The orientation and distribution of sea fans on hardbottom habitats of the Mississippi/Alabama continental shelf /
Analysis of the densities and orientations of five common taxa of gorgonian and antipatharian sea fans was performed within five study areas on the Mississippi/Alabama continental shelf. Colonies exhibited a strong preference for areas containing hard substrate. Meso-scale (on the order of tens of m...
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| Format: | Thesis eBook |
| Language: | English |
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[Place of publication not identified] :
[publisher not identified] ;
2003.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Link to OAKTrust copy |
| Summary: | Analysis of the densities and orientations of five common taxa of gorgonian and antipatharian sea fans was performed within five study areas on the Mississippi/Alabama continental shelf. Colonies exhibited a strong preference for areas containing hard substrate. Meso-scale (on the order of tens of meters) morphological differences in hard bottom substrate did not have an influence on colony densities. Mean exposure to suspended particle concentrations had a significant negative effect on the densities of gorgonian colonies belonging to the taxa Nicella spp, Bebryce cinerea/grandis, and Stenogorgiinae. Height above bottom had a significant positive effect on the distributions of the gorgonian Bebryce cinerea/grandis and the antipatharian Antipathes ?atlantica/gracilis. The gorgonian Thesea sp. had a significant negative relationship with height above bottom. After accounting for the above variables, colony distributions still exhibited non-homogenous distributions at both within-site and regional scales. A significant decrease in colony densities was found on two of the five study sites after the passage of a hurricane through the study area. Colonies exhibited a strongly preferred orientation at all of the five study sites. Mean colony orientations corresponded closely to the mean direction of time-averaged flow of current measured in the vicinity of the study sites. |
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| Item Description: | "Major subject: Oceanography". Vita. |
| Physical Description: | xi, 83 leaves : illustrations ; 28 cm. Also available online. Issued also on microfiche from Lange Micrographics. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 77-80). |