REGIONAL I 

 RAINFALLj 



EVAPOTRANSPIRATION 



Soil Composition 

 Floodploin Inundotion 



/ 



VEGETATION DISTRIBUTION 



MICROBIAL 

 SUCCESSION 



LOCAL RAINFALL 



E mer genlVeoetation 



Leaf Pfoduction 

 Decomposition 

 Ffogmenlofion 



Nutrient/ Detritus Flo' 

 S 



y 



Ttdal Subsidy 

 W.nd^V 



o.s.rba'r'y ISUBH/IERGED VEGETATION PRODUCTIVITY 



Conditioning 



VER PEAKS I w.rdY > 



/ M N ^ ^ B.oiccoi^ ISUBH/IERGED VEGETATION 



nenl/OelcMus Flo* Oisluibance \ | ^'•'" 



Salinity Gradients ,,_\, / 3 '"" — ^'\ 



/ \ ^-^ > | PHYTOPLANKTON PRODUCTIVITY | ^ 



Potticulate Organic MatterV Wind Subsidy ; j- -; .-y' ^--; 



I MICROBES -^DE 



ganic Matter^ Wind Subsidy ; .- -- 



3ETR|TUS ' W T WT 



~^LITTEr1- ASSOCIATED f 

 INVERTEaRATES i I 



Detritus Product ion 



1 — 



f 



I 



1 



OETRITLIS-FEEDING 

 INVERTEBRATES 



CALANOI D COPEP QDS 

 -^ 



OTHER _iO0PL^NK.T0N_ 



, INVERTBBRATES 



 ANCHpyiES 



\ ^ ANCHOVIES 



PENAElp SHRIM P 



SEATROUT 



TOP PREDATORS ( Incluqing mon ) 



DEC 



JAN. 



FEB 



MAR 



APR 



MAY i JUN 



MONTH 



JUL. 



AUG. 



SEPT I OCT 



NOV 



Figure 38. Generdlized, simplified model of seasonal relationships of the dominant 

 macroinvertebrates and fishes in the Apalachicola Bay system. The model associates 

 population distribution with seasonal changes in key physical variables, productivity 

 features, and the predator-prey relationships of the estuary. 



trophic levels of the estuary. Of the 10 

 numerically dominant infaunal species 

 (representing over 83% of the total 

 number), five are detrital feeders, four 

 are deposit feeders (surface and subsur- 

 face), and one is a filter feeder. Of the 

 entire infaunal assemblage, there are 

 fifteen omnivore/carni vore types, seven 

 subsurface deposit feeders, eleven surface 

 deposit feeders, twelve (generalized) 

 deposit feeders, and seven filter feeders. 

 There are high numbers of the various 

 filter-feeding mollusks such as Rangia 

 cuneata and Crassostrea virginica . 



The important role of detritus and 

 its associated microbial components is 



indicated by the predominance of the 

 detriti vore/omni vore feeders in the 

 macroinvertebrate assemblages. Of the 

 dominant litter-associated organisms, the 

 polychaetes are generally omnivorous, 

 consuming fine detritus, microalgae, 

 copepods, and amphipods. The gastropods 

 in the litter include omnivores, filter 

 feeders, scavengers, suspension feeders, 

 and carnivores. The herbivorous snail 

 Neritina reel i vata is a ma.ior species in 

 the grassbeds of East Bay. The amphipods 

 found among the litter assemblages include 

 omnivores, detritus feeders (or leaf 

 scavengers) and, in the case of some 

 gammarids, filter feeders. A few species 

 such as Hyalel la azteca , Gammarus 



86 



