50?77-101 



REPORT DOCUMENTATION 

 PAGE 



1. REPORT NO. 



FWS/ORS-R?/OS 



3. Recipient's Accession No. 



4. rrti. .nd subtiti. 7he Ecology of the Apalachicola Bay System: An 

 Estuarine Profile 



S. Report Date 



September 1984 



7. Aothor(») 



Robert J. Livingston 

 9. Author's Afti Nation: 



8. Performrng Organization Rept, No. 



10. Project/Task/Work Unit No. 



Department of Biological Science 

 Florida State University 

 Tallahassee, FL 32306 



11. Contract(C) or Grant(G) No. 



(C) 



(G) 



12. Spontortng Organization Name and Address 



National Coastal Ecosystems Team 

 Research and Development 

 Fish and Wildlife Service 

 Washington, DC 20240 



13. Type of Report & Period Covered 



15. Supplementary Notes 



16. Abstract (Limit: 200 words) 



Twelve years of studies in the Apalachicola Bay 

 data on geography, hydrology, chemistry, geology, and 



The system is part of a major drainage area incl 

 wetlands in Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a s 

 barrier islands and dominated by wind effects and tid 

 (channels, sloughs, swamps, and backwater) and period 

 tant components. Principal influences on biological 

 river flow, nutrient input, and salinity. Water qual 

 tidal influences and freshwater inflows. 



The system is in a relatively natural state, tho 

 development and population growth are beginning to th 

 ecological importance as a food producer and shelter 

 movement to protect its natural resources, including 

 programs, integration of county land-use regulations 

 and creation of the Apalachicola River and Bay Nation 



Research has produced an extensive computerized 

 working with these data have been developed. 



system are reviewed. Included are 

 biology, 

 uding four rivers and associated 

 hallow coastal lagoon fringed by 

 al currents. River bottomlands 

 ically flooded lowlands are impor- 

 processes are basin physiography, 

 ity is affected by periodic wind and 



ugh hardly pristine. But economic 

 reaten it. The area's economic and 

 for diverse species has inspired a 

 State and Federal land-purchase 

 into a comprehensive development, 

 al Estuarine Sanctuary, 

 data base. Computer programs for 



17. Document Analysis a. Descriptors 



Geology „• 



,, , ^■^ River 



Hydrology r j. 



d1^i„^, Estuaries 



Bioloay ,- , 



'■^ Ecology .. 



Fisheries 



b. Identifiers/Open-Ended Terms 



Bottomlands Apalachicola Bay 

 Flooded lowlands Florida 

 Nutrient input 



c. COSATI Field/Group 



16. Availability Statement 



19. Security Class (This Report) 



unclassified 



unl i mi ted 



20. Security Class (This Page) 



unclassified 



No. of Pages 



150 



(See ANSI-Z39.18) 



OPTIONAL FORM 272 (t-77) 

 (Formerly NTIS-35) 

 Department of Commerce 



