Feb 24, 2010 - east as Escambia Bay, Florida, with Weeks Bay, National. Estuarine Research ... salinity (15°C). ...... Suttkus, R.D., D.A. White, and M.F. Mette. 1999. Atlas of ...
Estuaries and Coasts (2011) 34:148–158 DOI 10.1007/s12237-010-9266-5
Distribution, Abundance, and Habitat Characterization of the Saltmarsh Topminnow, Fundulus jenkinsi (Everman 1892) John D. Lopez & Mark S. Peterson & Jake Walker & Gretchen L. Grammer & Mark S. Woodrey
Received: 24 August 2009 / Revised: 6 November 2009 / Accepted: 7 January 2010 / Published online: 24 February 2010 # Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation 2010
Abstract The saltmarsh topminnow (Fundulus jenkinsi) is federally listed as a Species of Concern due to a its rarity, impacts from human activities, and lack of information on its biology and ecology. From 2007 through 2008, we used Breder traps to fish the marsh edge on a falling tide in four regions from Louisiana through the Florida panhandle during winter, spring, and summer periods. Out of 2,108 Breder traps deployed, 661 F. jenkinsi were collected as far east as Escambia Bay, Florida, with Weeks Bay, National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR), Alabama, yielding the highest F. jenkinsi abundance. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to ordinate physical–chemical data into two meaningful components: a geomorphic axis (water depth, bank slope, and plant stem density) and a seasonal/spatial axis of species occurrence (water temperature, salinity, and turbidity). PCA showed a higher mean catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) in environments comprised of low to moderate stem density (
