Trophic Organization in Coastal Systems

ISBN-13: 9780849311109 / Angielski / Twarda / 2002 / 408 str.

Robert J. Livingston; Livingston J. Livingston

Opis

Derived from an unprecedented research effort covering over 70 field years of field data in a series of studies, Trophic Organization in Coastal Systems represents an alternative approach to coastal research that has been successfully applied to coastal resource management issues. This unique book is based upon a sequence of long-term, interdisciplinary studies of a series of coastal regions in the NE Gulf of Mexico that include nutrient loading, habitat definition, quantified collections of organisms from microbes to fishes, and the determination of the trophic organization that defines the processes that shape the productivity of these areas.
A multidisciplinary team of marine scientists, chemists, physical oceanographers, geologists, hydrologists, engineers, experimental biologists, and taxonomists have created a singular database of changes in a series of Gulf of Mexico coastal systems. This field information, together with field and laboratory experimentation, is integrated with the scientific literature to advance our understanding of how coastal food webs work. The central focus is on the relationship of primary production in the form of species-specific phytoplankton communities with associated food webs of coastal systems and the relationship of tropho-dynamic processes to long-term changes (natural and polluted) in such areas. The impacts of phytoplankton blooms on trophic organization is elucidated.
The author, a renowned marine scientist, provides detailed knowledge of the processes that drive coastal ecosystems. He presents an in-depth discussion of a hierarchy of cyclical periods associated with the formation and development of aquatic food webs. Trophic Organization in Coastal Systems will be particularly useful to those involved in research related to the importance of aquatic food webs to an understanding of how aquatic systems function. The principles and processes of trophic organization presented here can serve as a valuable model for research in other regions of the world.

Spis treści

INTRODUCTIONFood Webs and the Ecosystem ParadigmTrophodynamic Aspects of Ecosystem ProcessesFood Web Ecology in Coastal Systems Trophic Studies in the NE Gulf of MexicoTHE NORTHEAST GULF OF MEXICOBackground Drainage Basins Coastal HabitatsEstuarine/Coastal Systems of the NE Gulf Perdido Bay System Pensacola Bay System Choctawhatchee Bay System Apalachicola Bay System Apalachee Bay SystemLONG-TERM STUDIES: NE GULF OF MEXICOField ProgramsTROPHIC ORGANIZATION IN GULF COASTAL SYSTEMSApproaches to the Study of Trophodynamics Field Collections The Trophic UnitFeeding VariabilitySpatial Features of Trophic Response Temporal Features of Trophic ResponseInadequacy of Species-level Designations in Ecological StudiesTrophic Level DesignationsTrophic Unit Transformation STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS OF TROPHIC ORGANIZATIONInfaunal Macroinvertebrates Descriptive Field Data Habitat Changes Spatial Variation Temporal Variation Predation experimentsPhysical Habitat Changes, Predation, and Food Web RelationshipsEffects of Toxic Agents on Trophic RelationshipsLong-Term Changes of Trophic Organization Habitat Background Biological Trends Trophic Relationships Dynamic Regression Models Long-Term TrendsCOASTAL PHYTOPLANKTON ORGANIZATION Freshwater Runoff and Primary ProductionThe Perdido Drainage System Seasonal and Interannual River Flow Patterns Nutrient Loading Nutrient Concentration Gradients Nutrient Limitation Sediment/Water Quality Phytoplankton Changes in Perdido Bay Phytoplankton Changes in Wolf BayFOOD WEB RESPONSE TO PLANKTON BLOOMS IntroductionHabitat Trends in Perdido Bay Biomass Distribution and Species Richness Trophic Organization Future Analytical DirectionsCOMPARATIVE ASPECTS OF TROPHIC ORGANIZATIONOverfishing and Pollution in the NE GulfSpatial Distribution of Food Web Components Spatial Patterns of Primary Productivity Herbivores Omnivores C1 Carnivores C2 Carnivores C3 Carnivores Comparative Aspects of Trophic Organization Temporal Distribution of Trophic Units Baywide Trends of Invertebrates and Fishes Trophic IndicesREGULATION AND FOOD WEB FACTORSPulp Mill Effluents and Food Web Dynamics (Apalachee Bay)Phytoplankton Organization in Apalachee Bay, FloridaMercury in the Penobscot River-Estuary, MaineScientific LiteratureFood Web Dynamics of Mercury in the Penobscot SystemTROPHIC ORGANIZATION AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENTResource Management: the Promise and the RealityThe Apalachicola ExperimentFreshwater Flows and the Apalachicola ResourcePlanning and Management Initiatives in the Apalachicola SystemECOSYSTEM STUDIES: APPROACHES AND METHODSEcosystem Research vs. Patch-Quilt Ecology An Alternate Approach to Ecosystem Studies Tier 1: Establishment of Research Goals Tier 2: Development of the Research ProgramsTier 3: Development of Resource Management Programs Tier 4: Review of Research Activities Tier 5: Comparison with Other SystemsTier 6: Development of a Resource Management ProgramTier 7: Application of Research Activities to EducationCONCLUSIONSSUMMARY OF RESULTSAPPENDIX I: Field/Laboratory Methods Used for the CARRMA Studies (1971 - 2002)APPENDIX II: Trophic Organization of Infaunal and Epibenthic Macroinvertebrates and FishesAPPENDIX III: Statistical Analysis Used in the Long-Term Studies of the Northeastern Gulf of Mexico (1971 - 2002)INDEX

O autorze

Robert J. Livingston