135 



Important species of maciobenthos whose distribution or abundance appaientiy 

 has been affected by waste discharges into tiie New York Bight apex. 



Species 



Importance as prey 

 for Qshes 



Feeding type and effect 

 on sedimentary processes 



Spedes advantaged in most heavily contaminated sediments 



Capitella capitata Unimportant 



Species advantaged in the Oiiistiiienaen Basin 



Ceriarofteopsisarmrieanus Unimportant 



Nephtys incisa 



Pherusa affinis 



MetHomastua ambiseta 



Moderately important, 

 skates, flatfishes, 

 and gadoids 



Deposit-feeding, surface tube dweller; 

 peiletizes surface sediments 



Surface contact predator; forms 

 heavy mucous tube that penetrates 

 deeply into the sediment, but is not 

 ventilated 



Motile predator or deposit feeder; 

 ventilates temporary bunows and 



mixes surface sediments 



Occasionally important Surface deposit^eeding, motile 



bunower; active in mixing sediments 



TTwfyxspp. 



AsabeiUdes oculata 



Nuatia proxima 



Unimportant 

 Unimportant 



Unimportant 

 Unimportant 



Subsurface deposit-feeding, shallow 

 dweller 



Surface deposit-feeding, motile 

 buiTower; possibly active in mixing 

 sediments 



Surface deposit-feeding, tube dweller; 

 possibly ventilates tube 



Subsurface motile deposit feeder; 

 mixes surface sediments 



Species disadvantaged in the Christiaensen Basin 

 Ampeiisca spp. 



Occasionally important, Seston-surface deposit-feeding, 

 especially for flatfishes shallow infaunal tube dweller; 

 stabilizes sediments 



Erichthonius rubrieomis Very important for a 

 wide variety of fishes 



Undoia iiromta 



Cancer imnau 



Very important for a 

 wide variety of Sshes 



Very important for a 

 wide variety of Gshes 



Seston-f ceding, epifaunai tube 

 dweller; sTahili7.es sediments 



Surface deposit-feeding shallow 

 infaunal tube dweller; stabilizes 

 sediments 



Motile epibenthic predator, causes 

 small scale disturbances in surface 

 sediments — 



TABLE E 

 JFrom (14) 



