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Interactions Between Juvenile Estuary-Dependent Fishes And Microalgal Dynamics, Ian C. Williams Oct 2022

Interactions Between Juvenile Estuary-Dependent Fishes And Microalgal Dynamics, Ian C. Williams

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The ontogenetic movement of juvenile estuary-dependent fishes upstream in estuarine settings is a phenomenon observed around the world. These movements usually coincide with a shift in diet from smaller prey, such as calanoid copepods, to larger prey, such as mysids. However, the mechanism that drives this pattern has yet to be conclusively described. Prior to the current study, zooplankton/hyperbenthos (“zooplankton”), primary production, and water quality data were collected from the Caloosahatchee River estuary in two concurrent and coordinated studies over a two-year period. One of the products of these sampling efforts was a classification of primary-producer types at the sediment-water …


Zooplankton Biodiversity In The Northeast Gulf Of Mexico And On The West Florida Shelf From 2005 - 2014, Megan Ferguson Jul 2022

Zooplankton Biodiversity In The Northeast Gulf Of Mexico And On The West Florida Shelf From 2005 - 2014, Megan Ferguson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Zooplankton abundance and biodiversity was measured in the northeast Gulf of Mexico (NEGoM) and on the West Florida Shelf. Bongo net samples were collected between May 2005 to September 2009 through the SEAMAP program, and between July 2010 to August 2014 through the C-IMAGE program. Calanoid copepods were the most abundant zooplankton group in most of the samples collected, but ostracods, larvaceans, and chaetognaths were also abundant. Shannon and Inverse Simpson indices were calculated for all zooplankton samples and generally showed similar trends, but only Shannon indices were used for statistical analyses. In the winter and spring there were significant …


Quantitative Assessment Of The Trophic Ecology Of The Oceanic Ctenophore, Bolinopsis Infundibulum, In Monterey Bay, California, Victoria C. Scriven Mar 2022

Quantitative Assessment Of The Trophic Ecology Of The Oceanic Ctenophore, Bolinopsis Infundibulum, In Monterey Bay, California, Victoria C. Scriven

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bolinopsis infundibulum is a wide-ranging, ubiquitous ctenophore whose fragile nature makes the collection of specimens and quantification of key predator-prey activities in controlled laboratory experiments, challenging. Thus, in situ methods often represent the best means for data collection. However, while present in surface waters, these animals can also be abundant at depths well beyond those attainable by divers. As a result, very little empirical data exist over the depth range of their natural habitats which limits our ability to assess key predator-prey interactions needed to assess their ecological role in midwater food webs. Working in Monterey Bay, California, remotely operated …