Observations on the Ecology and Biology of Western Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts

296 Pages·11.939 MB·English

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Lecture Notes on
Coastal and Estuarine
Studies
Managing Editors:
Richard T. Barber Christopher N. K. Mooers
Malcolm J. Bowman Bernt Zeitzschel
11
Observations on the
Ecology and Biology of
Western Cape Cod Bay,
Massachusetts
Edited by John D. Davis and Daniel Merriman
Springer-Verlag
Berlin Heidelberg New York Tokyo 1984
Managing Editors
Richard T. Barber
Coastal Upwelling Ecosystems Analysis
Duke University, Marine Laboratory
Beaufort, N.C. 28516, USA
Malcolm J. Bowman
Marine Sciences Research Center, State University of New York
Stony Brook, N.Y. 11794, USA
Christopher N. K. Mooers
Dept. of Oceanography, Naval Postgraduate School
Monterey, CA 93940, USA
Bernt Zeitzschel
Institut fur Meereskunde der Universitat Kiel
Dusternbrooker Weg 20, D-2300 Kiel, FRG
Contributing Editors
Ain Aitsam (Tallinn, USSR) • Larry Atkinson (Savannah, USA)
Robert C. Beardsley (Woods Hole, USA) • Tseng Cheng-Ken (Qingdao, PRC)
Keith R. Dyer (Taunton, UK) • Jon B. Hinwood (Melbourne, AUS)
Jorg Imberger (Western Australia, AUS) • Hideo Kawai (Kyoto, Japan)
Paul H. Le Blond (Vancouver, Canada) • Akira Okubo (Stony Brook, USA)
William S. Reebourgh (Fairbanks, USA) • David A. Ross (Woods Hole, USA)
S. Sethuraman (Raleigh, USA) • John H. Simpson (Gwynedd, UK)
Robert L. Smith (Corvallis, USA) • Mathias Tomczak (Cronulla, AUS)
Paul Tyler (Swansea, UK)
Editors
John D. Davis
Technical Advisory Services
RO. Box 156, Westford, MA 01886, USA
Daniel Merriman t
Department of Biology (Emeritus) Yale University
New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USA
ISBN 3-540-96084-8 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York Tokyo
ISBN 0-387-96084-8 Springer-Verlag New York Heidelberg Berlin Tokyo
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data. Main entry under title: Observations on the
ecology and biology of western Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts. (Lecture notes on coastal and
estuarine studies; 1.1) Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. Marine biology-Massachusetts-Cape
Cod Bay. 2. Marine ecology-Massachusetts-Cape Cod Bay. I. Davis, John D. (John Dunning),
1929-. II. Merriman, Daniel. III. Series. QH105.M40'27 1984 574.5'2636'0916345 84-22239
ISBN 0-387-96084-8 (U.S.)
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material
is concerned, specifically those of translation, reprinting, re-use of illustrations, broadcasting,
reproduction by photocopying machine or similar means, and storage in data banks. Under
§ 54 of the German Copyright Law where copies are made for other than private use, a fee is
payable to "Verwertungsgesellschaft Wort", Munich.
© 1984 by Springer-Verlag New York, Inc.
Printed in Germany
Printing and binding: Beltz Offsetdruck, Hemsbach/Bergstr.
2131/3140-543210
Copyright American Geophysical Union. Transferred from Springer-Verlag in June 1992.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The editors extend their most sincere gratitude to the members of the Pilgrim
Administrative Technical Committee and the Ecological Monograph Subcommittee for
their generous assistance, their steadfast confidence when progress was difficult,
and their patience when the pace was slow. Equally important, the editors thank
the authors for their signal cooperation, understanding, and flexibility. Special
appreciation is also due to Peter A. Davis for skillful preparation of the
the many illustrations and W. Leigh Bridges for arranging the funding and grants
which make publication possible.
Other special acknowledgements are to Allan D. Hartwell, Sanders Associates,
Inc., for providing sources regarding Gulf of Maine oceanography; William E.
Mason, Central Maine Power Company, for loan of Maine coast fish study results; and
Judith A. Scanlon, Battelle New England Marine Research Laboratory, for special
algae data review services.
Many others, no less important, are to be thanked for the countless tasks
cheerfully completed and for suggestions, advice and assistance readily given.
PRINCIPAL CONTRIBUTORS
ROBERT D. ANDERSON: Nuclear Management Services Department, Boston Edison Company,
25 Braintree Hill Office Park, Braintree, Massachusetts 02184
W. LEIGH BRIDGES: Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, 100 Cambridge
Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02202
JOHN D. DAVIS: Technical Advisory Services, P. 0. Box 156, Westford,
Massachusetts 01886
WALTER GR0CKI: Taxon, Inc., 50 Grove Street, Salem, Massachusetts 01970
THOMAS J. H0RST: Environmental Engineering Division, Stone & Webster Engineering
Corporation, P. 0. Box 2325, 245 Summer Street, Boston, Massachusetts
02107
ROBERT P. LAWT0N: Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, 100 Cambridge
Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02202
GEORGE C. MATTHIESSEN: Ocean Pond Corporation, P. 0. Box 194, Fishers Island,
New York 06390
RICHARD A. McGRATH: Battelle New England Marine Research Laboratory, 397
Washington Street, Duxbury, Massachusetts 02332
DANIEL MERRIMAN: Department of Biology (Emeritus), Yale University, New Haven,
Connecticut 06520
MICHAEL D. SCHERER: Marine Research, Inc., 141 Falmouth Heights Road, Falmouth,
Massachusetts 02540
RICHARD C. TONER: Marine Research, Inc., 141 Falmouth Heights Road, Falmouth,
Massachusetts 02540
OTHER CONTRIBUTORS
MAND0 B0RGATTI, PHILLIPS BRADY, VINCENT MALKOSKI, CHRISTINE SHEEHAN, and
WENDELL SIDES: Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, 100 Cambridge Street,
Boston, Massachusetts 02202
ELIZABETH KOULOHERAS: Massachusetts Department of Environmental Quality
Engineering, Lakeville, Massachusetts 02346
GERD L'UDERS and MAUREEN KAPLAN: The Analytic Sciences Corporation, 6 Jacob Way,
Reading, Massachusetts 01867
FOREWORD
Development and publication of this monograph are the result of the joint
efforts of Boston Edison Company and the Pilgrim Administrative Technical
Committee (PATC). The PATC is an advisory committee established in 1969 to ensure
that Pilgrim Station marine studies have the benefit of qualified scientific and
technical advice and are responsive to regulatory agency concerns. The PATC is
composed of representatives from the following:
Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries
Massachusetts Division of Water Pollution Control
National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA)
U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Dept. of the Interior)
University of Massachusetts
Boston Edison Company
The PATC formed the Pilgrim Station Marine Ecology Monograph Subcommittee to
guide Monograph funding efforts, oversee technical aspects of preparation,
consider editor selection, advise the editors and authors, and resolve possible
conflicts. Members of the Subcommittee were as follows:
W. Leigh Bridges - Mass. Div. Marine Fisheries (Subcommittee Chairman)
Robert Lawton - Mass. Div. of Marine Fisheries
Joseph Pelczarski - Mass. Office Coastal Zone Management
Michael Ross - University of Massachusetts
Robert Leger - U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
Thomas Horst - Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation
Richard Toner - Marine Research, Inc.
Robert Anderson - Boston Edison Company
Lewis Scotton - Boston Edison Company
This publication was made possible by grants from:
Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Boston Edison Company
Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Edison Electric Institute
The environmental studies described herein were funded by Boston Edison Company
in support of regulatory licensing requirements for Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station.
CONTENTS
Preface
Daniel Merriman V
Western Cape Cod Bay: Hydrographic, Geological, Ecological,
and Meteorological Backgrounds for Environmental Studies
John D. Davis 1
Algal Investigations in the Vicinity of Plymouth, Massachusetts
Walter Grocki 19
Irish Moss Harvesting along the Shore of Western Cape Cod Bay
Robert P. Lawton and others 49
Phytoplankton of Western Cape Cod Bay
Richard C. Toner 57
Zooplankton of Western Cape Cod Bay
Richard C. Toner 65
Some Aspects of Nearshore Benthic Macrofauna in Western
Cape Cod Bay
John D. Davis and Richard A. McGrath 77
The Seasonal Occurrence and Distribution of Larval Lobsters
in Cape Cod Bay
George C. Matthiessen 103
Growth and Movement of Tagged Lobsters Released in Western
Cape Cod Bay, 1970-1977
Robert P. Lawton and others 119
The Commercial Lobster Pot-Catch Fishery in the Plymouth
Vicinity, Western Cape Cod Bay
Robert P. Lawton and others 131
The Ichthyoplankton of Cape Cod Bay
Michael D. Scherer 151
Fishes of Western Inshore Cape Cod Bay: Studies in the Vicinity
of the Rocky Point Shoreline
Robert P. Lawton, Robert D. Anderson, and others 191
The Recreational Fishery at Pilgrim Shorefront, Western
Cape Cod Bay
Robert P. Lawton and others 231
Seasonal Abundance and Occurrence of some Planktonic and
Ichthyofaunal Communities in Cape Cod Bay: Evidence for
Biogeographical Transition
Thomas J. Horst, Robert P. Lawton, Richard C. Toner, and
Michael D. Scherer 241
A Brief Survey of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant Effects upon
the Marine Aquatic Environment
IV. Leigh Bridges and Robert D. Anderson 263
APPENDIX I: Personnel of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station
Marine Ecology Study Program, 1969-1980 273
APPENDIX II: Marine, Ecological, and Hydraulic Studies Associated
with Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, 1969-1980 275
INDEX 278
Lecture Notes on Coastal Observations on the Ecology and Biology
and Estuarine Studies of Western Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts Vol. 11
PREFACE
Daniel Merriman
Alice, amongst all her Adventures in Wonderland, comes to a situation where
she has to run faster and faster just to stay in the same place. As Canfield
(1974) has pointed out, this happenstance has a close parallel in the history of
growth patterns for energy.
The simile has two parts. The first involves proliferation of the world
population, advances in technology, etc., which in turn require more and more
energy — i.e., as natural resources diminish we have to run faster and faster to
find new sources of supply just to stay level with the ever increasing demand.
The second part, inseparable from the first, involves the belated realization that
"...our responsibility to preserve the earth and its inhabitants..." carries with
it the comprehension "...that the more energy we use, the more problems of
pollution we encounter." That is, we have to take faster and faster remedial
steps just to keep even with the control of the increasing levels of different
sorts of pollution and degradation.
Canfield (ibid) noted that, "The trick will be to strike a balance... between
our genuine needs for energy...and our need to preserve the earth and its
people". In n\y opinion, in the absence of at least some semblance of pandemic
population control, in order to achieve our goal of sustaining the environment
while staying level with the helix of our standard of living, it will not suffice
to speed up to run a dead heat; rather, we will need to surpass Alice by one means
or another.
In facing up to the problems raised in the preceeding paragraphs, Hubbert
(1969) saw "...nuclear energy as our only remaining energy source of requisite
magnitude", and he pointed out the remarkable rapidity with which we had gone from
the achievement of atomic fission in 1938 to the first large-size nuclear-electric
power plant in 1957 (60 megawatts, Shippingport, Pennsylvania). There followed a
short period, five or six years, devoted mainly to the experimental development of
nuclear facilities whose design would make them economically competitive with
fossil-fueled or hydro-electric plants. By the middle 1960s contracts for plants
in the 500 - 1000 megawatt range were commonplace. At the same time, however, the
problems "of the concomitant effects of large amounts of additional waste heat on
the environment became a widespread source of concern, and in-depth studies on the
Copyright American Geophysical Union. Transferred from Springer-Verlag in June 1992.
Lecture Notes on Coastal Observations on the Ecology and Biology
and Estuarine Studies of Western Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts Vol. 11
10
ECOLOGY AND BIOLOGY OF WESTERN CAPE COD Bill'
consequences of temperature on various aquatic ecosystems were undertaken (Anon.,
1971).
The unfortunate designation, "thermal pollution", now came into common usage
both in the scientific literature and the general press, particularly the latter
where it not only had popular appeal but led to the erroneous conception that any
and all thermal alterations of adjacent waters by industrial effluents were
harmful. My own attempts to introduce the word "calefaction" (Merriman and Thorpe
1976, where also see under Literature Cited on p. 22), which simply means that
there is heating, without carrying the prejudicial connotation that is
detrimental, has largely fallen on deaf ears. The fact is, of course, that
heating may be deleterious; but it may also be beneficial under appropriate
circumstances and in others it may run a middle-of-the-road track and have no
significant effects. Under the circumstances, both nuclear and other power
plants, planned or under construction in different aquatic situations along the
Atlantic coast of the United States, had of necessity to undertake ecological
programs of varying degrees of intensity in attempts to predict and define with as
much precision as possible the potential effects of the thermal effluents.
Among the riverine or coastal nuclear generating installations in the
Northeast, the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (655 MWe), located approximately 8 km
ESE of Plymouth, Massachusetts, on the northwest shore of Cape Cod Bay, most
directly utilizes oceanic waters for cooling purposes. Ecological studies in this
area were begun in 1969, three years prior to commercial start-up. In accordance
with the operational monitoring and reporting requirements of the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, these studies were then carried on (and altered in scope as
occasion.demanded) for another five years, that is until December 1977. And 1n
accordance with the precepts of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, the
ecological program has continued to the present, albeit on a reduced scale. The
overall marine ecology program has been guided by an Administrative-Technical
Committee chaired formerly by a member of the Massachusetts Division of Marine
Fisheries and including representatives from that agency, from the University of
Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Division of Water Pollution Control, the National
Marine Fisheries Service, the U. S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, the
U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Boston Edison Company. The results
reported in this multi-authored publication focus on the study decade 1970-1980.
As these studies progressed their purview expanded on two tacks —
geographical and in the numbers of participating personnel and agencies. The work
Copyright American Geophysical Union. Transferred from Springer-Verlag in June 1992.
Lecture Notes on Coastal Observations on the Ecology and Biology
and Estuarine Studies of Western Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts Vol. 11
MERRIMAN - PREFACE XIII
started with concentration on the area in the vicinity of the plant, but problems
arose requiring more information about the ecology of Cape Cod Bay as a whole.
Because the requisite intelligence was generally not available, it became
necessary to undertake an expanded program of field and laboratory work which, in
turn, dictated additional assistance from sources that could fulfill the demand.
See Appendix II for complete listing of studies.
It is a curious fact that the study of Cape Cod Bay (Fig. 1, p. 2 ) as a
geographical entity has received so little attention. Cape Cod itself marks a
clear ecological boundary between the coastal faunas and floras to its north and
south; the mere fact that the Bay delineates the southern extent of the colder
Gulf of Maine and is part of a biologically transitional zone makes it of general
interest. The additional fact that the Bay has been connected with the
warmer-water zone (Buzzards Bay) by the 14-km land-cut of the Cape Cod Canal since
1916 and is, therefore, a potential recipient of certain elements of the biota
from the south make it of special interest. Furthermore, in view of its proximity
one would suppose that Cape Cod Bay would have attracted more attention from
marine scientists at Woods Hole over the decades.
In an earlier paper (Merriman 1979), I have mentioned the huge volume of
descriptive ecological information that has been accumulated from the mid- and
north-Atlantic bights of the U.S.A. relating to various points where power plants
(both nuclear and fossil-fueled) have been situated, under construction, planned,
or contemplated in the past several decades. Further, Anderson (1982) has pointed
out that, "While sporadic use has been made of study results in the scientific
literature, the great majority of information remains obscured and relatively
unavailable in electric utility environmental reports and files". Surely the time
is ripe to assemble from all the sources now available, past and present, a
definitive documented Inventory of the coastal flora and fauna from Virginia to
Maine — a modern greatly expanded counterpart of the early classic by Sumner,
Osburn and Cole (1913), "A Biological Survey of the Waters of Woods Hole and
Vicinity". Such a compendium would prove invaluable in a variety of fields of
activity, far more so than many other assemblages of data that are carried on
routinely at comparable levels of expense. In view of the millions of dollars
that have been spent by the individual electric utilities and others in acquiring
this and related information, it borders on a regional disgrace not to have it
available as a single multi-volume reference.
A simple example involving the ecology of Cape Cod Bay illustrates the
Copyright American Geophysical Union. Transferred from Springer-Verlag in June 1992.