Nearshore Epibenthic Vegetative Cover in Southern Biscayne Bay DRAFT
Christian J, Meeder JF, Renshaw A, Southeastern Environmental Research Program. 2004. Nearshore Epibenthic Vegetative Cover in Southern Biscayne Bay DRAFT. Florida
In anticipation of a large-scale wetland restoration project for the Biscayne Bay area, surveys were performed within Biscayne Bay, Manatee Bay, and Barnes Sound to determine the benthic community structure within the areas that would be affected by the restoration. The Braun-Blanquet method was used to survey benthic vegetation and sessile organisms at 497 sites throughout the three water bodies. In general, seagrass dominated communities were found to shift to green algae dominated communities moving from inshore to offshore, as water deepened and sediment depth decreased. The introduction of increased freshwater flow to the Biscayne Bay area could affect distributions of the benthic community, and increase the abundance of more freshwater tolerant species, such as Ruppia.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Christian, Juliet; Meeder, John; Renshaw, Amy; Southeastern Environmental Research Program
- Date of Issue
- 2004-05-14
- Units
- BISC
- Keywords
- Algae, hard bottom communities, marine habitat, Seagrass, shoreline , Survey