Marine Biology Commons^™

Environmental Influences On Juvenile Fish Abundances In A River-Dominated Coastal System, Laure Carassou, Brian Dzwonkowski, Frank J. Hernandez, Jr., Sean P. Powers, William M. Graham, Kyeong Park, John Mareska

University Faculty and Staff Publications

We investigated the influence of climatic and environmental factors on variations in juvenile abundances of marine fishes in a river-dominated coastal system of the north-central Gulf of Mexico, where an elevated primary productivity sustains fisheries of high economic importance. Fish were collected monthly with an otter trawl at three stations near Mobile Bay from 1982 to 2007. Fish sizes were used to isolate juvenile stages within the data set, and monthly patterns in juvenile fish abundance and size were then used to identify seasonal peaks for each species. The average numbers of juvenile fish collected during these seasonal peaks in …

Invasive Species Management And Buffer Outreach On Goss Farm, Rye, Nh, Rockingham County Conservation District

PREP Reports & Publications

The Goss Farm was permanently protected in November of 2010 with assistance from the USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP) and is located directly adjacent to the Awcomin Salt Marsh, in Rye, New Hampshire. The Town of Rye Conservation Commission owns the land, and the RCCD holds the conservation easement on the property. The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) provided $9,930 in funding assistance to support the Rockingham County Conservation District in its partnership capacity with the Rye Conservation Commission and other natural resource agencies to complete outreach, to plan and complete integrated pest …

Quantifying Rates Of Autocompaction In The Pearl River Marsh, Louisiana, Jeremiah Nicholas Prouhet

Master's Theses

Annual rates of shallow autocompaction (< 1 m) were calculated in the upper ~one meter of sediment from six cores of a transect in the Pearl River Marsh (PRM), Louisiana, in order to determine the most significant sedimentary property controlling this process. Compaction-free wedge cores were sub-sampled at one centimeter intervals to collect the following data: age control, using 137Cs and 210Pb, and sedimentary variables, specifically, particulate organic carbon, bulk density, median grain size, porosity, and water content. An upper and an underlying sedimentary unit (named the 137Cs and 210Pb units) were defined between radiometric datum levels, and their sedimentary properties were statistically tested for significant differences using the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test. Rates of autocompaction were calculated from the model of Williams (2003), and both rates of autocompaction and sedimentation were tested for significant differences between the upper and lower sedimentary units.

The upper unit in the six cores generally had lower bulk density, higher water content, higher porosity, and higher particulate organic carbon than the underlying unit, but with some interesting exceptions. Additionally, annual autocompaction and sedimentation rates were greatest in the overlying unit at stations PR02 (0.39 ± 0.05 cm/y) and PR05 (0.42 ± 0.03 cm/y) and greatest in the underlying unit at stations PR02 (0.22 ± 0.08 cm/y) and PR03 (0.18 ± 0.06 cm/y). Based on Spearman correlations, rates of autocompaction were most strongly correlated to and influenced by rates of sedimentation rather …

Phytoplankton Abundance And Species Composition In Relation To Environmental Paramenters In Coastal Mississippi Waters, Luz Karime Molina

Master's Theses

Phytoplankton pigments from Coastal Mississippi waters were measured to determine the spatial and temporal distributions and composition of phytoplankton communities. Concentration of phytoplankton pigments were analyzed using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and the compositional changes in phytoplankton communities were determined with CHEMTAX 1.95. Surface water was collected for two years (September 2007-November 2009) at three sampling sites on a monthly basis. The stations were located at the Bay of St. Louis (station 1), the Mississippi Sound (station 4) and the Mississippi Bight (station 8), following a salinity gradient. A time series of the observations documented the variability of different …

Benthic Habitat Characterization For The South Florida Ocean Measurement Facility (Sfomf), David S. Gilliam, Brian K. Walker

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Reports

This report summarizes the distribution and relative abundance of two stony coral species (Acropora cervicornis and Acropora palmata) currently listed as threatened under the US Endangered Species Act (ESA) (Federal Register/Vol. 71, No. 129/Thursday, July 6, 2006 / Rules and Regulations, http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2006-07-06/pdf/06-6017.pdf) and seven additional stony coral species which have been petitioned for listing as endangered or threatened under the ESA (Agaricia lamarcki, Dendrogyra cylindrus, Dichocoenia stokesii, Montastraea annularis, Montastraea faveolata, Montastraea franksi, and Mycetophyllia ferox) (Federal Register/Vol. 75, No. 27/Wednesday, February 10, 2010/Proposed Rules, http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/fr/fr75-6616.pdf). This report also summarizes the abundance and distribution …

Restoring Salt Marsh And Functions To Newly Acquired Shoreline In North Mill Pond, Portsmouth, David M. Burdick

PREP Reports & Publications

A berm of construction debris used to fill salt marsh and steepen the shoreline along North Mill Pond many decades ago was removed in 2010 after the land was deeded to the City. Removal of the berm reestablished regular tidal flooding to over 2,400 ft2 of tidal marsh. From 2009 to 2011, the fifth grade classes at New Franklin School learned about the project and planted mussels, shrubs and marsh plants at the site. Plant survival was excellent in the low marsh (94%) and good in the high marsh (77%). By September 2011 (Year Two) plant cover increased to 42% …

Front Matter

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Minutes, Business Meeting, 36th Annual Meeting, Southeastern Fishes Council, Southeastern Fishes Council

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Population Status And Environmental Associations Of The Rare Striated Darter, Etheostoma Striatum, Andrew C. Abernathy, Hayden T. Mattingly

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Number 53 (December 2011), Southern Fishes Council

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

(December 2011) - Population Status and Environmental Associations of the Rare Striated Darter, Etheostoma striatulum. By Andrew C. Abernathy and Hayden T. Mattingly

Conservation Status of the Longhead Darter, Percina macrocephala, in Kinniconick Creek, Kentucky. By David A. Eisenhour, Audrey M. Richter and Joshua M. Shiering

First Observation of a Natural Hybrid Between Endangered Roanoke Logperch (Percina rex) and Chainback Darter (Percina navisense). By James H. Roberts

Minutes, Business Meeting, 36th Annual Meeting, Southeastern Fishes Council

2010 Treasurer's Report for the Southeastern Fishes Council

Conservation Status Of The Longhead Darter, Percina Macrocephala, In Kinnicock Creek, Kentucky, David A. Eisenhour, Audrey M. Richter, Joshua M. Shiering

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

2010 Treasurer's Report For The Southeastern Fishes Council

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

First Observation Of A Natural Hybrid Between Endangered Roanoke Logperch (Percina Rex) And Chainback Darter (Percina Navisense), James H. Roberts

Southeastern Fishes Council Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Thermal Tolerance Of Age-0 Gulf Of Mexico Striped Bass (Morone Saxatilis): Ontogenetic And Genetic Effects, Corey Robert Anderson

Master's Theses

Striped bass, Morone saxatilis, were historically abundant in the Gulf of Mexico region but were largely extirpated from most Gulf rivers by the early 1960s. Since 1967 hatchery stocking has supported populations in Mississippi rivers and to date there is no evidence of natural reproduction. Intolerance of striped bass to high water temperature is a potential factor negatively impacting Gulf striped bass survival and reproductive fitness, and may be a limiting factor to reintroduction of the species in Mississippi. This work contributed to restoration efforts by establishing molecular tools necessary for genetic monitoring of striped bass restoration, and evaluating …

The Use Of Computed Tomography To Measure Biogenic Structures In Recently Hypoxic And Normoxic Sediments On The Louisiana Continental Shelf, Valerie Ann Hartman

Master's Theses

Over the past 60 years, seasonal hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico has occurred with increased severity and over a greater area. To determine if biogenic structures in the northern Gulf of Mexico vary in response to hypoxic stress, the seafloor on the continental shelf of Louisiana was analyzed during the spring and fall of 2009 at four provinces of similar sediment type that differ in recent history of bottom water oxygen concentration. Subcores were analyzed by computed tomography (CT) to determine the number, diameter, length, volume, surface area, and depth of biogenic burrow structures in sediments where biogenic …

Brody-Bertalanffy Growth Curves From Tag And Recapture Studies On Cabezon (Scorpaenichthys Marmoratus) And Gopher Rockfish (Sebastes Carnatus) Of The Central Coast, Christie Yorke

Biological Sciences

No abstract provided.

Field Ecology Patterns Of High Latitude Coral Communities, Kristi A. Foster

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Some climate models predict that, within the next 30-50 years, sea surface temperatures (SSTs) will frequently exceed the current thermal tolerance of corals (Fitt et al. 2001; Hughes et al. 2003; Hoegh-Guldberg et al. 2007). A potential consequence is that mass coral bleaching may take place (i) during warm El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events which are predicted to occur in some regions more frequently than the current 3-7 year periodicity (Hoegh-Guldberg 1999; Sheppard 2003) or (ii) perhaps as often as annually or biannually if corals and their symbionts are unable to acclimate to the higher SSTs (Donner et al. 2005, …

Protecting A Portion Of The Beaver Dam Heath Conservation Focus Area And Initiating Innovative Conservation Financing In Berwick, Maine, Great Works Regional Land Trust

PREP Reports & Publications

This project permanently protected 28 acres in the Beaver Dam Heath Conservation Focus Area through a bargain sale of the fee simple interest. The Grants Meadow III parcel is 85% wetland. The remainder of the upland lies along Diamond Hill Road with adequate frontage for 2-3 house lots. This project involved outreach to the Town of Berwick for project funding to match the PREP funding awarded. GWRLT also received NAWCA funds to complete the project.

Promoting Land Conservation In The Coastal Watershed Through Local Faces, Special Places, Brian Hart

PREP Reports & Publications

The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership provided nearly $3,300.00 to support the Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire’s (SELTNH) promotion of donated conservation easements in the coastal watershed of Rockingham County. The Southeast Land Trust produced three short web-friendly videos, explaining land conservation from the perspective of a tree farmer, vineyard owner, and a community leader. In addition, the Land Trust hosted two workshops in Kingston and Epping for landowners interested in learning more about the tax and financial benefits of land conservation. Workshop invitations were mailed to more than 1,200 current use landowners within the region. Twenty-two landowners attended the …

Potential Impacts Of The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill On Large Pelagic Fishes, Sarah Frias-Torres, Charles R. Bostater

Ocean Engineering and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Biogeographical analyses provide insights on how the Deepwater Horizon oil spill impacted large pelagic fishes. We georeferenced historical ichthyoplankton surveys and published literature to map the spawning and larval areas of bluefin tuna, swordfish, blue marlin and whale shark sightings in the Gulf of Mexico with daily satellite-derived images detecting surface oil. The oil spill covered critical areas used by large pelagic fishes. Surface oil was detected in 100% of the northernmost whale shark sightings, in 32.8 % of the bluefin tuna spawning area and 38 % of the blue marlin larval area. No surface oil was detected in the …