transect stations and stations A and B generally followed the same 

 pattern as the distribution of species at these stations. A general 

 increasing trend seaward from station 1 was evident (Fig. 31). The 

 range of individual indexes fluctuated from 0.000 to 3.141. Zero 

 values occurred only at station 1 and the highest indexes were at 

 stations A and B. The average index for all stations was 1.245. 



(2) Transects . The average diversity indexes at the nine 

 transects were fairly constant. Average values on each transect 

 fluctuated from 1.090 to 1.354, with values on transects 1, 2, and 

 3 higher than the other transects (Fig. 32). 



(3) Monthly . The average monthly diversity index at all five 

 transect stations was highest in August. Low indexes occurred at 

 station 1 in January and February; stations 2 and 4 had the lowest 

 average index in November, and stations 3 and 5 had the lowest average 

 index in February (Table 29) . : 



f . New Species . The nearshore zone of the Gulf of Mexico off 

 Panama City Beach is one of the coastal areas where very little 

 benthic research has been done. Evidence of this was shown by the 

 discovery of several new species of invertebrates, some of which were 

 very abundant. A total of 170 invertebrate species was identified 

 (Table 15) in this study. Of this total, 21 (12 percent) are or may 



be new. Fifteen of the possible 21 new species are amphipods, and 4 of 

 these (Acanthohaustorius n. sp., Eaustovius n. sp.,, Protohaustorius n. 

 sp., and Pseudohaustorius n. sp.) are among the most abundant species 

 in this nearshore zone (Tables 17 and 26) . 



There is a possibility that three new species of Oligochaeta were 

 found. They are not listed separately, but combined under unidentified 

 species until more specific determinations can be made. 



The cumaceans are represented by one new species (Maneoeuma n. sp.) 

 and the possibility of a second new species (Unidentified sp.). The 

 remaining possible new species is a clam in the family Veneridae which 

 closely resembles those in, the genus Gouldia. 



In several of the major animal groups, identification to species 

 was not attempted due to insufficient time, lack of literature, or 

 inability to locate an expert willing to examine the specimens. 



g. Animal -Sediment Relationships . The role of surface sediments 

 in the distribution and abundance of benthic invertebrates has been 

 established by numerous authors. In fact, the substrate is probably 

 the single most important factor determining the distribution of 

 benthic invertebrates (Collard and D'Asaro, 1973). Correlations 



95 



