Huntington Harbor Eelgrass and Bay Scallop Restoration Project
Field Notes
and Observations
~2004~
July, August, November
2004 Preliminary observations of bottom
types as well as test plantings were conducted in 2004. Test plantings
were conducted at Winkle Point outside of the "sluece" pond.
Donor plants were from several sites in the Peconics and Long Island Sound.
Quadrats were used to define the plots and shoots were planted at a density
of 100 per 0.25 m². |
|
|
|
2August2004- The "sluece"
at Winkle Point. |
2August2004- The Huntington Harbormaster
assisting us with initial site reconnaissance. |
11November2004- The first set of test
plantings took place outside of the "sluece". |
~2005~
September 2005 Initial observations of potential
restoration sites took place, including areas off of Caumsett State Park
and Winkle Pt. in Northport Bay. The rocky shoreline of Caumsett is similar
to other Long Island Sound restoration areas where we have conducted rock-anchored
plantings. The sandy sediment off Winkle Pt. appeared suitable for planting. |
|
|
|
30September2005- The rocky
shoreline of the Caumsett beach site. |
30September2005- Caumsett
beach, with large rocks over fine sand, ideal for rock-anchored plantings. |
23September2005- Sandy bottom
at Winkle Pt. |
December 2005 Test
plantings at both potential restoration sites took place in December.
Test plantings off of Caumsett State Park consisted of rock-anchored plantings,
while those at Winkle Pt. were free-planted. For both test plantings,
shoots from two different donor beds (Shinnicock Bay and Orient Point)
were used.The plantings at Caumsett consisted of 2 transects perpendicular
to the shore, each with shoots from a different donor site. Those from
Shinnecock were labeled A 1-5, and those from Orient were labeled B 1-5,
with 1 being the most shallow and 5 the deepest (ranged from -0.5 m to
-2.0 m). |
|
|
|
1December2005- An underwater
station at Caumsett where rock-anchored plantings were tested. |
1December2005- Caumsett
beach; the crew prepares for planting. |
12December2005- Chris examines
the days plantings at Winkle Pt.off Beach Lane. |
~2006~
April 2006 The
first recon dive to examine last winter's rock plantings at Caumsett Point
occured. Both the Sninnecock and Orient rock plantings seemed to be taking
well, especially those in the mid-range at stations #3 and #4 in both transects
(-1 m to -1.5 m). |
|
|
|
20April2006- Chris suiting
up, getting ready for the chilly water. |
20April2006- Newly planted
rock plantings. |
20April2006- Though small
in stature, this planting from December using Shinnecock shoots appeared
healthy. |
May 2006 Test
plantings continued at Winkle Point on May 3
2006, in both the "sluece" pond and off of Winkle Point. Methods
included free-planting both adult shoots and seedlings, all of which were
grown over the winter in our greenhouse. Adult shoots were from Orient
Pt. and Shinnecock Bay. Seedlings from a broadcast seeding that took place
in the pond last winter were also observed, and were fairly numerous.
We revisited the site after 2 weeks (May 17) to check on the plantings,
and all seemed to be healthy. |
|
|
|
3May2006- Seedlings from
last winter's seeding were observed; mud snails were prevelent. |
3May2006- Free-plantings
in a deeper section of the pond. |
17May2006- Upon inspection 2 weeks later,
plantings were doing very well. |
July 2006 We
revisited our Caumsett Point plantings on July 24, 2006. Again, those
plantings in the mid-range depth appeared healthiest, while the most shallow
plantings were no longer present (as predicted due to tidal extremes).
The difference in stature between plants from donor beds (Orient Pt and
Shinnecock inlet) was still visible. |
|
|
|
24July2006- Steve suits up before finding
our transects. |
24July2006- Plantings around station
B3 were numerous and healthy. |
24July2006- This planting at station
B4 seemed to have expanded. |
September 2006
All work at Winkle
Point has ceased. Temperatures in the pond reached the
mid 90's(°F), which is intolerable for eelgrass growth. Plantings
off the point were also unsuccessful for unknown reasons. Scouting for
new locations within the Huntington Harbor complex has begun.
Caumsett
Point plantings were observed again on September 19, 2006.
Though large amounts of sand had moved into the mid-range of the A transect,
we did find surviving grass around the B3 and B4 stations. Photos were
poor due to bad visibility, so they have not been included. |
December 2006 Eelgrass
plantings at Caumsett Point took place on December 20, 2006. Three thousand
shoots were planted using our rock-anchored method between the 3rd and 4th
transect depths. |
|
|
|
20Dec2006- A newly planted rock-anchored
planting. |
20Dec2006- The planting field. |
20Dec2006- Another view of the planting
field. |
|