Progress 09/15/00 to 09/30/04
Outputs
Task 1. Implement system to provide real-time water quality data to industry. At the peak, 10 water quality monitoring stations were operating throughout Florida. Unfortunately, as these were destroyed by hurricanes or stopped working, they were not replaced. At present we have 2 stations operating and these are no longer real-time. Task 2: Determine impact of food resource availability and quality on clam productivity. Sampling in Suwannee Sound and Indian River has been concluded. These data are being developed into GIS graphic maps. Task 3: Fill gaps in knowledge of Florida clam physiology and response to stressors. We are currently completing experiments examining the effects of typical Florida water temperatures, salinity and oxygen on clam survival. Task 4: Develop a model of Florida clams and clam industry. An intricate model of particle flux to clams, as a proxy for growth, has been developed and is being refined. This model includes environmental factors, clam
physiology, and farmer determined variables. Sensitivity analyses indicate those variables that are most important in determining particle flux to clams, and therefore require further research. Task 5: Technology transfer and extension. Clients include growers, hatchery operators, insurance adjusters, and the public. Our products include newsletters, workshops, an electronic mailing list, and web pages. An additional workshop is scheduled for this spring.
Impacts
When 10 stations were operational, approximately 25% of clam growers accessed the real-time water quality data on the webpage. Over 80% of seed suppliers accessed the water quality data to determine if conditions were comparable between the potential growing site and the hatchery or nursery. Archived data is still available and allows better understanding of the environmental influences on growth and survival of clam crops. Growers are identifying trends in environmental conditions that are critical to clam health, allowing them to make informed long-term management decisions. This project also provided documentation of events associated with crop loss; the data was used in over 1/3 of crop loss claims. This highlights the fact that such monitoring is necessary in those counties eligible for crop insurance. Sensitivity analysis of the model is providing researchers with important new directions for study.
Publications
- Badylak, S., K. Kelley and E. J. Phlips. 2005. A re-examination of Pseudo-nitzschia pseudodelicatissima (Bacillariophyceae) from the Indian River Lagoon. Diatom Research, Accepted for publication.
- Baker, S.M., P. Baker, D. Heuberger, and L. Sturmer. 2005. Short-term effects of rapid salinity reduction on seed clams (Mercenaria mercenaria). Journal of Shellfish Research 24: 29-33.
- Bledsoe, E. L. and E. J. Phlips. 2005. Phytoplankton community structure in the Suwannee River Estuary. Submitted to J. Plankton Research.
- Phlips, E. J., S. Badylak, E. L. Bledsoe and M. Cichra. 2005. Factors influencing the distribution and abundance of Pyrodinium bahamense in coastal ecosystems of Florida. Marine Ecology Progress Series, Accepted for publication.
- Phlips, E. J., J. Hendrickson and M. Cichra. 2005. Meteorological influences on algal bloom potential in a nutrient-rich blackwater river. Submitted to Limnology and Oceanography.
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Progress 10/01/03 to 09/30/04
Outputs
Task 1. Implement system to provide real-time water quality data to industry. We have installed 10 water quality monitoring stations throughout Florida, although 2 were lost during the 2004 hurricane season. Real-time data is posted immediately to a web page. Following an extensive QAQC process, archived data is provided to farmers as PDF files and monthly graphs via webpage. Task 2: Determine impact of food resource availability and quality on clam productivity. Monthly samples from 28 locations in Suwannee Sound have been completed, while sampling in the Indian River continues. Phytoplankton levels appear to be consistently low in April of each year and may be correlated with high mortalities of newly planted seed clams. Task 3: Fill gaps in knowledge of Florida clam physiology and response to stressors. We examined the effects of typical Florida water temperatures, as well as bloom concentrations of phytoplankton, on clam feeding rates and selectivity. Task 4:
Develop a model of Florida clams and clam industry. An intricate model of particle flux to clams, as a proxy for growth, has been developed. This model includes environmental factors, clam physiology, and farmer determined variables. Sensitivity analyses indicate those variables that are most important in determining particle flux to clams, and therefore require further research. Task 5: Technology transfer and extension. Clients include growers, hatchery operators, insurance adjusters, and the public. Our products include newsletters, workshops, an electronic mailing list, and web pages.
Impacts
Approximately 25% of clam growers access the real-time water quality data on the webpage. They view temperature and salinity data and make informed decisions about daily farm management. Over 80% of seed suppliers access the water quality data to determine if conditions are comparable between the potential growing site and the hatchery or nursery. Using this information they may choose to sell, or to delay shipment. Archived data allows better understanding of the environmental influences on growth and survival of clam crops. Growers are identifying trends in environmental conditions that are critical to clam health, allowing them to make informed long-term management decisions. This project is also providing documentation of events associated with crop loss; the data has been used in over 1/3 of crop loss claims. Our feeding study provides information important to the future productivity of cultured clams in semi-tropical environments; it demonstrates that feeding
preferences and abilities of warm water populations may differ from those from cooler environments. Sensitivity analysis of the model is providing researchers with important new directions for study.
Publications
- Baker, S.M., P. Baker, D. Heuberger, and L.N. Sturmer. 2005. Short-term effects of rapid salinity reduction on seed clams (Mercenaria mercenaria). Journal of Shellfish Research 24 (1).
- Beals, C. 2004. Clearance rates and particle selectivity in the hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria, from warm water habitats. Thesis. University of Florida.
- Sturmer, L. 2004. CLAMMRS Data Available. The Bivalve Bulletin VII (1): 6.
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Progress 10/01/02 to 10/01/03
Outputs
Task 1: Implement system to provide real-time water quality data to industry. We have installed 10 water quality monitoring stations throughout Florida. Uncorrected, real-time data is posted immediately to a web page. Data undergoes an extensive QA/AC process prior to archival. Archived data is provided to farmers as graphs or PDF files. Task 2: Determine impact of food resource availability and quality on clam productivity. Monthly samples are taken at 28 locations in Suwannee Sound and 8 locations in the Indian River. Sampling shows that high phytoplankton productivity and high clam productivity are related. Lab analyses of chlorophyll correlate well with sensor readings at some locations but not at others. Task 3: Fill gaps in knowledge of Florida clam physiology and response to stressors. Laboratory tolerance tests have been conducted on seed size clams and indicate that high temperatures are a major stressor. Task 4: Develop model of Florida clams and clam
industry. A new model of pumping rate in response to temperature and salinity has allowed increased accuracy of our farmer management decision model. Task 5: Technology transfer and extension. Clients include industry, insurance agents and adjusters, and the public. Our products include newsletters, workshops, an electronic mailing list, and graphs of water quality data.
Impacts
Approximately 25% of clam growers access the water quality data on the webpage. They view temperature and salinity data and make daily management decisions. Over 80% of seed suppliers access the water quality data to determine if conditions are comparable between the potential growing site and the hatchery or nursery. Using this information they may choose not to sell, or to delay shipment. Growers are identifying trends in environmental conditions that are critical to clam health, allowing them to make informed management decisions. This project is also providing documentation of events associated with crop loss; the data has been used in over 1/3 of crop loss claims.
Publications
- Baker, S.M. 2003. CLAMMRS: Clam Lease Assessment, Management and Modeling using Remote Sensing. Ag 2020/IFAFS 2003 Annual Review, December 9-11, Champaign, IL.
- Beals, C. and S.M. Baker. 2003. Clearance rates and feeding selectivity of Mercenaria mercenaria; implications of increased eutrophication in the Suwannee River estuary. National Shellfisheries Association, Program and Abstracts of the 95th Annual Meeting, p. 14.
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Progress 10/01/01 to 10/01/02
Outputs
CLAMMRS accomplishments in 2002: Task 1. Installation of water quality and weather stations. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS), Division of Aquaculture, completed installation of the equipment early this year. In addition to the four counties we originally intended to cover, equipment has been installed in Charlotte and Franklin Counties. Problems with equipment and cell phones, have, for the most part, been worked out. Raw data from the real-time stations is downloaded to a web site (www.FloridaAquaculture.com) several times per day. This site is under continuous construction to improve its use. A brochure has been developed to explain use of the web site. In addition, a technical bulletin has been produced, explaining the definitions, characteristics and effects on clams of such parameters as temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll and turbidity. This information will also be posted on the web site. An extensive Quality
Assurance/Quality Control procedure has been developed to ensure the usefulness of archived data. Task 2. Food resources. The laboratory of Dr. Ed Phlips has established field-sampling sites, corresponding to the water quality system sites. Water samples are collected weekly at 6 sites and on a monthly basis at 27 sites. Chlorophyll a concentrations are determined using standard spectrophotometric analysis. Subsamples of water are preserved and archived for determination of phytoplankton biovolume and species identification using microscopic analysis. Task 3. Laboratory clam physiology experiments. The laboratory of Dr. Shirley Baker is currently conducting feeding trials involving food quality and quantity. Task 4. Computer simulation modeling. Dr. Clay Montague and his graduate student are developing a model, which is built from a series of working hypotheses that account for patterns based on measurable ecological, sociological and economic processes. They have also carefully
examined a model that has been developed for mussel farming. This has been a very useful exercise in developing the clam model. Extension activities. We have set up a listserv, which currently has 50 subscribers. DACS has developed a web page that supports real-time data. Several extension workshops were conducted, explaining the water quality equipment, data and web site.
Impacts
The CLAMMRS Project will address the needs of an important emerging agricultural industry, the hard clam aquaculture industry. First, remote sensing technology will provide clam producers with timely information important to their daily management decisions. Second, we will create an important water-quality and weather database to be used by the pilot crop insurance program to document events associated with crop loss. Third, we will integrate a variety of complex data sets, including water-quality and clam physiology, into a clam production model. The clam production model will provide information to the industry allowing individual growers to make informed decisions to maximize production and use time and resources more efficiently. Fourth, the clam production model will also allow for the prediction of production and HDLA carrying capacity and provide information essential to the future placement of lease sites in such a way as to minimize impacts on estuarine
ecology. Fifth, the development of a technological infrastructure will support the sustainable development and economic viability of the hard clam industry. In so doing it will enhance the quality of life in rural clam farming communities with aquaculture-based economies by increasing net return to the individual clam growers and by enhancing industries attendant to the production of clams.
Publications
- Bulletins: Baker, Shirley M., David Heuberger, Edward J. Phlips and Leslie N. Sturmer. Water Quality and its Role on Hard Clam Production. Cooperative Extension Services, Institute of Food and Agricultural Scineces, University of Florida. April 2002. 6pg.
- Refreed Conference Proceedings: Baker, Shirley M., Edward J. Phlips, David Heuberger, Clay Montague, and Leslie N. Sturmer. Introducing the CLAMMRS Project: Clam Lease Assessment, Management and Modeling using Remote Sensing. The 94th Annual Meeting of the National Shellfisheries Association. April 2002. Mystic Connecticut.
- Oral presentation: Baker, Shirley M. CLAMMRS: Clam Lease Assessment, Management, and Modeling using Remote Sensing. Annual Review of Ag20/20 and IFAFS Programs. December, 2002. John C. Stennis Space Center, Mississippi.
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Progress 10/01/00 to 10/01/01
Outputs
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS), Division of Aquaculture, conducted an extensive bid process for the water quality and weather equipment. Equipment was purchased this fall and is currently being delivered. Equipment will be installed on pilings in the High Density Lease Areas in early January. In addition to the four counties we originally intended to cover, we have purchased sufficient equipment to add a station in Charlotte County. In cooperation with DACS personnel, we have continued to monitor the Gulf Jackson and Horseshoe HDLAs. We now have nearly two years of continuous data on temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen. This data has revealed important details of temporal variability, previously unresolved from monthly samples. This information has been provided to clam farmers through Leslie Sturmer. The laboratory of Dr. Ed Phlips has established field-sampling sites. Water samples are collected on at least a monthly basis.
Chlorophyll a concentrations are determined using standard spectrophotometric analysis. Subsamples of water are preserved for determination of phytoplankton biovolume and species identification. Once the fluorescence-based underwater chlorophyll probes are in place, information obtained from the analysis of water samples will be used to calibrate the precision of the chlorophyll probes and to establish confidence intervals for the relationships between remote chlorophyll measurements and phytoplankton abundance. Students in my lab are developing a comprehensive collection of published literature on food consumption, metabolism, and growth, as well as how these processes are affected by temperature, salinity, oxygen levels, and food quality and quantity. Both the water quality information we have to date, and interactions with clam farmers, suggested that rapid drops in salinity are having an impact on seed clam survival. Thus, we conducted two salinity challenges in the lab,
determining mortality and condition of seed clams following rapid declines in salinity. These experiments revealed that seed clams are relatively hardy and, therefore, there may be compounding environmental factors. We will explore these further this spring. Dr. Clay Montague and his graduate student are currently developing a model, which is built from a series of working hypotheses that account for patterns based on measurable ecological, sociological and economic processes. Once per month, the CLAMMRS team meets with Dr. Montague to discuss identification of relevant features of clam farming dynamics, key variables, and hypotheses concerning the chains and loops of influence among variables. Extension activities: We have set up a listserv, which currently has 50 subscribers. Water quality data is currently supplied to clam farmers in hardcopy. DACS is developing a web page that will support real-time data once the water quality equipment is installed. Extension workshops,
explaining the water quality equipment and data, are planned for January and February.
Impacts
This project is expected to improve yields and increase revenues through the adoption of the use of remote technologies and model recommendations. Measures of success include incresed numbers of growers purchasing crop insurance, realization of the pilot crop insurance program being successfully expanded to other states and commodities, identification of new aquaculture lease areas taht prove to be productive and sustainable, and increasing numbers of people joining the hard clam industry.
Publications
- Baker, S.M., P. Baker, D. Heuberger, and L.N. Sturmer. 2001. Short-term effects of salinity declines on juvenile hard clams, Mercenaria mercenaria. Report. 16pp.
- Sturmer, L.N. 2001. Short-term effects of salinity declines on seed clams. Shellfish Aquaculture Newsletter, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service 5 (4): 4.
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