Benthic Oyster Reef Fishes And Oysters, Juliana Maria Harding
Ecological Interactions Between Benthic Oyster Reef Fishes And Oysters, Juliana Maria Harding
Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects
Restoration of oyster reef structures rehabilitates habitats and the multi-level ecological communities built on eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica), the keystone species. Quantitative descriptions of ecological interactions within a habitat are required to delineate essential fish habitats for management and protection. Parallel development of primary (oysters) and secondary trophic levels (benthic fishes) offer an ecological metric of restoration progress over time. The interaction between larval oysters and larval fishes (e.g., Gobiosoma bosc, Chasmodes bosquianus) is quantitatively examined. Oyster settlement estimates for Palace Bar reef, Piankatank River, Virginia are of the same order of magnitude as field densities of recently settled oysters. …