Nearshore ichthyoplankton associated with seagrass beds in the lower Chesapeake Bay

Abstract

In this study the authors describe the egg, larval, and juvenile fish assemblages in shallow areas of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) of the lower Chesapeake Bay and compare them with those over the adjacent, shallow sand habitat. The SAV habitats were not important spawning sites for species with pelagic eggs, but were important for species brooding eggs or with demersal eggs. Overall, collections were dominated by the bay anchovy Anchoa mitchilli , but contained many species not commonly found in the midchannel ichthyoplankton described in earlier studies. Results suggest that SAV areas do not play an important nursery role for pelagic eggs and early larvae, which may suffer increased predation by planktivores in these areas. Later stages, however, may benefit from reduced predation pressure from piscivores and thus benefit from association with SAV