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Pelagic primary production and respiration in Mobjack Bay, VA, 2023-2025
Blachman, Sara A. Brush, Mark J.
Blachman, Sara A.
Brush, Mark J.
Abstract
Virginia’s aquaculture industry is dependent on an adequate food supply derived chiefly from primary production by phytoplankton. Limited food availability can reduce the growth and potential harvest of cultured bivalves at high planting densities, and the effect of food limitation can vary seasonally. However, sustained measurements of phytoplankton primary production and respiration are rare, especially in the shallow, nearshore waters around the perimeter of the Chesapeake Bay where bivalve aquaculture is concentrated. To provide resource managers with information necessary to assess this critical control on the ecological and economic sustainability of the aquaculture industry, we measured rates of pelagic primary production and respiration monthly at six locations in Mobjack Bay, an embayment in the lower Chesapeake Bay with growing bivalve aquaculture activity. Rates were measured at two locations in the main bay and one location in each of its four tidal tributaries from March 2023 to March 2025.
Description
Water quality and primary production and respiration dataset can be found in the Mobjack_production_data.csv file; and background, site location, and data collection and analysis methods can be found in the READ_ME_Mobjack.pdf file.
Associated Dataset:
Blachman, S.A., and M.J. Brush. 2025. Pelagic primary production and respiration in Cherrystone Inlet, VA, 2021-2024. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, VA: WMScholarWorks.
Date
2025-12-19
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primary production, respiration, bivalve aquaculture, water quality, Chesapeake Bay, Mobjack Bay
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Ecosystem Health