Special Reports [SBU SOMAS]

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The School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) at Stony Brook University is the the State University of New York's center for marine and atmospheric research, education, and public service. Research at SoMAS explores solutions to a variety of issues facing the world today ranging from local problems affecting the area around Long Island to processes that are impacting the entire globe. SoMAS became a school at Stony Brook University in 2007, but existed for more than 40 years as the Marine Sciences Research Center (MSRC) and the Institute for Terrestrial and Planetary Atmospheres (ITPA). In the mid-1970's MSRC/SoMAS began to internally publish several report series as a means of more rapidly reporting the results of its research than would typically occur in the standard refereed scientific literature. Much of the research described in these reports, however, was also eventually published in scientific journals, proceedings and books. These Special Reports range from 1975 - 2008.

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Now showing 1 - 5 of 96
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    North Shore bays benthic mapping : groundtruth studies : final report to NY Department of Environmental Conservation
    (Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University, 2008) Marine Sciences Research Center; Cerrato, Robert Michael; Holt, Lee; Bubolo, Nicole Justine; Chang, Sherry; Larese. Stephen; Reigert, Maria; Torre, F. Jason; Preservation Department, Stony Brook University Libraries
    from the abstract, "We combined high-resolution remote sensing techniques with detailed study of the physical and faunal characteristics at point locations in different seafloor environments within the Oyster Bay Cold Spring Harbor Complex, the Huntington-Northport Bay Complex, and Port Jefferson Harbor, including Conscience Bay. High-resolution backscatter and bathymetric maps created by side scan and multibeam sonar surveys were used to classify the sea bed into provinces. Samples for macrofauna and sediment properties were collected within each province to provide "ground truth" for the acoustic maps. Oyster Bay, Huntington Harbor, and Port Jefferson Harbor were sampled at 40, 38, and 50 locations, respectively, with two replicate samples at each location. Samples were processed for organic content, grain-size, and fauna. Multivariate analysis was used to identify biotopes, i.e., areas of uniform sedimentary and faunal characteristics. Results indicated that acoustic mapping of the estuary floor provided a useful foundation from which to map benthic biotopes, that ground truth sampling will require a greater effort than that carried out in the present study in order to collect enough species to adequately characterize community structure, and that although most areas in the bays contained viable benthic communities, all three study areas showed some evidence of stress."
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    Nearshore fish communities of the mid-Hudson River estuary, 1985-2000
    (Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University, 2001) Marine Sciences Research Center; Hurst, Thomas P.; Conover, David O.; Bubolo, Nicole Justine; Chang, Sherry; Larese. Stephen; Reigert, Maria; Torre, F. Jason; Preservation Department, Stony Brook University Libraries
    from the abstract, "Two hundred-eleven seine hauls were completed in the 2000 young-of-the-year (YOY) striped bass survey in the Hudson River. A total of 4,830 YOY striped bass were captured, resulting in a geometric mean catch per unit effort (CPUE) of7.2 fish/haul. The Hudson River index ofYOY striped bass abundance, based on the geometric mean CPUE of the 6-week survey, was 3 .2 fish/haul. The index of abundance was the third lowest since the survey began in 1980. YOY striped bass grew at an estimated 0.45mm/day between mid-July and late-September. Catch rates of other anadromous fish, American shad, alewife and blueback herring, were also below average. Composition of the catch was generally similar to that observed in previous years with Atlantic silversides, Atlantic menhaden, striped bass and white perch being the most abundant species in the catch. Catch rates of some species may have been influenced by an unusual hydrographic regime in which salinity was below average early in the sampling season (July-September) and above average late in the season."
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    Baseline sedimentary and faunal characteristics of potential shell planting and references sites in Great South Bay
    (Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University, 2000) Marine Sciences Research Center; Maher, Nicole P.; Cerrato, Robert Michael; Bubolo, Nicole Justine; Chang, Sherry; Larese. Stephen; Reigert, Maria; Torre, F. Jason; Preservation Department, Stony Brook University Libraries
    from the introduction, ". . .The purpose of this study was to establish baseline sedimentary and faunal community characteristics at several sites in Great South Bay in anticipation of a possible shell planting, habitat enhancement project. Kassner (1997) has proposed to plant shell material in Great South Bay, in an attempt to ameliorate declining M mercenaria abundances. The introduction of shell to an area of bay bottom that meets the other three sedimentary characteristics required for good hard clam habitat could enhance the bottom to create suitable habitat for hard clam growth. . ."
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    An annotated bibliography of the natural resources of the Peconic Estuary and adjacent locations on Eastern Long Island, NY : a literature survey submitted to the Peconic Estuary Program (PEP)
    (Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University, 2000) Marine Sciences Research Center; Ahrens, Michael Joseph; Bubolo, Nicole Justine; Chang, Sherry; Larese. Stephen; Reigert, Maria; Torre, F. Jason; Preservation Department, Stony Brook University Libraries
    from the introduction, ". . .This bibliography contains 1317 references of printed or electronic information relevant to the Peconic Estuary and eastern Long Island. It lists published books, maps, reports, and journal articles. It also contains a considerable amount of unpublished ("gray") literature, like Masters theses and Ph.D. dissertations, memoranda, letters, inhouse reports, government documents, manuscripts and data sheets. The majority of references (>80%) are annotated and have been checked for accuracy. If bibliographic information was adopted from another reference, the citing source is noted. Where available, the location at which the respective reference was found, is indicated. Some references were photocopied, whole or in part, and handed over to the Peconic Estuary Program (PEP) office, Suffolk Department of Health Service, Riverhead, NY. If a copy of a reference was filed, this is indicated by "PHOTOCOPY MADE" in the comments section. . ."
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    Impact of Little Pike's Inlet on tides and salinity in Moriches Bay : final report
    (Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University, 1994) Marine Sciences Research Center; Conley, Daniel C.; Bubolo, Nicole Justine; Chang, Sherry; Larese. Stephen; Reigert, Maria; Torre, F. Jason; Preservation Department, Stony Brook University Libraries
    from the conclusions, "Salinity and tides have been measured in Moriches Bay following the breach of December 1992 that resulted in the formation of Little Pike's Inlet. These measurements continued through the subsequent closure of this inlet in September 1993 and finished in early January 1994. These measurements allowed for the detection of some of the physical effects of such a breach on the environment in Moriches Bay. The first such effect was an increase in the transmission of ocean tides into the bay. At it's peak, the inlet permitted an additional 30% of the ocean tidal range to be transmitted into the bay. This increase was divided relatively evenly between higher highs and lower lows with a slight decrease (0.02 m) in the mean relative water level in the bay. These changes in tidal elevations in the bay did indeed result in a change in the salinity in the bay although this change was not constant throughout the bay. At Forge Point, directly north of the inlet, the salinity dropped 1.42%0 in the four months following the closure of the inlet. At the opposite end of Moriches Bay near the junction with Great South Bay, the salinity at Forge Point exhibited no significant change suggesting a geographic limit to the effects of Little Pike's Inlet."
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