File:Coast watch (1979) (20634710066).jpg

Title: Coast watch
Identifier: coastwatch00uncs_17 (find matches)
Year: 1979 (1970s)
Authors: UNC Sea Grant College Program
Subjects: Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology
Publisher: (Raleigh, N. C. : UNC Sea Grant College Program)
Contributing Library: State Library of North Carolina
Digitizing Sponsor: North Carolina Digital Heritage Center

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of Dermo among oysters on the tall reefs than on one-meter reefs degraded by mechanical harvesting. NEW STUDY The new National Sea Grant Program study addresses a number of local, small-scale varia- tions in the environment, including water depth, reef orientation, water flow through the reef and the ability of water to transport oyster larvae. Understanding the relationship between these small-scale effects and oyster disease could aid in oyster reef restoration in areas known to have high disease levels, Peterson says. The sampling areas include oyster sanctu- aries at Wanchese in Dare County, the Pamlico River estuary, the Neuse River estuary, and Cedar Island Bay, Middle Marsh and Bogue Sound, all in Carteret County. "These reefs bring 10 years of history," says Peterson. In the Neuse River estuary, the researchers will use historical data on oxygen, temperature and salinity from the MODMON Interdisciplinary Research Project on water quality. The monitor- ing project is funded by the N.C Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the UNC Water Resources Research Institute. In the mid-1990s, Peterson and his colleagues compared the topography of oyster reefs in the Neuse River to an 1880 survey. Through the Sea Grant study, researchers found that vertical structure of reefs had declined in height because of dredging for oysters. "Specifically, the study showed that oysters located on elevated reefs were above the low- oxygen water mass," says Peterson. "By being above this water layer, oyster survivorship and growth was high." In another Sea Grant-supported study, Peterson and his colleagues compared oyster sanctuaries that were not harvested for up to 10 years and adjacent harvested oyster reefs. The researchers found the proportion of oysters with some levels of Dermo infection and the severity of infection were lower in reefs closed to harvest than in harvested reefs. Peterson says the new project will provide a valuable and unique database to assess the success of oyster restoration in North Carolina. "The project will focus on oyster restora- 10 AUTUMN 2004

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