Marine Biology Commons^™

Macroalgal Monitoring In The Great Bay Estuary: 2018 Annual Report, David M. Burdick, Gregg E. Moore, Arthur C. Mathieson, Andrew Payne, Chris Peter

PREP Reports & Publications

Since 2013, the abundance and taxa of intertidal macroalgae have been assessed at fixed locations throughout the Great Bay Estuary in New Hampshire. Algal abundance may be influenced by environmental conditions such as nutrient levels, water temperature, light and invasive species. Therefore, abundance of different algal groups can provide insights into the overall health of the estuary and signal ecological change. In 2018, intertidal abundance data for percentage cover and biomass were collected, as planned, from five of the eight sites. For the first time, subtidal sampling arrays were also incorporated at all four sites in Great Bay proper to …

Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership 2018 Annual Report, Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

No abstract provided.

Review Of Seagrassnet Monitoring Photographs In Great Bay, New Hampshire, Usa 2007 - 2014, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

SeagrassNet is a global monitoring program begun in 2001 and designed to scientifically detect and document seagrass habitat change (Short et al. 2006a, 2014). Monitoring of eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) in the Great Bay Estuary using SeagrassNet was conducted in Portsmouth Harbor between 2001 and 2009 (Short et al 2006b, Rivers and Short 2007), and is ongoing in Great Bay itself, from 2007 (Short 2009) to the present. In this report, July quadrat photos taken along the three Great Bay SeagrassNet transects from 2007 – 2014 are presented and discussed. They provide useful documentation of field percent cover measurements of …

2016 Oyster Reef Restoration Project Funded By The Aquatic Resources Mitigation Program, Raymond E. Grizzle, Krystin M. Ward

PREP Reports & Publications

This report describes the results of the construction and initial monitoring phase of an oyster restoration project conducted in 2016 by the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC), funded by the New Hampshire Aquatic Resources Mitigation Program. The overall goal of the project was to construct 5 acres of new oyster reef habitat in an area adjacent to a live natural reef northwest of Nannie Island, in the Town of Newington, NH, off Woodman Point. The report is organized according to the four major tasks listed as deliverables in the subaward to UNH from TNC.

Seagrassnet Monitoring In Great Bay, New Hampshire, 2015, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

SeagrassNet is a global monitoring program begun in 2001 and designed to scientifically detect and document seagrass habitat change (Short et al. 2006a, 2014). Monitoring of eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) in the Great Bay Estuary using SeagrassNet was conducted in Portsmouth Harbor between 2001 and 2009 (Short et al. 2006b, Rivers and Short 2007), and in Great Bay starting in 2007 (Short 2009). Results from SeagrassNet 2015, supported by PREP and conducted in Great Bay, are described in this report.

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary And Piscataqua River For 2016, Seth Barker

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass distribution in Great Bay, Little Bay, and the Piscataqua River Estuary were mapped from aerial photography acquired on August 5, 2016. The total area of eelgrass beds with 10% or greater cover and a polygon area equal to or greater than 100 square meters was 683.42 hectares or 1688.71 acres. Eelgrass polygons were coded for Assessment Zone location and the results reported in Table 1.The largest concentration of eelgrass was found in Great Bay with lesser amounts in the vicinity of Portsmouth Harbor. The total area of eelgrass was nearly identical to that mapped in 2013 though there were …

Testing Of Great Bay Oysters For Two Protozoan Pathogens, Douglas E. Grout

PREP Reports & Publications

Two protozoan pathogens, Haplosporidium nelsoni (MSX) and Perkinsus marinus (Dermo) are known to be present in Great Bay oysters. With funds provided by the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP), the Marine Fisheries Division of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHFG) continues to assess the presence and intensity of both of these disease conditions in oysters from the major natural beds within the Great Bay estuarine system. Histological examinations of Great Bay oysters have also revealed other endoparasites

Monitoring Macroalgae In The Great Bay Estuary For 2015, David M. Burdick, Arthur C. Mathieson, Sydney Nick, Christopher R. Peter

PREP Reports & Publications

In 2015, five of the eight locations with fixed intertidal transects were sampled as part of the long-term effort to monitor macroalgae in the Great Bay Estuary. With the completion of the third year of the project, all eight locations have been sampled at least once, two years of data have been collected for four locations, and three years of data have been collected for one location, Monitoring results from 2015 show high levels of cover of nuisance green or red algae (Ulva and Gracilaria, respectively) at all sites sampled. Nuisance algae is characterized as fast-growing; it can interfere with …

Eelgrass/Macroalgae Discussion Primer For Tac Activities 2016-2017, Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

See also: "Eelgrass Distribution and Biomass in the Great Bay Estuary for 2015" http://scholars.unh.edu/prep/354

"Eelgrass Distribution in the Great Bay Estuary for 2014" http://scholars.unh.edu/prep/352/

The issue of eelgrass and macroalgae in the Great Bay Estuary (GBE) is extremely important and complex. The purpose of this document is to clarify issues and questions to make for a more productive and informed discussion.

Eelgrass Distribution And Biomass In The Great Bay Estuary For 2015, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

See also: "Eelgrass/Macroalgae Discussion Primer for TAC Activities 2016-2017" http://scholars.unh.edu/prep/355

Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) is an essential habitat for the Great Bay Estuary (GBE) because it is the basis of an estuarine food web that supports many of the recreationally, commercially and ecologically important species in the estuary and beyond. Eelgrass provides food for ducks, geese and swans, as well as food, nursery habitat, and shelter for juvenile fish and shellfish. Eelgrass filters estuarine waters and improves water clarity, removing both nutrients and suspended sediments from the water column; its roots and rhizomes bind and hold sediments in place, thereby …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary For 2014, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

See also: "Eelgrass/Macroalgae Discussion Primer for TAC Activities 2016-2017" http://scholars.unh.edu/prep/355

Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) is an essential habitat for the Great Bay Estuary (GBE) because it is the basis of an estuarine food web that supports many of the recreationally, commercially and ecologically important species in the estuary and beyond. Eelgrass provides food for ducks, geese and swans, as well as food, nursery habitat, and shelter for juvenile fish and shellfish. Eelgrass filters estuarine waters and improves water clarity, removing both nutrients and suspended sediments from the water column; its roots and rhizomes bind and hold sediments in place, thereby …

Nitrogen, Phosphorus, And Suspended Solids Concentrations In Tributaries To The Great Bay Estuary Watershed In 2015, Matthew A. Wood

PREP Reports & Publications

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads to the Great Bay Estuary are a constant concern. The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) calculates the nitrogen load from tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary for its State of Our Estuaries reports. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to collect representative data on nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediment concentrations in tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary in 2015. The study design followed the tributary sampling design which was implemented by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services between 2001 and 2007 and sustained by the University of New Hampshire from 2008 to the …

Assessment Of Recent Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea Virginica) Reef Restoration Projects In The Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire: Planning For The Future, Raymond E. Grizzle, Krystin M. Ward

PREP Reports & Publications

Current oyster populations in New Hampshire total less than 10% of what they were in the 1980s, and the causal factors for the declines include disease, sedimentation, and human harvest. The two major results from a population ecology perspective have been dramatic losses of oyster shell (the major substrate on which oyster larvae typically settle) as well as juvenile annual recruitment to the remaining reefs. Experimental scale oyster restoration projects addressing these two limitations (substrate and natural recruitment) were initiated in the state in the early 2000s by scientists at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). Since the mid-2000s, the …

Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In Piscataqua Region Estuaries 2014, Matthew A. Wood

PREP Reports & Publications

Originally conducted by the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment from 1993 to 2011, the Gulfwatch Program examined trends in the water quality of the Gulf of Maine by monitoring toxic contaminant concentrations in the tissues of shellfish. Starting in 2012 the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) continued this program in the Piscataqua Region. Each year, PREP collects blue mussels at three sites: Dover Point, NH (NHDP), Clark Cove on Seavey Island, ME (MECC), and Hampton-Seabrook Harbor (NHHS). The mussel tissue is analyzed to determine the concentrations of toxic contaminantss including heavy metals, chlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), …

Testing Of Great Bay Oysters For Two Protozoan Pathogens, Douglas E. Grout, Bruce W. Smith

PREP Reports & Publications

Two protozoan pathogens, Haplosporidium nelsoni (MSX) and Perkinsus marinus (Dermo) are known to be present in Great Bay oysters. With funds provided by the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP), the Marine Fisheries Division of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHF&G) continues to assess the presence and intensity of both of these disease conditions in oysters from the major natural beds within the Great Bay estuarine system and at selected aquaculture sites. Histological examinations of Great Bay oysters have also revealed other endoparasites.

Nitrogen, Phosphorus, And Suspended Solids Concentrations In Tributaries To The Great Bay Estuary Watershed In 2014, Matthew A. Wood

PREP Reports & Publications

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads to the Great Bay Estuary are a constant concern. The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) calculates the nitrogen load from tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary for its State of Our Estuaries reports. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to collect representative data on nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediment concentrations in tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary in 2014. The study design followed the tributary sampling design which was implemented by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services between 2001 and 2007 and sustained by the University of New Hampshire from 2008 to the …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary For 2013, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

Executive Summary Headlines:

o Great Bay lost 21% of its eelgrass from 2012 to 2013.

o As of 2013, the Great Bay Estuary has lost 50% of its eelgrass since 1996.

Once again, eelgrass in the Great Bay Estuary declined in both distribution and biomass between 2012 and 2013, continuing the long-term trend of eelgrass loss. In 2013, Great Bay itself lost over 20% of its eelgrass (333 acres) and biomass decreased, amounting to about 400 tons, down from 1600 tons in 1996. These eelgrass losses are alarming and not sustainable. In Great Bay, eelgrass distribution has declined 49% since …

Report On The 2013 Rapid Assessment Survey Of Marine Species At New England Bays And Harbors, Christopher D. Wells, Adrienne L. Pappal, Yuangyu Cao, James T. Carlton, Zara Currimjee, Jennifer A. Dijkstra, Sara K. Edquist, Arriaan Gittenberger, Seth Goodnight, Sara P. Grady, Larry G. Harris, Leslie H. Harris, Lindsay A. Green, Niels-Viggo Hobbs, Gretchen Lambert, Judith Pederson, Macarena Ros, Jan P. Smith, Lauren Stefaniak, Alexandra Stevens

PREP Reports & Publications

Introduced species (i.e., non-native species that have become established in a new location) have increasingly been recognized as a concern as they have become more prevalent in marine and terrestrial environments (Mooney and Cleland 2001; Simberloff et al. 2005). The ability of introduced species to alter population, community, and ecosystem structure and function, as well as cause significant economic damage is well documented (Carlton 1989, 1996b, 2000; Cohen and Carlton 1995; Cohen et al. 1995; Elton 1958; Meinesz et al. 1993; Occhipinti-Ambrogi and Sheppard 2007; Pimentel et al. 2005; Thresher 2000). The annual economic costs incurred from managing the approximately …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary And Piscataqua River For 2013, Seth Barker

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass distribution and cover in Great Bay, Little Bay, and the Piscataqua River Estuary were mapped from aerial photography acquired on August 24, 2013. The total area of eelgrass beds with 10% or greater cover was 1683.4 acres. The largest concentration of eelgrass was found in Great Bay with lesser amounts in the vicinity of Portsmouth Harbor. Comparisons to previous years are not made here.

Results Of 2013 Macroalgal Monitoring And Recommendations For Future Monitoring In Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire, Elisabeth Cianciola, David M. Burdick

PREP Reports & Publications

The recently designated nitrogen impairment and reports of elevated macroalgal growth in Great Bay Estuary indicate ecological imbalance. However, reversing the Estuary’s ecological decline will require commitment of considerable resources and is complicated by the variety of sources that deliver nitrogen to the Estuary and the intermittent nature of historic macroalgal monitoring. To advance our understanding of the macroalgal and nitrogen dynamics of the Estuary, data were collected via three approaches: 1) assessing plant cover and biomass along transects; 2) assessing plant cover at randomly selected points; and 3) comparing the nitrogen isotope ratios of macroalgae collected from different habitats. …

Results Of 2013 Macroalgal Monitoring And Recommendations For Future Monitoring In Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire, Elisabeth Cianciola, David M. Burdick

PREP Reports & Publications

We undertook this study in an effort to quantify the abundance of macroalgae in Great Bay Estuary and to describe the dominant species composition and distribution in the Estuary. Based on previous research in the Estuary, we developed a three-part research approach. In the first approach, percent cover and biomass data were collected by species/genus on permanent transects at four intertidal sites at four different times of year. The second approach tested the possibility of using random sampling to collect data that were more representative of the entire Estuary over a 1-month time period. In the third research approach, isotope …

Nitrogen, Phosphorus, And Suspended Solids Concentrations In Tributaries To The Great Bay Estuary Watershed In 2013, Matt A. Wood, Philip Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads to the Great Bay Estuary are a growing concern. The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) calculates the nitrogen load from tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary for its State of Our Estuaries reports. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to collect representative data on nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediment concentrations in tributaries to the Great Bay Estuary in 2013. The study design followed the tributary sampling design which was implemented by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services between 2001 and 2007 and by the University of New Hampshire between 2008 and 2012, so …

Scaling-Up: A Fifth Year Of Restoring Oyster Reefs In Great Bay Estuary, Nh 2013 Annual Program Report, Ray Konisky, Raymond E. Grizzle, Krystin M. Ward, R. Eckerd, Kara Mcketon

PREP Reports & Publications

The eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) in New Hampshire’s Great Bay Estuary has declined in the past decades, with local populations reduced due primarily to disease, excessive siltation, and past over-harvest. The loss of filtering oysters results in diminished ecological benefits for water quality, nitrogen control, and other services that healthy oyster populations provide. In support of management objectives to restore oyster populations, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the University of New Hampshire (UNH) have combined for a fifth consecutive year of scaled-up methods to rebuild oyster reefs and populations. Since 2009, we have “planted” seasoned shell, primarily surf-clam …

Testing Of Geat Bay Oysters For Two Protozoan Pathogens, Douglas E. Grout

PREP Reports & Publications

Two protozoan pathogens, Haplosporidium nelsoni (MSX) and Perkinsus marinus (Dermo), are known to be present in Great Bay oysters. With funds provided by the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP), the Marine Fisheries Division of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHF&G) continues to assess the presence and intensity of both of these disease conditions in oysters from the major beds within the Great Bay estuarine system. Histological examinations of Great Bay oysters have also revealed other endoparasites.

Piscataqua Region Environmental Planning Assessment 2015, Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

PREP Reports & Publications

This is the second assessment of land use regulations and planning practices in our watershed, and provides an important understanding of how we are managing our community’s natural resources. Although progress in protecting water quality has been made, management actions are inconsistent across the watershed and even within sub watersheds. In order to protect the places we live, and accommodate growth. It is clear that purposeful coordination and consistency is critical to success in improving water quality and minimizing community costs associated with pollution and impacts from intensifying weather events.

Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In Piscataqua Region Estuaries 2013, Matthew A. Wood, Philip R. Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Originally conducted by the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment from 1993 to 2011, the Gulfwatch Program examined trends in the water quality of the Gulf of Maine by monitoring toxic contaminant concentrations in the tissues of shellfish. Starting in 2012 the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) continued this program in the Piscataqua Region. Each year, PREP collects blue mussels at three sites: Dover Point, NH (NHDP), Clark Cove on Seavey Island, ME (MECC), and Hampton-Seabrook Harbor (NHHS). The mussel tissue is analyzed to determine the concentrations of toxic contaminantss including heavy metals, chlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), …

Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In Piscataqua Region Estuaries 2010 And 2011, Matthew A. Wood, Philip R. Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Conducted by a committee of Canadian and US government and university scientists, Gulfwatch examines the effects of decades of development and industrialization on the water quality of the Gulf as it relates to human health primarily through assessing contaminant exposure of marine organisms. Gulfwatch scientists collect blue mussels at over 60 US and Canadian sites Gulfwide, and analyze the organisms’ tissue for potentially harmful levels and concentrations of toxins including heavy metals, chlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In Piscataqua Region Estuaries 2012, Matthew A. Wood, Philip R. Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Originally conducted by a committee of Canadian and US governments and university scientists, Gulfwatch examined the effects of decades of development and industrialization on the water quality of the Gulf of Maine as it relates to human health primarily through assessing contaminant exposure of marine organisms from 1993 to 2010. The NH Gulfwatch Program continues these efforts by collecting blue mussels at two sites in the Great Bay Estuary and one in the Hampron-Seabrook Estuary, and analyzes the organisms’ tissue for potentially harmful levels and concentrations of toxins including heavy metals, chlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary For 2012, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass in the Great Bay Estuary declined in both distribution and biomass between 2011 and 2012, continuing the long-term trend of eelgrass loss. In 2012, eelgrass was once again mainly present in the Great Bay itself with limited distribution in Portsmouth Harbor and Little Bay. Eelgrass distribution in Great Bay decreased 1.5% between 2011 and 2012 with no change in biomass. In Great Bay,eelgrass distribution has declined 36% since 1996 and biomass is a quarter of what it was in the early 1990s. Nuisance macroalgae in Great Bay continued to proliferate in 2012 and to impact eelgrass by smothering eelgrass …

Oyster Bed Mapping In The Great Bay Estuary, 2012-2013, Raymond E. Grizzle, Krystin M. Ward

PREP Reports & Publications

Six major oyster beds (reefs) in New Hampshire are mapped periodically to assess wild oyster populations in the Great Bay Estuary. Data on the spatial extent of the beds are combined with density and other measures to estimate the abundances of live oysters. The first objective of the present project was to determine the spatial extent of these six oyster beds, and to compare the 2012/2013 data with previous mapping efforts. A second objective was twofold: to map the extent of live oyster bottom at selected recent oyster restoration sites, and to map areas where oyster beds have been known …