Blue Crab Abundance and Survival in a Fragmenting Coastal Marsh System

Shakeri, Lennah M.; Darnell, Kelly M.; Carruthers, Tim J. B.; Darnell, M. Zachary

doi:10.1007/s12237-020-00738-9

Cited by 13 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…The study examined marsh (smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora), submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV; Eurasian watermilfoil Myriophyllum spicatum), and unvegetated sediment habitats in the Terrebonne estuary of Louisiana. Although Shakeri et al (2020) found that blue crab densities were not directly affected by the degree of fragmentation present in their study area, they cautioned that the degree of fragmentation may not have reached the threshold of disaggregation that leads to total habitat loss. Juvenile abundance was highest in habitats with SAV, leading Shakeri et al (2020) to speculate that potential increases in SAV coverage as a result of more open-water areas may help to buffer marsh loss by providing additional nursery habitat-a theory that was also supported by Jerabek et al (2017).…”

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Although Shakeri et al (2020) found that blue crab densities were not directly affected by the degree of fragmentation present in their study area, they cautioned that the degree of fragmentation may not have reached the threshold of disaggregation that leads to total habitat loss. Juvenile abundance was highest in habitats with SAV, leading Shakeri et al (2020) to speculate that potential increases in SAV coverage as a result of more open-water areas may help to buffer marsh loss by providing additional nursery habitat-a theory that was also supported by Jerabek et al (2017). Though not as productive, soft-sediment, unvegetated habitats can also offer refuge for early crab stages (Rakocinski et al 2003;Rakocinski and McCall 2005).…”

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Multiple factors contribute to postsettlement mortality, with freshwater inflow among the most important. Hydrological processes influence juvenile population dynamics by structuring the biotic community (Livingston et al 1976) and the quantity and quality of nearshore habitats (Shakeri et al 2020). Predation, both interspecific and intraspecific, regulates abundance (Heck and Coen 1995;Guillory 2001;Guillory et al 2001b;Heck and Spitzer 2001).…”

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At higher levels of marsh fragmentation, the area of available marsh decreases and the distance between patches increases as open-water areas expand. A recent study of linkages between marsh fragmentation, prey availability, and blue crab abundance and mortality found that juvenile and adult blue crab densities were independent of the degree of marsh fragmentation (Shakeri et al 2020). The study examined marsh (smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora), submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV; Eurasian watermilfoil Myriophyllum spicatum), and unvegetated sediment habitats in the Terrebonne estuary of Louisiana.…”

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although physiography, climate, watershed characteristics, and population demographics differ across the GOM, the common denominator determining blue crab population dynamics in all areas appears to be freshwater inflow. River discharge establishes the structure of the predator guild (Heck and Coen 1995;Sanchez-Rubio et al 2011) and habitats (marsh edge availability and SAV) in the GOM (Browder et al 1985;Shakeri et al 2020). High river flows in GOM estuaries have been linked to increased commercial landings of blue crabs in Texas (More 1969;Longley 1994;Hamlin 2005), Louisiana (Guillory 2000;Taylor 2020), Mississippi (Sanchez-Rubio et al 2011), and Florida (Wilber 1992Gandy et al 2010).…”

Section: Factors Affecting Landingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Status and Management of the Blue Crab Fishery in the Gulf of Mexico

Perry

Anderson

Collins

2022

N American J Fish Manag

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Management of the blue crab Callinectes sapidus fishery in the Gulf of Mexico is the responsibility of the individual states under the purview of a regional management plan. States generally follow the "2-S" system of management, placing emphasis on size and sex. Despite management policies, harvest and juvenile abundances remain in decline. A significant trend toward decreasing harvest began in the early 2000s, with landings below average in 13 of the 20 years from 2000 to 2019. Since 2010, the fishery has maintained a lower but relatively stable harvest. There have been significant decreases in numbers of late-stage juveniles in fishery-independent trawl surveys, while numbers of megalopae and early juveniles have not exhibited declines. Postsettlement mortality is potentially driven by climate-related hydrological processes that structure the biotic community (predator guild) and nearshore habitats. Diversity of predators, few predation-free refuges, and a lack of seasonality in predation likely contribute to high regional mortality. Factors that influence quality and quantity of available refuge may ultimately control abundance. Although genetics data describe the population as panmictic, geographic differences in coastal climate and hydrological processes may act to structure populations. Separation of stocks according to ecozones may provide a more suitable approach to population delineation. The 2011 stock assessment divided the population into eastern and western regions based on confounding information on genetics, physiographic features that limit larval transport, variations in climate, and migration of female crabs along the west coast of Florida. There is concern that the population is undergoing Gulf of Mexico-wide changes in biomass associated with regional climate regime shifts that may alter the resiliency of the stock. Whether the shift to a more favorable climate phase would reverse the declining trends is unknown. Changes in population levels could be rapid given the high juvenile mortality and short generation time as well as the importance of climate in structuring habitat.

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Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 86%

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 86%

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Postsettlement Mortality Related To Predation and Habitatmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Factors Affecting Landingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Status and Management of the Blue Crab Fishery in the Gulf of Mexico

Perry

Anderson

Collins

2022

N American J Fish Manag

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An integrative salt marsh conceptual framework for global comparisons

Yando

Jones

James

et al. 2023

Limnol Oceanogr Letters

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Salt marshes occur globally across climatic and coastal settings, providing key linkages between terrestrial and marine ecosystems. However, salt marsh science lacks a unifying conceptual framework; consequently, historically well‐studied locations have been used as normative benchmarks. To allow for more effective comparisons across the diversity of salt marshes, we developed an integrative salt marsh conceptual framework. We review ecosystem‐relevant drivers from global to local spatial scales, integrate these multi‐scale settings into a framework, and provide guidance on applying the framework using specific variables on 11 global examples. Overall, this framework allows for appropriate comparison of study sites by accounting for global, coastal, inter‐, and intra‐system spatial settings unique to each salt marsh. We anticipate that incorporating this framework into salt marsh science will provide a mechanism to critically evaluate research questions and a foundation for effective quantitative studies that deepen our understanding of salt marsh function across spatial scales.

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