The influence of a research pier on beach morphology and the distribution of Emerita talpoida |
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| Authors: | Michael Bowman Robert Dolan |
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| Institution: | Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903 U.S.A. |
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| Abstract: | The spatial distribution of the common Atlantic Coast mole crab, Emerita talpoida, is strongly influenced by inshore processes and the grain size and morphology of sand beaches. E. talpoida increase in density across the foreshore toward the lower part of the beach (step), with high concentrations occurring within areas of reduced wave energy. Engineering structures extending across the foreshore, such as the Coastal Engineering Research Facility (research pier) at Duck, North Carolina, significantly alter wave action and thus modify the distribution of beach sediment and beach morphology. This, in turn, results in modifications of E. talpoida distributions. The pier's impact on the natural processes and patterns of both physical and ecological elements of the beach introduces an “uncertainty principle” that must be taken into consideration when designing experiments at research facilities. |
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