Factors conferring resilience of eelgrass (Zostera marina) to destruction from green crabs (Carcinus maenas) on Mt. Desert Island
Taylor AR, Farrell AE, Disney JE. 2018. Factors conferring resilience of eelgrass (Zostera marina) to destruction from green crabs (Carcinus maenas) on Mt. Desert Island. MDI Biological Laboratory. Salisbury Cove, ME
From the introduction: "Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is an aquatic flowering plant occurring in widespread meadows in sub‐tidal areas along the coast of Maine. Eelgrass beds provide important habitat for a diversity of marine species, and serve as a nursery for a variety of juvenile fish including winter flounder, hake, pollock, and cod, as well as larval lobsters, mussels, and crabs. Other essential ecosystem services this species provides include: curbing erosion by stabilizing bottom sediments, improving water quality, and sequestering carbon. In Frenchman Bay, Maine, eelgrass has experienced significant declines over the last few decades. At Hadley Point in 2008, the bottom coverage was estimated at 11% of historic 1996 coverage based on aerial photographs taken by the Maine Department of Marine Resources."
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Taylor, Ashley; Farrell, Anna; Disney, Jane
- Date of Issue
- 2018-03-06
- Publisher
- MDI Biological Laboratory
- Units
- ACAD
- Keywords
- islands, marine