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Utilizing Existing Monitoring Data to Characterize Estuarine Habitat: A Conceptual Approach to Inform Restoration Prioritization and Effectiveness Assessments
Citation:
McCarthy, E., L. Smith, J. Bousquin, L. Harwell, J. Harvey, AND Kevin Summers. Utilizing Existing Monitoring Data to Characterize Estuarine Habitat: A Conceptual Approach to Inform Restoration Prioritization and Effectiveness Assessments. 2021 NALMS National Monitoring Conference, Virtual, April 19 - 23, 2021.
Impact/Purpose:
This presentation will demonstrate the utility of using NARS data with local monitoring data to assess ecological suitability for restoration of estuarine habitats to support multiple ecologically and socially important species.
Description:
Existing coastal monitoring data can be used for socio-ecological assessments to inform adaptive management actions aimed at maintaining and improving ecological functions and accommodating human use. Prioritizing estuarine restoration sites should incorporate the potential ability of sites to maintain ecological processes, support viable native populations, and provide societal benefits. We present a conceptual approach that leverages harmonization and extrapolation of existing monitoring data to provide spatial assessments needed to prioritize restoration and evaluate restoration effectiveness in estuarine resources. The approach focuses on habitat suitability assessments for locally and ecologically important estuarine species in the Gulf of Mexico region. For each species of interest, a composite measure of ecological suitability is proposed based on a set of identified habitat suitability thresholds, trophic relationships and social relevance. These species-specific composite measures can be combined to evaluate the influence of estuarine restoration at different spatial scales to inform prioritization and maximize ecological and social outcomes. Baseline information provided by these assessments could be used by natural resource managers to track improvements in estuarine habitat condition for evaluating restoration effectiveness over time.
