FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 76, NO. 1 



METHODS 



Since 1967, a large number of quantitative 

 (1,303) and qualitative (887) samples of benthic 

 invertebrates have been collected throughout the 

 Delaware Bay region. The major collecting areas 

 are designated with letters and presented in Fig- 

 ure 1. Since the objectives of the various surveys 

 differed, the sampling pattern and season, number 

 of samples, frequency of sampling, collecting gear 

 and sieve type, environmental data, and type of 

 analysis also varied (Table 1). A local reference 

 collection was established and verified with the 

 polychaete collection in the U.S. National 

 Museum. 



ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING 



The general environmental setting is discussed 

 as four major areas: Delaware Bay proper, small 

 bays, coastal areas, and offshore. Polychaetes 



ATLANTIC 

 OCEAN 



74°W 



Figure l. — Polychaete sampling in the Delaware Bay region. 

 The sampling areas are: A. baywide, B. bay mouth, C. midbay , D. 

 oyster beds, E, intertidal, F. small bays, G. Bethany Beach, H. 

 Hen and Chickens Shoal, I. off Delaware Bay mouth, and J. 

 midshelf site. 



were collected from a variety of habitats which 

 have been designated as follows: 



Delaware Bay area (Figure 1) 

 Delaware Bay proper 

 Baywide (A) 

 Bay mouth (B) 

 Midbay (C) 



Sandy shoals (Brown Shoal, Lower Middle 



Shoal, Old Bare Shoal) 

 Muddy sand bottom 



Epifaunal-infaunal assemblages (blue 

 mussel assemblage; calcareous serpulid 

 assemblage) 

 Oyster beds (Delaware Bay; Broadkill, Mis- 

 pillion, Murderkill, St. Jones, and Leipsic 

 Rivers) (D) 

 Intertidal — Cape Henlopen (E) 

 Small Bays 



Rehoboth and Indian River Bays (F) 

 Coastal areas 



Bethany Beach (G) 

 Hen and Chickens Shoal (H) 

 Off mouth of Delaware Bay (I) 

 Offshore 



Midshelf site (J) 



The letters in parentheses refer to letters used to 

 designate areas in Figure 1. 



Delaware Bay Proper 



The morphology, geology, and sediment dis- 

 tribution of Delaware Bay (Figure 1, A) was de- 

 scribed by Shuster,4 Kraft,^ Weil ( 1975), and Wat- 

 ling and Maurer.^ Salinity values were 5-8%o at 

 the northern limit of sampling and 30-3 l%o near 

 the bay mouth, with the major part of the area 

 being polyhaline (18-30%o) (Table 1). Sediment at 

 the bay mouth was generally medium sand ( l-2(/)), 

 with the coarsest material in the middle of the bay 

 (Figure 2). Sand farther up the bay became finer 

 (2-3. 5c^), with medium sand in the center channel. 

 Sediments along both sides of the estuary were 

 fine, wdth as much as 90% silt-clay in some sam- 

 ples. In sediments from the northernmost tran- 



■•Shuster, C. N. 1959. A biological evaluation of the Delaware 

 River Estuary. Univ. Del. Mar. Lab., Inf Ser., Publ. 3, 77 p. 



^Kraft, J. C. 1971. A guide to the geology of Delaware's coastal 

 environments. Univ. Del., Coll. Mar. Stud. Publ. No. 2GL039, 

 220 p. 



*Watling, L., and D. Maurer (editors). 1976. Ecological studies 

 on benthic and planktonic assemblages in lower Delaware Bay. 

 NSF/RANN. Univ. Del., Coll. Mar. Stud. Publ., 630 p. 



210 



