Sapelo Research Application Form
Research Application ID: GCE-61-2015 (submitted: 03/09/2015, status: approved)
Provide a brief title for web display
Effects of spacing and mussel aggregation size on salt marsh food webs
Investigator Information
On Island Sponsor: GCE SINERR UGAMI GADNR
| Principal Investigator: | Christine Angelini | ||
| Home Institution: | University of Florida | ||
| Award Information: | None | ||
| Mailing Address: | Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences | Phone Number: | |
| University of Florida | E-mail Address: | christine.angelini@essie.ufl.edu | |
| Gainesville, Florida 32611 | |||
| Co-investigators: | |||
Briefly describe the project goals and methodology
We are interested in how, at the same density on the marsh landscape, the size of mussel aggregations regulates the total density, biomass and diversity of salt marsh invertebrates and several ecosystem functions (primary and secondary production, infiltration, etc) on local (2m x 2m) marsh spatial scales. To test this idea, we will hold the total density of mussels per 4m2 area constant (180 mussels) but manipulate their arrangement in aggregations (aggregation sizes: 1, 3, 10, 30, 60, 90, 180, and 1 treatment with mounds with aggregations of mixed sizes, N= 5 replicates per treatment). We will then monitor the response of salt marsh invertebrates and these ecosystem functions every April, July, and October in both 2015 and 2016.
Where will the project be located?
Airport Marsh
How will you provide GPS coordinates for study sites?
I will provide a GIS file describing my study sites (ArcGIS shapefile, Google Earth KML/KMZ)
What are the expected start and end dates of the project?
Start Date: 03/28/2015 End Date: 10/30/2016
How many people will access the site and at what frequency?
There will be 12 people helping me install this experiment in late March 2014, and then just two people will be in the marsh with me monitoring these plots three times per year thereafter.
Keywords that describe your project
What equipment will be deployed in the field?
There will be 4 PVC poles marking the corners of each plot and small PVC sticks to mark individual marked mussels in each plot
Will plants or animals be collected as part of this study?
We will be collecting and then almost immediately redeploying mussels in this study. At the end of the experiment, we will be harvesting a total of 0.75m2 of aboveground biomass and 6, 5 x 15cm deep below ground biomass cores
What are the likely impacts of the project on the site?
Other than one walking path to get out to the plot, I do not anticipate any impacts.
Will the project design include boardwalks? If not, explain why not.
No, because we will be monitoring so infrequently and will be working in the high marsh platform where there is a fairly stable peat horizon
How long will impacts persist after the research is concluded?
The walkway out into the marsh may be visible for 6 months after the experiment concludes in October 2016.
Site Photographs:
Files attached to this application
GCE-61-2015_Maps_SapeloMussAggSizeExp.png (PNG image, 793.02 kb, submitted 03/09/2015)
