Table i. 



FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 82, NO. 3 



-Pooled species abundance and percent composition for all trawl collections, York River estuary, Va. 



N = number of individuals. 



' Species comprising -90°o of the total number of individuals. 



May and July. Except for the spike seen in Figure 

 2, resultant from a large influx of bay anchovy 

 into Blevins Creek in July, combined catches of all 

 other taxa were at a minimum for the summer 

 months (June-August) coincident with peak 

 summer temperatures. 



Seasonal abundance of the more common 

 species was typically associated with recruitment 

 of young-of-year individuals into the tidal creeks 

 and adjacent shoals. Young spot dominated in both 

 creeks but were subsequently replaced by post- 

 larval and juvenile bay anchovy (July), and there- 

 after at Goalders Creek by hogchoker (August), 

 weakfish (August-September), and Atlantic 

 croaker (October). In addition, white catfish, Ic- 

 talurus catus, and white perch were frequently 

 captured in the Goalders Creek vicinity during 

 early spring when salinities were at their lowest 

 recorded levels. Because of the overall seasonal 

 abundance, it was possible to examine spatial and 



temporal distributions of spot in greater detail 

 (Fig. 3, Table 2). As expected, spot were more 

 abundant outside of the creeks very early in re- 

 cruitment; but by June had established a greater 

 degree of residency within the creeks compared 

 with the adjacent shoals. This pattern of large 

 creek to shoal abundance ratios (Fig. 3) continued 

 (with a single exception) until October when spot 

 emerged from Blevins Creek. Note, however, that 

 at the termination of the sampling program, this 

 emigration had not taken place upstream. Similar 



TABLE 2. — Relative abundance of Leiostomus xanthurus at tidal 

 creek stations, York River estuary. 



458 



