Pielou's Equitability Index (Pielou, 1969) 
J = H!/Hmax 
Dominance Index (Simpson, 1949) 
S 2 
C (n, /N) 
where n, is the importance value (number of individuals, biomass, etc.) for 
each species. N is the sum of all the importance values. 
3. Special Methods During Nourishment. 
a. Physical Methods. During the nourishment operations, replicate 1-liter 
grab samples of water were taken from the comparison beach at Emerald Isle, 
from the jetty in front of the bathhouse at Fort Macon, and from the flume of 
the diffuser head. These samples were collected in acid-washed Nalge® bottles, 
iced, and transported to the laboratory. In the laboratory, the samples were 
filtered using ovendried and weighed Gellman AE glass-fiber filters. The 
filters with residue from the filtration were again ovendried and weighed to 
determine the total suspended solids load in the water column. 
The filtrate was preserved with hydrochloric acid, refrigerated, and saved 
for metals analysis. Each of the replicates was split. Part of the split was 
analyzed by Dr. J. Bray, East Carolina University (ECU) School of Medicine, 
using a Jarrell Ash Atom Comp (Inductively Coupled Argon Plasma Emmission 
Spectrometer). Another part of the split was analyzed by M. Jones, ECU Depart- 
ment of Biology's Water Quality Laboratory. This part was run both with and 
without background correction on a Perkins Elmer Atomic Absorption Spectro- 
photometer in the flame mode. Samples were analyzed on both machines, using 
the method of additions for cadmium, copper, iron, lead, and zinc. 
b. Biological Methods. During the nourishment procedure, additional quan- 
titative intertidal macrobenthic samples were taken both from the nourished 
area and from the unnourished area (that area not yet reached by the nourish- 
ment procedure) at Fort Macon. This method allowed the comparison of the 
nourished areas with a valid control rather than simply the comparison beach 
at Emerald Isle. 
A sampling regime was established to record the recovery rate of the post- 
nourishment beach. A fixed point was marked 1070 meters from the western 
boundary of the park. This point was the site of a fixed transect. This tran- 
sect was sampled just like the other quantitative transects. Sampling was begun 
on 19 March 1978, the day this segment of beach was first nourished, and con- 
tinued every 2 weeks till the end of the monitoring project. 
V. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 
1. Summary of Physical Data for Study Sites. 
Seasonal variations in air and water temperatures for both beaches are 
given in Figures 13 and 14. Generally, water temperatures lagged behind air 
temperatures and never quite reached the extremes that the air temperatures 
reached. The range of measured air temperatures was 1° to 34° Celsius. Water 
temperatures ranged from 5° to 33° Celsius. 
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