No abstract

Fi gure 1. M ap of t he M i ssi ssi ppi barri er i sl ands, nort hern G ul f of M exi co. The red st ar i ndi cat es t he l ocat i on of t he U SM G ul f C oast G eospat i al C ent er. Fi gure 2. Seagrass m aps devel oped f rom m osai cs of 1940 and 2007 vert i cal aeri al i m agery. Vari ous t ypes of i m age dat a w ere used i n t he st udy, rangi ng f rom di gi t i zed bl ack­and­w hi t e phot ographs (e. g. , 1940) t o hyperspect ral i m agery (2007 dat a, C ASI 570 nm band). W here spect ral dat a w ere avai l abl e, seagrass m appi ng w as based sol el y on t he use of green­band dat a (Peneva et al. , 2008). Fi gure 4. R el at i onshi p of seagrass bed areal coverage w i t h t he t ot al l and area of Pet i t Boi s I sl and, 1940­2007. Fi gure 3. D ecadal changes i n seagrass coverage on t he M i ssi ssi ppi barri er i sl ands. Sam pl i ng error (bars) w as est i m at ed t o be 5%. Island Land Area (ha)

A geographical information systems technique for visualizing spatial data was used in conjunction with standard analytical procedures to examine the size‐specific distribution of brown shrimp Farfantepenaeus aztecus in nearshore nursery areas and open waters of the Mississippi Sound. Brown shrimp abundance was assessed during 2000, 2001, and 2002 by means of an otter trawl along 10 transects consisting of three stations each. The number of brown shrimp, together with the dissolved oxygen, temperature, and salinity values, were collected at each sampling station. A decreasing trend in salinity was observed from east to west. The highest salinities were measured in 2000. No temporal patterns in dissolved oxygen or temperature were apparent. Brown shrimp showed the highest abundances in western Mississippi Sound, an area adjoining the extensive marshes of St. Tammany and St. Bernard parishes in Louisiana. The average size of the brown shrimp in the western sound was smaller than that of the brown shrimp in other areas, indicating continued recruitment in the former area.

Fi gure 1. M ap of t he M i ssi ssi ppi barri er i sl ands, nort hern G ul f of M exi co. The red st ar i ndi cat es t he l ocat i on of t he U SM G ul f C oast G eospat i al C ent er. Fi gure 2. Seagrass m aps devel oped f rom m osai cs of 1940 and 2007 vert i cal aeri al i m agery. Vari ous t ypes of i m age dat a w ere used i n t he st udy, rangi ng f rom di gi t i zed bl ackandw hi t e phot ographs (e. g. , 1940) t o hyperspect ral i m agery (2007 dat a, C ASI 570 nm band). W here spect ral dat a w ere avai l abl e, seagrass m appi ng w as based sol el y on t he use of greenband dat a (Peneva et al . , 2008). Fi gure 4. R el at i onshi p of seagrass bed areal coverage w i t h t he t ot al l and area of Pet i t Boi s I sl and, 19402007. Fi gure 3. D ecadal changes i n seagrass coverage on t he M i ssi ssi ppi barri er i sl ands. Sam pl i ng error (bars) w as est i m at ed t o be 5% .Island Land Area (ha)