Marine Biology Commons^™

Marine Mammals Laboratory Manual, Aldemaro Romero Jr., Kristen Irwin

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Blind Cave Fish Found In Northern Ar. Lake, Aldemaro Romero Jr., Michel Conner

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Endohelminths Of A Snake Mackerel, Gempylus Serpens (Trichiuroidea: Gempylidae), From The Gulf Of Mexico, Charles K. Blend, Norman O. Dronen, James S. Franks, George W. Benz

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Endohelminths are reported from a female snake mackerel, Gempylus serpens (Trichiuroidea: Gempylidae), captured from a depth of 61 m in the Gulf of Mexico 140 km south of the mouth of Mobile Bay, Alabama, in August 1998. A diverse endohelminth parasite fauna was found: 29 plerocercoid type I tetraphyllideans from the lower intestine; 4 didymozoid metacercariae allocated to the collective group Monilicaecum and one didymozoid metacercaria of the collective group Torticaecum from the pyloric cecum; one juvenile Gonocerca phycidis from the stomach; and 5 larvae (L3 stage) comprising 3 species of Anisakis from the pyloric cecum. These nematodes were identified …

Trematoda (Platyhelminthes) Of The Gulf Of Mexico, Robin M. Overstreet, Joshua O. Cook, Richard W. Heard

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

First paragraph:

The platyhelminth class Trematoda, consisting of the subclasses Aspidogastrea and Digenea, contains individuals referred to as digeneans, trematodes, or flukes. Aspidogastreans, not digeneans in the strict sense2 number about 80 species in total (Rohde 2005), but adults in the Gulf of Mexico of 4 species have been reported from teleost and chondrichthyan fishes (Hendrix and Overstreet I 977) and one from a turtle (Wharton 1939). Consequently, this chapter deals with trematodes rather than just digeneans, even though all the records but the 5 refer to digeneans. Trematoda is the largest group of platyhelminths, and trematode adults, other than …

A Citizen's Guide To Protecting Sandown's Wetlands And Water Resources, Sandown Conservation Commission

PREP Reports & Publications

No abstract provided.

Eighteenth Year Of The Gulf Of Maine Environmental Monitoring Program, Lawrence A. Leblanc, Christian Krahforst, Jamie Aube, Shawn Roach, Guy Brun, Gareth Harding, Peter Hennigar, David Page, Stephen H. Jones, Susan Shaw, James Stahlnecker, Jack Schwartz, Darrell Taylor, Bruce Thorpe, Peter Wells

PREP Reports & Publications

This report summarizes the metals and organic contaminant data associated with the collection and analyses of blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) tissue from selected sites along the Gulf of Maine coast during the 2008 sampling season. Contaminant monitoring is conducted by the Gulfwatch Program for the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment (GOMC). A subset of these data is compared with analytical results from earlier Gulfwatch monitoring (2001-2007). Statistical analyses are limited to descriptive measures of replicates from selected sampling sites and include: arithmetic means, and appropriate measures of variance. The primary purpose of this report is to present …

Impacts Of Marine Docks On Eelgrass In New England: A Spreadsheet-Based Model For Managers And Planners, David M. Burdick, Frederick T. Short, Gregg Moore

Faculty Publications

none

Dynamically Constrained Ensemble Perturbations: Application To Tides On The West Florida Shelf, Alexander Barth, Aida Alvera-Azcarate, J. M. Beckers, Robert H. Weisberg, L. Vandenbulcke, F. Lenartz, M. Rixen

Marine Science Faculty Publications

A method is presented to create an ensemble of perturbations that satisfies linear dynamical constraints. A cost function is formulated defining the probability of each perturbation. It is shown that the perturbations created with this approach take the land-sea mask into account in a similar way as variational analysis techniques. The impact of the land-sea mask is illustrated with an idealized configuration of a barrier island. Perturbations with a spatially variable correlation length can be also created by this approach. The method is applied to a realistic configuration of the West Florida Shelf to create perturbations of the M2 tidal …

Phytoplankton Blooms: Their Occurence And Composition Within Virginia's Tidal Tributaries, Harold G. Marshall, Todd A. Egerton

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Sporadic algal bloom development within a 10 year monitoring program in Virginia tidal tributaries of Chesapeake Bay is reviewed. These blooms were common events, characteristically producing a color signature to the surface water, typically short lived, occurring mainly from spring into autumn throughout different salinity regions of these rivers, and were produced primarily by dinoflagellates. The abundance threshold levels that would identify bloom status from a non-bloom presence were species specific, varied with the taxon's cell size, and ranged from ca. 10 to 10(4) cells mL(-1). Among the most consistent sporadic bloom producers were the dinoflagellates Akashiwo sanguinea, Cochlodinium …

Horseshoe Crab Spawning Survey Protocol, Jennifer Mattei

Biology Faculty Publications

The protocol lists supplies and clothing needed for the survey, as well as which data is to be collected and when and how it should be entered for the census of horseshoe crabs on the Recapture Data Sheet for 2009. Adopted from Cape Cod and Delaware Bay survey protocols.

Isinglass River Conservation Corridor Project, Daniel E. Kern

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) provided a $9,075 grant to Bear-Paw Regional Greenways to support the Isinglass River Conservation Corridor Project. The grant helped fund some of the transaction costs associated with the project that protected high-value conservation land along the Isinglass River and in other areas of the watershed in Strafford, New Hampshire. The $2.9 million project was a collaboration of Bear-Paw, the Trust for Public Land (TPL), and the Town of Strafford that protected five properties and 868 acres of forest, over one mile of road frontage, more than three miles of frontage on streams and rivers …

Total Nitrogen Concentrations In Wastewater Treatment Plant Effluent In The Great Bay Estuary Watershed In 2008, Philip Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Nitrogen enrichment is a growing concern for the Great Bay Estuary. For the 2006 State of the Estuaries report (NHEP, 2006), the NHEP calculated the nitrogen load from wastewater treatment facilities (WWTF) using data on total dissolved nitrogen in WWTF effluent in 2002 from Bolster et al. (2003). The NHEP needs to update this indicator for the 2009 State of the Estuaries report. Not only is more recent data needed but also measurements of total nitrogen are needed to avoid assumptions about the ratio of dissolved to total nitrogen. Therefore, the NHEP allocated staff time to collect effluent samples from …

Topographic Effects On The Path And Evolution Of Loop Current Eddies, Kyung Hoon Hyun, Patrick J. Hogan

Faculty Publications

Eddy-topography (ET) interactions are important in determining the path and evolution of oceanic eddies, including Loop Current Eddies (LCE) in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). We use the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model and satellite altimetry data to investigate the ET interactions and the impact on LCE pathway evolution in the GOM. Satellite altimetry reveals that LCEs translate dominantly westward in the central GOM and strongly collide and reflect against topography near the continental slope in the northern and western GOM. The result is the frequent generation of an anticyclone-cyclone (AC) pair in conjunction with the LCEs. In the absence of …

Applying Marine Protected Area Design Models In Large Estuarine Systems, Roman Zajac, Amanda E. Neely

Biology and Environmental Science Faculty Publications

Several types of design models are currently being used to develop marine protected areas (MPAs) for conservation of coastal and pelagic ecosystems. However, few studies have applied these models in large estuaries which have unique characteristics that need to be considered in MPA design, including strong physical, chemical and biological gradients and significant human impacts. We explored how one design model, MARXAN, can be applied to estuarine systems by developing MPA design scenarios for Long Island Sound, an estuary in the northeastern USA. Using sedimentary texture as a proxy for habitats, we modeled and tested several scenarios where conservation goals …

A New Species Of Gobiid Fish,Luciogobius From Ryukyus, Japan(Teleostei: Gobiidae), I-Shiung Chen, Toshiyuki Suzuki, Hiroshi Senou

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

A new gobiid fish has been collected from Ryukyu Archipelagos of Japan. This species is described herein as a new species, Luciogobius ryukyuensis sp. nov. It is characterized by the following unique combination of features: (1) second dorsal fin rays: I/11 and anal fin rays I/11; (2) pectoral fin rays 16 and with one upper, very short free soft ray; (3) vertebral count 37; and (4) specific coloration: head and body with many rounded light creamy white spots above creamy yellow to yellowish brown background. A diagnostic key to all nominal species of Luciogobius from West Pacific are provided herein.

Hurricane Storm Surge Simulations Comparing Three-Dimensional With Two-Dimensional Formulations Based On An Ivan-Like Storm Over The Tampa Bay, Florida Region, Robert H. Weisberg, Lianyuan Zheng

Marine Science Faculty Publications

We provide a dynamics‐based comparison on the results from three‐dimensional and two‐dimensional simulations of hurricane storm surge. We begin with the question, What may have occurred in the Tampa Bay, Florida vicinity had Hurricane Ivan made landfall there instead of at the border between Alabama and Florida? This question is explored using a three‐dimensional, primitive equation, finite volume coastal ocean model. The results show that storm surges are potentially disastrous for the Tampa Bay area, especially for landfalls located to the north of the bay mouth. The worst case among the simulations considered is for landfall at Tarpon Springs, such …

Lidar-Derived Benthic Habitat Maps Enable The Quantification Of Potential Dredging Impacts To Coral Reef Ecosystems, Brian K. Walker, Richard E. Dodge, David S. Gilliam

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

An essential component to the analysis of ecosystem services is to characterize and define the major habitats within the area of interest. Aerial photography and/or satellite imagery coupled with geographic information systems (GIS) are frequently used to identify and quantify habitats in open terrestrial ecosystems. However, it is more difficult to successfully apply this methodology to deeper, <20 m, underwater environments. Light detection and ranging (LIDAR), a relatively new remote sensing technology that provides detailed bathymetry, can be used when adequate imagery is not available. This study uses LIDAR as the basis to characterize various benthic habitats in a coral reef ecosystem in order to quantify the habitats for a Habitat Equivalency Analysis (HEA) related to planned dredging activities to expand the Port Everglades entrance channel, Broward County, FL. As part of a regional mapping effort, marine benthic habitats were characterized for Broward County, FL. A mosaic of interpolated, sunshaded, laser bathymetry data served as the foundation upon which acoustic ground discrimination, limited subbottom profiling and aerial photography, and groundtruthing data were added in a GIS to aid in interpretation of benthic habitats. Expert-driven visual interpretation outlined geomorphological features in the LIDAR data at a scale of 1:6000 with a minimum mapping unit of 1 acre. The map of Broward County yielded a high overall accuracy of 89.6%. To quantify the potential dredging impacts, the habitat layer was clipped in GIS to the boundaries of anticipated direct and indirect impacts of the proposed project. Then the area of each clipped polygon was totaled for each habitat by impact type. HEA and Florida’s Uniform Mitigation Assessment Method (UMAM) were performed using these areas. This work would not have been possible using satellite imagery or aerial photography alone and illustrates the capability of relatively new remote sensing technologies to aid in the definition and quantification of habitats for ecosystem service analyses.

Developing 1990, 2000, And 2005 Impervious Surface Estimates For Southern York County, Maine, David G. Justice, Fay A. Rubin

PREP Reports & Publications

Estimates of impervious surface acreage in 1990, 2000, and 2005 were generated for an 11-town region in York County, Maine, covered by the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP). The project extended previous work done in New Hampshire, relying on comparable satellite-based data sources and image processing methodologies. As a result, standardized impervious surface estimates are now available for the entirety of the PREP region. The impervious surface estimates were derived by applying both traditional and subpixel classification techniques to 30-meter Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) satellite image data. The classifications indicated that …

Gene Expression Profiles As Molecular Indicators Of Dissolved Oxygen Stress In Grass Shrimp Palaemonetes Pugio Holthuis 1949, Tiandao Li

Dissertations

Occurrence and severity of hypoxia is increasing in coastal and estuarine environments, and recovery of impacted habitats and living resources is slow. Detection of early biological effects of hypoxia is needed for timely remedial action to be taken. The overall objectives of this research was to develop molecular indicators of dissolved oxygen stress to assess the biological impact of hypoxia in coastal estuaries and validate their use through a combination of laboratory and field studies. To achieve these goals, grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio, oxygen-sensitive and hypoxia-tolerant species abundant in estuarine systems, were exposed to hypoxia under controlled laboratory conditions, and …

Yellow Head Virus: Transmission And Genome Analyses, Hongwei Ma

Dissertations

Yellow head virus (YHV) is an important pathogen to shrimp aquaculture. Among 13 species of naturally YHV-negative crustaceans in the Mississippi coastal area, the daggerblade grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio, and the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, were tested for potential reservoir and carrier hosts of YHV using PCR and real time PCR. The YHV replicated in the daggerblade grass shrimp, and was still detectable on 36 d post-inoculation, causing 8% mortality after injection. However, YHV did not replicate in the blue crab. These data suggest that the daggerblade grass shrimp could act as a reservoir host for YHV. Storage conditions of …

Unintended Facilitation Between Marine Consumers Generates Enhanced Mortality For Their Shared Prey, F. Joel Fodrie, Matthew D. Kenworthy, Sean P. Powers

University Faculty and Staff Publications

We manipulated predator densities and prey vulnerability to explore how interactions between two predators affect overall mortality of their shared prey. Our threemember study system included eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) and two of its major consumers: southern oyster drills (Stramonita haemastoma) and stone crabs (Menippe adina). Field experiments demonstrated that drills and crabs foraging together generated higher than expected oyster mortality based on each species operating independently, even though crabs also killed some drills. In subsequent laboratory trials, we experimentally mimicked the handling of oysters by foraging crabs and confirmed that crabs facilitated drills by breeching oyster valves, thereby granting …

On The Movement Of Beluga Whales In Cook Inlet, Alaska: Simulations Of Tidal And Environmental Impacts Using A Hydrodynamic Inundation Model, Tal Ezer, Roderick Hobbs, Lie-Yauw Oey

CCPO Publications

The population of beluga whales in Cook Inlet, Alaska, is in decline, and since 2000 these whales have been under consideration for designation as "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act (and were placed on the list in October 2008, just before this article went to press). In order to study environmental and hydrodynamic impacts on the belugas' movements and survival in the unique habitat of the inlet, a three-dimensional ocean circulation and inundation model is combined with satellite-tracked beluga whale data. Model-wale data comparisons from two whale paths during a five-day period (september 17-21, 2000) covering 10 tidal cycles suggest …

Leucon (Crymoleucon) Rossi, A New Species (Crustacea: Cumacea: Leuconidae) From The Shelf Waters Of The Ross Sea (Antarctica), With A Key To The Genus Leucon South Of 60°S, Peter Rehm, Richard W. Heard

Faculty Publications

A new leuconid cumacean, Leucon (Crymoleucon) rossi n. sp., is described from depths of 84 to 458 m in the Ross Sea off the Victoria Land coast. Leucon rossi n. sp. is distinguished from other members of the genus by a combination of characters including 1) a blunt, horizontally directed pseudorostrum) Without a distinctly protruding siphon; 2) strongly developed antennal notch; 3) entire dorsomedian margin of carapace appearing serrate, armed with 14 to 19 anteriorly Curved spines in female (up to 21 in subadult males); 4) a small, but distinct, spine behind the frontal lobe; and 5) the uropodal peduncle …

Si Cycle In The Cariaco Basin, Venezuela: Seasonal Variability In Silicate Availability And The Si:C:N Composition Of Sinking Particles, Robert C. Thunell, Claudia Benitez-Nelson, Frank E. Muller-Karger, Laura Lorenzoni, Mary Scranton, Ramon Varela, Yrene Astor, Kent A. Fanning

Marine Science Faculty Publications

A 9‐year time series of water column and sediment trap measurements was used to examine silicon cycling within the anoxic Cariaco Basin. The dynamic hydrographic regime within Cariaco Basin results in strong seasonal changes in nutrient availability and the Si:C:N of sinking particles. Upwelling in early winter injects silicic acid (Si(OH)₄⁼ ) and nitrate (NO₃⁻) rich waters into the photic zone which stimulates primary production and results in opal fluxes in excess of 4 mmol Si m⁻² d⁻¹. However, even during upwelling, surface waters tend to be depleted (<1 μM) in …

Macroalgae And Eelgrass Mapping In Great Bay Estuary Using Aisa Hyperspectral Imagery, Shachak Pe'eri, J. Ru Morrison, Frederick T. Short, Arthur C. Mathieson, Anna Brook, Philip Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Increase in nitrogen concentration and declining eelgrass beds in Great Bay Estuary have been observed in the last decades. These two parameters are clear indicators of the impending problems for NH’s estuaries. The NH Department of Environmental Services (DES) in collaboration with the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) adopted the assumption that eelgrass survival can be used as the water quality target for nutrient criteria development for NH’s estuaries. One of the hypotheses put forward regarding eelgrass decline is that a possible eutrophication response to nutrient increases in the Great Bay Estuary has been the proliferation of nuisance macroalgae, which …

Restoration Of Oyster (Crassostrea Virginica) Habitat For Multiple Estuarine Species Benefits, Shachak Pe'eri, J. Ru Morrison, Frederick T. Short, Arthur C. Mathieson, Anna Brook, Philip Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

Increase in nitrogen concentration and declining eelgrass beds in Great Bay Estuary have been observed in the last decades. These two parameters are clear indicators of the impending problems for NH’s estuaries. The NH Department of Environmental Services (DES) in collaboration with the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) adopted the assumption that eelgrass survival can be used as the water quality target for nutrient criteria development for NH’s estuaries. One of the hypotheses put forward regarding eelgrass decline is that a possible eutrophication response to nutrient increases in the Great Bay Estuary has been the proliferation of nuisance macroalgae, which …

Fisheries Occasional Publication No.72 - Western Rock Lobster Ecological Effects Of Fishing Research Plan., Rhys Brown

Fisheries Occasional Publications

The commercial West Coast Rock Lobster Fishery (WCRLF) targets the western rock lobster (WRL), Panulirus cygnus, averaging approximately 10,000 tonnes of lobsters each year. Currently approximately 450 to 500 boats operate in the Fishery in waters ranging from 5 m to 200 m depth adjacent to the Western Australian coast and stretching from Cape Leeuwin in the south to Shark Bay in the north. The Fishery is managed by the Department of Fisheries (DoF) in Western Australia, using an input control system designed to constrain exploitation/fishing effort and deliver sustainable catches. The annual value of the catch is estimated at …

(2008) Northwood Stomwater Technologies And Town Of Northwood Buffer Ordinance, Ttg Environmental Consultants, Llc

PREP Reports & Publications

TTG Environmental Consultants, LLC (TEC), under contract to the New Hampshire Estuaries Project and in conjunction with the Northwood Water Resources Sub-Committee, has prepared this report on stormwater technologies appropriate for the Town of Northwood, NH. This report is divided into two (2) main sections with a number of subsections. The first section describes the need for stormwater management, and the second section describes stormwater management technologies that are appropriate for Northwood. Stormwater management has been evolving for many years, from a need to convey stormwater away from or through a developed site, to the realization that land development has …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary 2007, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass has now, in 2007, almost totally disappeared from Little Bay and the Piscataqua River. Despite these critical losses in mid-estuary, eelgrass distribution in the Great Bay Estuary (GBE) as a whole between 2006 and 2007 experienced an overall loss of 3% in area because of the areal dominance of Great Bay itself, where most of the eelgrass that remains in the GBE is found. Eelgrass area in Great Bay itself remained about the same between 2006 and 2007, with an increase in biomass due to some of the remaining beds becoming more dense. However, Little Bay and the Piscataqua …

Distributional Ecology Of The Anemone Shrimp Periclimenes Rathbunae Associating With The Sea Anemone Stichodactyla Helianthus At Tobago, Neville A. Trimm, Floyd E. Hayes

Faculty Works

We studied the distributional ecology of the anemone shrimp Periclimenes rathbunae associating with the anemone Stichodactyla helianthus in Tobago, West Indies. The shrimps occupied 83.1% of the anemones (n = 83), with mean densities of 2.8 shrimps per anemone in the population and 3.4 shrimps per occupied anemone, and up to 11 inhabiting a single anemone. Shrimp density was significantly correlated with anemone size. Because the density of shrimps was not significantly correlated with the distance to the nearest neighboring anemone or the number of anemones in a cluster, colonization appears to be related to chance or some unknown factor …