to average in excess of 2 jig g* 1 . Because of its potential neurotoxicity to humans, 
these findings led to issuance of Health Advisories to fishermen urging cessation of 
consumption of bass from the Everglades and limited consumption of several other 
species. Subsequent surveys have shown average Hg levels to exceed 0.5 ng g' 1 in the 
majority of freshwater lakes and streams in the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain 
Provinces and down through the peninsular region and the issuance of advisories to 
limit consumption of bass from the effected waters. It also has been shown that Hg 
poses chronic dietary risks to the endangered Florida panther and high body burdens of 
Hg are common in wading birds formerly abundant in south Florida. Similar 
observations of increasing Hg levels in freshwater lakes and streams are apparent 
worldwide, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere. The causes of this general 
increase, much less the specific causes of the Florida problem, are not well understood. 
To elucidate the contributions of local, regional and global sources of Hg to Florida's 
environment, a multi-agency task force has initiated a research program to 
complement similar work elsewhere. Studies are underway or being planned to measure 
temporal trends in mercury in Florida’s environment, fine-scale monitoring of 
atmospheric Hg and deposition, and aquatic and wetland studies to define the pathways 
and processes of Hg accumulation in the Everglades food chain. 
1994 0 
Cubit, J. D. (1994) Global climate change and the importance of tidal flat ecosystems in the 
Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Bull. Mar. Sci. . 54(3): 1073. 
[ABSTRACT ONLY, DATE OF SAMPLING UNKNOWN OR NOT APPLICABLE.] Algae, corals, 
seagrasses and other living organisms actively construct and maintain extensive tidal 
flat structures in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. The various types of tidal flats, 
including reef flats, algal flats, and seagrass flats, are important economically and 
ecologically. They rank among the world's most productive ecosystems and export 
much of their organic material to adjacent ecosystems. These biogenic structures of 
carbonate rock and consolidated sediment, covered by meadows of plants and sessile 
animals, function as foraging grounds, nursery areas, natural breakwaters and 
shoreline reinforcements. Models of global climate change predict considerable changes 
for the coastal environments of the Gulf and Caribbean, including rises in sea level, 
increases of water temperature, and more frequent hurricanes. Physical and 
geographic features of the Florida Bay and the Keys, such as the narrow tidal range and 
location in the "hurricane belt," would make this region particularly sensitive to the 
effects of global climate change. Long-term, integrated monitoring of natural variations 
of the physical environment and populations of algae, seagrasses, corals and other reef 
flat biota on the Caribbean coast of Panama demonstrate that changes in sea level and 
sea temperature can affect the distribution and abundance of these organisms, but the 
tidal flat communities as a whole should be able to maintain vertical rates of habitat 
accretion in pace with predicted rises in sea level until the middle of the next century. 
However, studies of the effects of a major oil spill at this site illustrate that such 
pollution can cause longer-term damage of the groups of biota essential for building 
tidal flat structures. Proper management to maintain the tidal flat ecosystems in the 
Gulf and Caribbean, including the diverse tidal flats of Florida Bay and the Keys, could 
mitigate much of the potential damage expected from global climate change, including 
erosion of shorelines, loss of endangered species habitats, destruction of developed 
property and reduction of fisheries. 
1994 0 
Durako, M. J., and K. M. Kuss (1994) Effects of Lybyrinthula infection on the 
photosynthetic capacity of Thalassia testudinum. Bull. Mar. Sci. . 54(3):727-32. 
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