5-39 



Examination of 1977 biota on long-term panels in New Haven 

 Harbor and Niantic Bay reveals a similar faunal composition (Table 5-7) . 

 As in 1971-1972, Niantic panels had a diverse flora while New Haven 

 Harbor panels had almost no algae at all. Sites at Millstone Point 



(Niantic Bay) and Harbor Station show 48 and 51 faunal species respect- 

 ively (Battelle, 1978; NAI , 1978). Characteristic New Haven species not 

 occurring at Niantic (1977) were: Molgula sp. , Mya arenaria, Polydora 

 sp. , and Electra crustulenta. Dominant species occurring since 1971 at 

 Millstone were: Obelia sp. , Mytilus edulis , Nereis succinea, Botryllus 

 schlosseri , and Crassostrea virginica. Dominant Niantic Bay species not 

 represented at New Haven Harbor are Limnoria tripunctata, Chelura tere- 

 brans, and Idotea phosphorea . Virtually all of the current Millstone 

 faunal species were represented at New Haven Harbor; many of the algal 

 species were not. This is also true for Stamford and Bridgeport Harbors 



(Table 5-6) . In the 1935 study of New Haven Harbor, only dominant 

 species were determined (Battelle, 1937). This study listed Balanus 

 eburneus , Obelia spp. , Corophium spp. , Molgula spp. , and Mytilus edulis 

 as occurring in New Haven Harbor. Most of these are currently recorded 

 as dominants, occurring at most stations during years of the current 

 study. A major change observed in New Haven Harbor was the temporary 

 disappearance of Teredo navalis in 1976 after a highly consistent occur- 

 rence from 1971 through August 1976. As indicated earlier, previous 

 work in the Long Island Sound region has documented such fluctuations in 

 the species (Clapp, 1937) . 



In summary, the present study shows that New Haven Harbor had 

 high faunal species richness relative to other Long Island Sound panel 

 study sites. Annual differences in community structure within New Haven 

 Harbor which have been reported may be attributed to taxonomic refine- 

 ments, changes in water quality, and length of sample period. In gen- 

 eral, it is difficult to define a "typical" Long Island Sound fouling 

 community. Panel colonization is directly dependent upon the abundance 

 of settling larvae, which in turn is a function of seasonality, larval 

 selectivity, and the immediate physical/chemical characteristics of the 

 area. Changes in seasonal hydrographic parameters can affect the entire 



