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Nekton use of oyster occupied habitats in two coastal ponds in Rhode Island
Citation:
Ayvazian, S., S. Grabbert, A. Gerber-Williams, D. Cobb, AND C. Strobel. Nekton use of oyster occupied habitats in two coastal ponds in Rhode Island. Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) 24th Biennial Conference, Providence, Rhode Island, November 05 - 09, 2017.
Impact/Purpose:
This study is the first in the New England region to examine a wide variety of oyster related seascapes to document responses of the fish and invertebrate community to restored oyster reefs, aquaculture settings, native oyster beds with and without adjacent seagrass and associated bare sediment habitats. Comparing our results with previous studies points to the future need to carefully define biophysical conditions when proposing oyster reef restoration, including a monitoring plan to examine the trajectory of response of the fauna to the restored reef, and changes in the reef structure and function with time.
Description:
Restoration of oyster habitat aims to expand or preserve ecosystem services including increased secondary production of the community. We compare density, biomass, and average standing stock of nitrogen and carbon in seasonal fish and invertebrate collections in Ninigret and Green Hill Pond, in Rhode Island, USA. In Ninigret Pond, we sampled restored oyster reef and oyster aquaculture sites and associated bare sediment sites. Fish and invertebrate density and biomass was significantly higher at restored oyster reef and oyster aquaculture sites than bare sediment sites, with no distinction between the two oyster habitats. Species diversity and richness was greater at the aquaculture site than restored oyster reef and control sites. Aquaculture gear provides structure to attract nekton and may be functionally equivalent to oyster habitat. In Green Hill Pond, we sampled a native oyster bed, a native oyster bed adjacent to seagrass, and bare sediment site. The bare sediment site produced a higher density, species richness and diversity than either oyster habitat. This counterintuitive finding may be a result of increased benthic algal biomass found at the bare sediment site driving secondary production, and the adjacent salt marsh habitat providing functional redundancy. Coastal zone managers interested in restoring the ecological functionality of a complex oyster reef will benefit from understanding the biophysical properties of the seascape.