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SHALLOW HABITATS IN TWO RHODE ISLAND SYSTEMS: I. PATTERNS OF FAUNAL BIOMASS AND DENSITY
Citation:
Cicchetti, G, L Meng, AND M Chintala. SHALLOW HABITATS IN TWO RHODE ISLAND SYSTEMS: I. PATTERNS OF FAUNAL BIOMASS AND DENSITY. Presented at Estuarine Research Federation 16th Biennial Conference, St. Petersburg, FL, November 4-8, 2001.
Description:
Shallow aquatic habitats are particularly vulnerable to human impacts. To understand the resource value of these habitats, we quantified density and biomass of fishes and invertebrates in an estuarine cove (Coggeshall Cove, RI) and in a coastal lagoon (Ninigret Pond, RI). We sampled Coggeshall during the summers of 1999 and 2000 from the high marsh to the deepest areas with drop traps, video cameras, and trawls for nekton, as well as with cores for infauna. We sampled Ninigret in 2000 using drop traps. Densities of fishes, crabs, and shrimp were high in all sampled habitats at both areas. At Coggeshall, all habitats seemed important to fish populations at different stages of tide, and several species used every major habitat in the cove. At Ninigret, all sampled habitats (macroalgal, unvegetated, and seagrass) were characterized by high fish densities. Based on fish use, we cannot conclude that anyone of these shallow habitats was more critical than others for aquatic resource protection. We suggest that, as value to fishes, habitats in these shallow systems should be considered integral parts of a whole. Shallow areas, when functioning properly with adequate oxygen, may have an intrinsic high value to nekton as nursery, refuge, and forage.