Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Coastal Monitor: Vol. 10 No. 2, John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

Stephen J. Gould’s prophetic piece, “The Golden Rule: A Proper Scale for Our Environmental Crisis”, noted that, “Patience enjoys a long pedigree of favor”, which he elaborated, “usually involves a deep understanding of the fundamental principle… rarely grasped in daily life – the effects of scale.” Scientists observe changes incessantly, in dimensions and time, from microscopic conditions of cellular biology to the inconceivable distances of galaxies and their influences on Earth.

The Coastal Monitor: Vol. 10 No. 1, John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

New Year’s Day has always been, for me, a time to reflect and project into the near future. Nature’s influence on us all certainly tops my listing with several environmental concerns. For example, the frequency and intensity of hurricanes to Long Island. A decade has passed since Superstorm Sandy re-opened the “Old Inlet” on Long Island which now has mostly naturally closed. So, the new year immediately prompts me to assess the previous year’s Hurricane Ian, a Category 4 system, with winds exceeding 150 mph, which had considerable impact in Florida, and then proceeded north resulting in over 2 inches …

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Water Quality Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

The Center for Environmental Research and Coastal Oceans Monitoring (CERCOM) visits 11 locations in the Great South Bay from Memorial Day – Labor Day to monitor dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, clarity and temperature. Students are trained to assist in CERCOM’s water quality data collection by research assistant Mr. Kyle Maurelli. This monitoring program has been conducted for the past 17 years. These parameters are critical in determining long term water quality conditions in Long Island estuaries

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Phytoplankton Identification & Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

Phytoplankton Collection Methodologies: 80 micron Plankton Tow Net with sample bottle attachment

Phytoplankton Protocol: 1.Gather Samples 2.Make one slide per sample 3.View slides using microscope connected with computer 4. Record findings using “ Row # “ and “ Column letter “ 5. Record using “ Tallies “ per species found within sample 6. Capture anything interesting “ Take Picture “ 7.Duplicate pictures taken 8.Make sure measurement of species found is taken 9. Email Jennifer Maucher at Jennifer.maucher@noaa.gov , include pictures, questions and names of the species you “guess” you found.

Daily Meteorological Report, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

Meteorological data is collected daily at CERCOM and is submitted to the National Weather Service (NWS), in Upton NY at the Brookhaven National Laboratories. Air Temperature, wind speed and direction, pH of precipitation, rain gauge, barometer pressure, cloud cover and estimated altitude by type, are data sets compiled and submitted to the NWS daily. CERCOM’s Co-Op site is the only continuous operating facility on Great South Bay.

Long Island Horseshoe Crab Network Annual Inventory Report, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

CERCOM conducts monitoring of 111 beach locations spanning from Brooklyn to Montauk during the optimal breeding season of Limulus polyphemus. These surveys span approximately 15 weeks, commencing in May and concluding in August. Each beach location is meticulously marked with GPS coordinates to ensure consistent annual revisitation. Participation in these surveys necessitates attendance at an HSC Survey training orientation, led by Mr. Key Maurelli, CERCOM's research assistant.

The Coastal Monitor: Vol. 9 No. 5, John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

There are a multitude of lessons learned from the last 3 years of the Covid-19 pandemic. But one truly stands out ...the total lack of understanding of the basic chemistry associated with the nitrogen cycle, which in Suffolk County, NY, continues to be declared as the “evil-nitrogen”. The major source of nitrogen into the water body comes from the atmosphere which is the predominate constituent of the air we breathe79% nitrogen. Nitrogen compounds contribution to eutrophication in freshwater (ponds & lakes) systems is legendary and, the concentration of nitrogen in marine waters has always been known as a limiting agent …

The Coastal Monitor: Vol. 8 No. 4, John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

The original five acre of land portion of the historic Blue Points Oyster Company is located at the southern end of Atlantic Ave in West Sayville, Islip Town, Suffolk County, New York on the shore of Great South Bay. The Center for Environmental Research and Coastal Oceans Monitoring (CERCOM) is the science field station serving Molloy College’s BCES programs in Earth & Environmental Sciences and Biology. Our mission is to provide unique hands-on educational opportunities in the physical and life sciences, in collaboration with a host of Federal, State, and local and NGO groups, to bolster students’ career path. Great …

Long Island Horseshoe Crab Network Annual Inventory Report, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

CERCOM monitors 115 beach locations from Brooklyn – Montauk during the optimal Limulus Polyphemus breeding season. These beach surveys take place for approximately 15 weeks, ranging from May - August. These beach locations are marked specifically using GPS coordinates, to assure the same location is visited each year. Students and volunteers are required to attend a HSC Survey training orientation led by CERCOM’s research assistant, Mr. Kyle Maurelli. Surveying is done around tide and moon cycles (New/Full Moon). Each site takes about 1-2 hours and data is recorded along an approximate 1 mile distance. Walking along the water’s edge the …

Daily Meteorological Report, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

Meteorological data is collected daily at CERCOM and is submitted to the National Weather Service (NWS), in Upton NY at the Brookhaven National Laboratories. Air Temperature, wind speed and direction, pH of precipitation, rain gauge, barometer pressure, cloud cover and estimated altitude by type, are data sets compiled and submitted to the NWS daily. CERCOM’s Co-Op site is the only continuous operating facility on Great South Bay.

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Water Quality Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

The Center for Environmental Research and Coastal Oceans Monitoring (CERCOM) visits 11 locations in the Great South Bay from Memorial Day – Labor Day to monitor dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, clarity and temperature. Students are trained to assist in CERCOM’s water quality data collection by research assistant Mr. Kyle Maurelli. This monitoring program has been conducted for the past 17 years. These parameters are critical in determining long term water quality conditions in Long Island estuaries

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Phytoplankton Identification & Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

Phytoplankton Collection Methodologies: 80 micron Plankton Tow Net with sample bottle attachment

Phytoplankton Protocol: 1.Gather Samples 2.Make one slide per sample 3.View slides using microscope connected with computer 4. Record findings using “ Row # “ and “ Column letter “ 5. Record using “ Tallies “ per species found within sample 6. Capture anything interesting “ Take Picture “ 7.Duplicate pictures taken 8.Make sure measurement of species found is taken 9. Email Jennifer Maucher at Jennifer.maucher@noaa.gov , include pictures, questions and names of the species you “guess” you found.

The Coastal Monitor: Vol. 7 No. 3, John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

Where has all the pollution gone? No hazardous toxic algal blooms? Incredible summer estuarine water quality! No fish kills. Banner years in recreational fisheries for Stripers and Blues and incredible numbers of Humpback whales! No going to restaurants, so greater at home use of water and septic systems! Since March 2020, drier years than most, thus reducing runoff with fertilizers and organic pesticides, resulting in reduced water contamination. So maybe, just maybe, this COVID- 19 period which has altered our collective lives forever, has also resulted in a grand experiment on what has been hiding in plain sight? That is, …

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Phytoplankton Identification & Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

Phytoplankton Collection Methodologies: 80 micron Plankton Tow Net with sample bottle attachment

Phytoplankton Protocol: 1.Gather Samples 2.Make one slide per sample 3.View slides using microscope connected with computer 4. Record findings using “ Row # “ and “ Colum letter “ 5. Record using “ Tally’s “ per species found within sample 6. Capture anything interesting “ Take Picture “ 7.Duplicate pictures taken 8.Make sure measurement of species found is taken 9. Email Jennifer Maucher at Jennifer.maucher@noaa.gov , include pictures, questions and names of the species you “guess” you found.

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Water Quality Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Kyle F. Maurelli

CERCOM Reports

CERCOM visits 11 locations in Great South Bay to monitor dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, clarity, and temperature. This monitoring program has been conducted for the past 20 years. These parameters are critical in determining long-term water quality conditions in Long Island estuaries.

The Coastal Monitor: Fall 2017/ Spring 2018, John T. Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

As I sat there in the Members Lounge at the Explorers Club; the world center for exploration, getting ready for our first Spring Saturday Science for Students @the EC lecture, I was putting together some notes on the accomplishments of our science students and CERCOM over the last few months since our last newsletter. Our visit to the Galapagos, a spectacular academic experience for our Molloy College students was at the top of my list! This was certainly not an epiphany but as I accumulated the items on this list, I was impressed not only with what we have conducted …

The Coastal Monitor: Vol 2. No 1., John Tanacredi Ph.D.

The Coastal Monitor

There is something enchanting and vibrant about viewing the coast. Every day at CERCOM we are welcomed by either a vivid sunrise, a view of the barrier island Fire Island and a blending of the sky across the horizon, ultimately flooding the Great South Bay with either clouds or sunshine that reveals the Bay’s surface as either shimmering with sunlight, or an integration of sky and water as an endless ocean. I don’t normally wax poetic but the varying sights along the near shore ocean and this embayment beckon our scientific inquisitiveness. What’s below the surface water? How do animals …

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Water Quality Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Sixto E. Portilla

CERCOM Reports

The Center for Environmental Research and Coastal Oceans Monitoring (CERCOM) visits 15 locations in Great South Bay to monitor for dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, clarity, total and fecal coliforms and temperature. This monitoring program has been conducted for the past 13 years. These parameters are critical in determining long-term water quality conditions in Long Island estuaries. Methodologies for monitoring parameters are provided by the Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater 20th Edition (1998). Criteria for determining water quality conditions in marine eco-systems are based on the type of contact (uses) people have with the water system. …

Great South Bay, Long Island, New York Summer Water Quality Monitoring Program, Cercom, Molloy University, John Tanacredi Ph.D., Sixto E. Portilla

CERCOM Reports

The Center for Environmental Research and Coastal Oceans Monitoring (CERCOM) visits 15 locations in Great South Bay to monitor for dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, clarity, total and fecal coliforms and temperature. This monitoring program has been conducted for the past 13 years. These parameters are critical in determining long-term water quality conditions in Long Island estuaries. Methodologies for monitoring parameters are provided by the Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater 20th Edition (1998). Criteria for determining water quality conditions in marine eco-systems are based on the type of contact (uses) people have with the water system. …