Trophic Dynamics of Created Salt Marshes in Coastal Alabama (2006-2007)
Metadata:
- Identification_Information:
- Citation:
- Citation_Information:
- Originator:
- Dauphin Island Sea Lab's (DISL) Marine Paleoecology Lab
- Publication_Date:
- Unpublished material
- Title:
- Trophic Dynamics of Created Salt Marshes in Coastal Alabama (2006-2007)
- Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form:
- spreadsheet
- Description:
- Abstract:
- Salt marshes provide ecosystem services that include critical habitat for commercially important crustaceans and fish, and energy export to adjacent estuarine habitats. The goal of most marsh restoration efforts along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts has been to replant the smooth cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora, and monitor its subsequent re-establishment. The assumption has been that some approximation of natural ecosystem function will follow the provision of structure at the water’s edge. This assumption generally has not been corroborated. The primary purpose of the data set provided here is to compare assemblages of mobile epifauna utilizing created salt marshes of different ages and restoration status in the northern Gulf of Mexico. As created marshes age, we predict that the assemblages utilizing them will converge on those of natural systems. We assessed community structure using flume traps at three created marshes in Coastal Alabama. We began sampling two, 20-year-old sites in June 2006: the created 2-ha Estuarium “Living” Marsh adjacent to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL), and an altered 2-ha site, Airport Marsh, located 8 km west of the Estuarium Marsh on Dauphin Island. In December 2006 we incorporated two, 2-ha areas of a created salt marsh located at the mouth of Fowl River. The Fowl River site was planted in March 2004. We concluded flume sampling at all sites in October 2007. This data set is one component of a larger, ongoing project designed to integrate assessments of habitat usage by mobile epifauna and the development of key trophic interactions within Spartina-dominated salt marshes of different ages and restoration status.
- Purpose:
- The purpose of this study was to compare assemblages of mobile epifauna among created salt marshes of different ages in the northern Gulf of Mexico.
- Time_Period_of_Content:
- Time_Period_Information:
- Range_of_Dates/Times:
- Beginning_Date:
- 20060608
- Ending_Date:
- 20071005
- Currentness_Reference:
- ground condition
- Status:
- Progress:
- Complete
- Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency:
- As needed
- Spatial_Domain:
- Description_of_Geographic_Extent:
- Data were collected via flume traps from three sites: Airport Marsh, Dauphin Island, AL; Estuarium "Living" Marsh, Dauphin Island, AL; Fowl River, Mon Luis Island, AL
- Bounding_Coordinates:
- West_Bounding_Coordinate:
- -88.12332
- East_Bounding_Coordinate:
- -88.07774
- North_Bounding_Coordinate:
- 30.44848
- South_Bounding_Coordinate:
- 30.25072
- Keywords:
- Theme:
- Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus:
- None
- Theme_Keyword:
- salt marsh
- Theme_Keyword:
- restoration
- Theme_Keyword:
- trophic dynamics
- Theme_Keyword:
- flume trap
- Theme_Keyword:
- abundance
- Theme_Keyword:
- estuary
- Theme_Keyword:
- Spartina alterniflora
- Theme:
- Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus:
- ISO 19115 Topic Categories
- Theme_Keyword:
- biota
- Theme_Keyword:
- oceans
- Theme_Keyword:
- inlandWaters
- Place:
- Place_Keyword_Thesaurus:
- None
- Place_Keyword:
- Little Dauphin Island
- Place_Keyword:
- Dauphin Island
- Place_Keyword:
- Alabama
- Place_Keyword:
- Fowl River
- Place_Keyword:
- Airport Marsh
- Place_Keyword:
- Estuarium "Living" Marsh
- Place_Keyword:
- DISL
- Place_Keyword:
- Dauphin Island Sea Lab
- Taxonomy:
- Keywords/Taxon:
- Taxonomic_Keyword_Thesaurus:
- None
- Taxonomic_Keywords:
- marine vertebrates
- Taxonomic_Keywords:
- marine invertebrates
- Taxonomic_Keywords:
- marsh vegetation
- General_Taxonomic_Coverage:
- Organisms were identified to the lowest possible taxonomic unit.
- Taxonomic_Classification:
- Taxon_Rank_Name:
- With the exception of a few juvenile specimens, all organisms were identified to species. All juveniles were identified to family or lower and did not represent a significant proportion of the total number of organisms sampled at any one site.
- Taxon_Rank_Value:
- Callinectes sapidus, Palaemonetes pugio, Fundulus grandis, Mugil curema, Gobionellus boleosoma, Farfantepenaeus aztecus, Poecilia latipinna, Fundulus similis, Adinia xenica, Fundulus jenkinsi, Evorthodus lyricus, Menippe adina, Leiostomus xanthurus, Coryphotopterus puntipectophorus, Eucinostomus lefroyi, Lutjanus griseus, Litopenaeus setiferus, Lutjanus synagris, Eleotris pisonis, Caranx hippos, Gambusia affinis, Gobiidae, Cynoscion nebulosus, Bairdiella chrysoura, Synodus foetens, Symphurus plagiusa, Sciaenidae, Sciaenops ocellatus, Mugil cephalus, Lironeca ovalis, Stellifer lanceolatus, Palaemonetes kodiakensis, Farfantepenaeus duorarum, Lagodon rhomboides, Cyprinodon variegatus, Lucania parva, Paralichthys lethostigma, Micropogonias undulatus, Fundulus pulvereus, Penaeidae, Spartina alterniflora
- Applicable_Common_Name:
- blue crab, grass shrimp, gulf killifish, white mullet, darter goby, brown shrimp, sailfin molly, longnose killifish, diamond killifish, saltmarsh topminnow, lyre goby, stone crab, spot croaker, spotted goby, mottled mojarra, gray snapper, white shrimp, lane snapper, spinycheek sleeper, crevalle jack, mosquitofish, spotted seatrout, silver perch, inshore lizardfish, blackcheek tonguefish, red drum, striped mullet, flathead mullet, isopod, stardrum, pink shrimp, pinfish, sheepshead minnow, rainwater killifish, southern flounder, atlantic croaker, bayou topminnow, smooth cordgrass
- Access_Constraints:
- Permission to access these data must be given by Dr. Richard Aronson of Florida Institute of Technology.
- Use_Constraints:
- Acknowledgment of the Marine Paleoecology Lab, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, University of South Alabama, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Alabama Center for Estuarine Studies, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is required for products developed from these data, and such acknowledgment as is standard for citation and legal practices for data source is expected by users of these data. Users should be aware that comparison with other data sets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in mapping conventions, data collection, and computer processes over time. The distributor shall not be liable for improper or incorrect use of these data, based on the description of appropriate/inappropriate uses described in the metadata document. These data are not legal documents and are not to be used as such.
- Point_of_Contact:
- Contact_Information:
- Contact_Person_Primary:
- Contact_Person:
- Richard Aronson
- Contact_Organization:
- Florida Institute of Technology
- Contact_Position:
- Principal Investigator
- Contact_Address:
- Address_Type:
- mailing and physical
- Address:
- Department of Biological Sciences
- Address:
- Florida Institute of Technology
- Address:
- 150 West University Boulevard
- City:
- Melbourne
- State_or_Province:
- FL
- Postal_Code:
- 32901
- Country:
- USA
- Contact_Voice_Telephone:
- (321) 674-8034
- Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address:
- raronson@fit.edu
- Contact_Instructions:
- Please email Dr. Aronson for further information.
- Native_Data_Set_Environment:
- Windows XP Professional, Excel SP2 2003, data sets are organized by month and range from 21 KB to 600 KB
- Cross_Reference:
- Citation_Information:
- Originator:
- Callaway, J.C.
- Publication_Date:
- 2005
- Title:
- The challenge of restoring functioning salt marsh ecosystems
- Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form:
- journal article
- Series_Information:
- Series_Name:
- Journal of Coastal Research
- Issue_Identification:
- 40
- Other_Citation_Details:
- pages 24-36
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- Data_Quality_Information:
- Attribute_Accuracy:
- Attribute_Accuracy_Report:
- A list of sources used to identify species is included in the "Entity and Attribute Information" section of this metadata record.
- Logical_Consistency_Report:
- not applicable
- Completeness_Report:
- Biweekly sampling was conducted via flume traps from 20060608 to 20071005. No substantial lapses in data collection exist.
- Lineage:
- Process_Step:
- Process_Description:
- Biweekly sampling was conducted via flume traps from 20060608 to 20071005. Flume traps extended 4 m into the marsh from the water-vegetation interface. All sampling took place within bands of the smooth cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora. PVC gates fitted with a netted cod ends were dropped into place at the entrance of each flume trap during peak high water and all organisms were collected during the subsequent period of low water. All organisms were immediately placed in a cooler for transport to the laboratory. All samples were stored in a freezer prior to processing.
- Process_Date:
- 20071005
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- Entity_and_Attribute_Information:
- Detailed_Description:
- Entity_Type:
- Entity_Type_Label:
- Salt Marsh
- Entity_Type_Definition:
- Excel attribute table provides species abundances and sizes at three salt marshes in Coastal Alabama from 20060608 to 20071005.
- Entity_Type_Definition_Source:
- ADCNR and ACES
- Attribute:
- Attribute_Label:
- Flume #
- Attribute_Definition:
- Each flume trap has a unique code name. The first two letters of the code name identify the geographical location: (1) APM: Airport Marsh, Dauphin Island, AL; (2) BM: Estuarium "Living" Marsh, Dauphin Island, AL; (3) FR: Fowl River, Mon Luis Island, AL. Subsites were established to analyze within-site variability at each marsh. “A” and “B” refer to subsites at APM and BM. “W” and “E” refer to subsites at Fowl River. Two flume traps, designated “1” or “2”, were deployed at each subsite.
- Attribute_Definition_Source:
- DISL: Marine Paleoecology Lab
- Attribute_Domain_Values:
- Unrepresentable_Domain:
- Each flume trap bears a unique alphanumeric designation.
- Attribute:
- Attribute_Label:
- Water Level
- Attribute_Definition:
- measured in cm
- Attribute_Definition_Source:
- DISL: Marine Paleoecology Lab
- Attribute_Domain_Values:
- Unrepresentable_Domain:
- values cannot be negative
- Attribute:
- Attribute_Label:
- Species
- Attribute_Definition:
- Identified using: (1) Fahay, MP (2007) Early stages of fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean (Davis Strait, Southern Greenland and Flemish Cap to Cape Hatteras). Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia; (2) Heard, RW (1982) Guide to common tidal marsh invertebrates of the Northeastern Gulf of MexicoMississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium MASGP-79-004); (3) Hoese, HD and Moore, RH (1998) Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas; (4) Hopkins, TS and Valentine, JF (1989) An illustrated guide with key to selected benthic invertebrate fauna of the Northern Gulf of Mexico. 20th Century Printing Company, Mobile, Alabama and; (5) Williams, AB (1984) Shrimps, lobsters, and crabs of the Atlantic Coast of the Eastern United States, Maine to Florida. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
- Attribute_Definition_Source:
- see above references
- Attribute_Domain_Values:
- Unrepresentable_Domain:
- Values should include marine vertebrates and invertebrates found in estuarine habitats in the northern Gulf of Mexico. No invasive species were identified during the sampling period.
- Attribute:
- Attribute_Label:
- Abundance
- Attribute_Definition:
- number of individuals collected
- Attribute_Definition_Source:
- DISL: Marine Paleoecology Lab
- Attribute_Domain_Values:
- Unrepresentable_Domain:
- values cannot be negative
- Attribute:
- Attribute_Label:
- Length 1 and Length 2
- Attribute_Definition:
- Species Length definitions: Species length definitions: Callinectes sapidus: Length 1=lateral spine tip to lateral spine tip, Length 2=lateral spine base to lateral spine base; Palaemonetes pugio: Length 1= total length, Length 2 = total length; Lironeca ovalis: Length 1= total length, Length 2 = total length; all fish species: Length 1=total length, Length 2=standard length
- Attribute_Definition_Source:
- DISL: Marine Paleoecology Lab
- Attribute_Domain_Values:
- Unrepresentable_Domain:
- values cannot be negative
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- Distribution_Information:
- Distributor:
- Contact_Information:
- Contact_Organization_Primary:
- Contact_Organization:
- Dauphin Island Sea Lab
- Contact_Position:
- Data Management Specialist
- Contact_Address:
- Address_Type:
- mailing and physical
- Address:
- 101 Bienville Blvd.
- City:
- Dauphin Island
- State_or_Province:
- Al
- Postal_Code:
- 36528
- Country:
- USA
- Contact_Voice_Telephone:
- 251-861-2141
- Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address:
- metadata@disl.org
- Hours_of_Service:
- 8-5:00 CST
- Contact_Instructions:
- Please email the metadata specialist for further information.
- Resource_Description:
- Trophic dynamics of created salt marshes in coastal Alabama by Richard Aronson
- Distribution_Liability:
- The Dauphin Island Sea Lab's Marine Paleoecology Lab makes no warranty regarding these data, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. The Marine Paleoecology Lab cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data, nor as a result of the failure of these data to function on a particular system.
- Technical_Prerequisites:
- Customer must have software capable of reading Microsoft Excel SP2 2003 worksheets.
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- Metadata_Reference_Information:
- Metadata_Date:
- 20080506
- Metadata_Contact:
- Contact_Information:
- Contact_Organization_Primary:
- Contact_Organization:
- Dauphin Island Sea Lab
- Contact_Position:
- data management specialist
- Contact_Address:
- Address_Type:
- mailing and physical
- Address:
- 101 Bienville Blvd.
- City:
- Dauphin Island
- State_or_Province:
- AL
- Postal_Code:
- 36528
- Country:
- USA
- Contact_Voice_Telephone:
- 251-861-2141
- Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address:
- metadata@disl.org
- Hours_of_Service:
- 8-5:00 CST
- Contact_Instructions:
- Please email the metadata specialist for further information.
- Metadata_Standard_Name:
- FGDC Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
- Metadata_Standard_Version:
- FGDC-STD-001-1998
- Metadata_Access_Constraints:
- none
- Metadata_Use_Constraints:
- none
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