A conceptual ecosystem model of the Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program study area : final report
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Date
1995
Authors
Montagna, Paul A.
Li, Jian (Marine scientist)
Street, Gregory T.
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Description
The purpose of this project is to develop a conceptual model to describe mechanistic relationships among biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic components of the estuarine ecosystems contained within the Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program (CCBNEP) area. A conceptual model is a presentation of the ecosystem components and linkages among components in a schematic format. The model also includes components for socioeconomic and management policy mechanisms. Therefore, the conceptual model will be useful to environmental managers in the resolution of CCBNEP priority problems. The conceptual model was developed using a hierarchical structure. The CCBNEP area can be viewed as a single unit with components; the components are composed of subcomponents, and so on. If all the details of an ecosystem are presented in one large model, then it is nearly impossible to identify relationships among components. The hierarchical view allows us to begin focusing on the broadest picture of the CCBNEP area first, then zoom into details of specific subcomponents of interest. Another advantage of the hierarchical nature of the model is that a reader can continue to focus down to finer details depending on the reader's expertise and interest. The conceptual model is presented in both a technical and public format. The two different formats are tailored to audiences of different levels of technical expertise, i.e., resource managers, scientists and engineers versus the general public. The technical format presents the model using energy circuit language, which is a standard format for presenting ecosystem diagrams. The public format presents the same information that is in the technical format, but it is in "cartoon form". Therefore, words, names, or relationships that may not be familiar to the lay person are not an obstacle to understanding the underlying concepts being presented. 2 The model encompasses the three major ecosystems of the CCBNEP study area. These three systems are the Baffin Bay-upper Laguna Madre Estuary, the Nueces Estuary, and the Mission- Aransas Estuary. The generic processes that occur in the CCBNEP study area are included in the model as all these processes occur in each system. The relative importance of some of the processes changes among the ecosystems based on the environmental characteristics that may differ among the three ecosystems. These differing characteristics are primarily freshwater inflow, oceanic exchange with the Gulf of Mexico (both of which are greater in the Nueces and Mission-Aransas Estuaries than in Laguna Madre) and areal extent of specific habitat types within the three estuaries.
Submitted to: Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program
Funded in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. CE-9963-01-2
Submitted to: Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program
Funded in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. CE-9963-01-2
Keywords
LCSH Subject Headings
Estuarine ecology--Texas--Coastal Bend, Ecosystem management--Texas--Coastal Bend, Water quality management--Texas--Coastal Bend, Coastal zone management--Texas--Coastal Bend, Estuarine ecology--Texas--Gulf Coast, Ecosystem management--Texas--Gulf Coast, Water quality management--Texas--Gulf Coast, Coastal zone management--Texas--Gulf Coast