North Shore bays benthic mapping : groundtruth studies : final report to NY Department of Environmental Conservation
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Issue Date
2008
Authors
Marine Sciences Research Center
Cerrato, Robert Michael
Holt, Lee
Publisher
Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook University
Keywords
Marine Sciences. , Atmospheric Sciences. , Bays > New York (State) > Long Island. , Benthos > New York (State) > Long Island > Remote sensing . , Ecological mapping > New York (State) > Long Island. , Underwater acoustics. , New York (State). Dept. of Environmental Conservation.
Abstract
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."
Description
184 leaves : ill. (some col.), maps ; 28 cm. Includes bibliographical references.