An ecological survey of Alazan Bay, Texas. Volume 1.

Date

1984

Authors

Cornelius, S.E.

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institite, Texas A&I University

Abstract

The Black Drum Alazan Bay Project was developed as a multidisciplinary investigation of the relationship between a very abundant and commercially important finfish and the geomorphology, hydrography, and climate of the aby considered to be the finfish's principal center of distribution. The project was conceived by Dr. Henry Hildebrand of the Biology Department, TAIU, and refined into a grant proposal to the Caesar Kleberg Foundation by Drs. R.B. Davis, Director of Research; John Russell, Ray Suhm, and James Norwine of the Geology and Geography Department, and Dr. Hildebrand. Field work began in 1975 and continued through 1979. The basic premise was that black drum , Pogonius cromis, populations play an integral role in maintaining the environmental stability of the area and that drum ecology and the geomorphology Alazan Bay are interrelated. The results of these studies have permitted a much better understanding of these and other ecological relationships in the Baffin Bay System. This bulletin is the first of a series planned for presentation of the overall research results. It covers abundance and distribution of 5 biotic communities examined during 1978-1979. These include the phytoplankton, zooplankton, macrozooplankton, benthos, and nekton. An analysis of physical conditions existing in Alazan Bay during this period and how they impacted the biota is presented.

Description

163 pages

Keywords

ecology, bays, surveys

Citation