IV-C-7 



Massachusetts Department of Natural Resources. Undated. Estuarine research 

 program. Division of Marine Fisheries Monograph Series. Not numbered. 



The estuarine research program in Massachusetts was initiated in 

 1963 as the result of recommendations by the Marine Fisheries Advisory 

 Commission to the Governor of the Commonwealth. The Commission recognized 

 the value of the marine resources of the Commonwealth and the urgent 

 need for pertinent information which would lead to the establishment 

 of a sound resource management program. 



Studies were conducted on several estuarine communities in Massachusetts. 

 The monograph series represents the findings and recommendations resulting 

 from these investigations. Each report contains a chapter on marine 

 vegetation and its value to the estuarine community. (H.D.) 



Keywords: estuarine research, marine resources, Massachusetts 



IV-C-8 



Massman, W.H. 1971. The significance of an estuary on the biology of 

 aquatic organisms of the middle Atlantic region. Pages 96-109 vn 

 P. A. Douglas and R.H. Stroud, eds., A symposium on the biological 

 significance of estuaries. Sport Fishing Institute, Washington, D.C. 



The mid-Atlantic coast from Cape Cod to Cape Hatteras includes a 

 number of estuaries. The largest, most varied, and most important 

 for aquatic organisms is the Chesapeake Bay. The marshes and swamps 

 bordering the Chesapeake and its tributary streams are extremely 

 important components of the estuarine complex. Roughly one-third 

 of a million acres of salt marsh habitat surround the bay. 



Biologically, the estuary is a very productive area. The annual 

 fish harvest from the Bay, both sport and commercial , amounts to 

 about 125 pounds per acre. In addition to yielding some 325 million 

 pounds of finfish to Bay fishermen, the Bay serves as a nursery area for 

 other fish caught in areas from Maine to North Carolina. For the entire 

 Atlantic coast, 19 different kinds of commerical fish are directly 

 dependent on estuaries. 



Not all aquatic life in the Chesapeake is economically desirable or 

 beneficial to man. Jellyfish, ctenophores, shipworms, barnacles, oyster 

 drills, saltmarsh mosquitoes, and green-headed flies are all destructive 

 or annoying to man. 



Waterfowl, shorebirds, other aquatic birds, and aquatic mammals are 

 closely associated with the Chesapeake and its marshlands. The area 

 also supports populations of muskrat, mink, raccoon, otter, and porpoise. 



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