. Ecology of Buzzards Bay : an estuarine profile . Aug. Nov. Feb. Jun. Sep. 1987 1987 1988 1988 1988 Fig. Composite seasonal water column temperature in Buzzards Bay (Station 1) and New Bedford Outer Harbor (Stations 2-5) Data from Howes and Taylor (1990) had water column anoxia and fish kills (from mid 1980 "s to present) related to periodic summer strati- fication (Costa et al. 1992; Howes and Goehringer 1992). For most of the year higher winds produce a well-mixed water column. It is unclear whether the low watershed-to-bay surface area ratio that results in the relatively low fre
. Ecology of Buzzards Bay : an estuarine profile . Aug. Nov. Feb. Jun. Sep. 1987 1987 1988 1988 1988 Fig. Composite seasonal water column temperature in Buzzards Bay (Station 1) and New Bedford Outer Harbor (Stations 2-5) Data from Howes and Taylor (1990) had water column anoxia and fish kills (from mid 1980 "s to present) related to periodic summer strati- fication (Costa et al. 1992; Howes and Goehringer 1992). For most of the year higher winds produce a well-mixed water column. It is unclear whether the low watershed-to-bay surface area ratio that results in the relatively low freshwater input also produces a lower frequency and/or weaker stratifi- cation of bay waters or if these processes in part maintain the stable benthic communities in the cen- tral basin of the bay. However, given the high oxy- gen demand of central basin sediments (Howes and Taylor 1989; Banta et al. 1990), prolonged stratifi- cation is likely to lead to low oxygen bottom wa- ters. It appears then that the physical structure and the mixing processes of the Buzzards Bay system may be providing a potential buffer to biotic communities inhabiting the open bay. Circulation/Currents and the Tidal and Wind Regime Buzzards Bay is a relatively shallow estuary, with mean low water depths ranging from 5 to 10 m at the head to slightly over 20 m at the mouth. Depth profiles in transects across the bay show a relatively smooth asymmetric bottom near the head, gradually becoming more irregular and convoluted near the mouth. The circulation patterns within Buz- zards Bay are predominately tidal and wind-driven flows acting on a large-scale estuarine density driven flow of about 1 cm/s(Signell 1987). The location and semienclosed nature of Buz- zards Bay result in tidal parameters significantly dif- ferent from those found in the nearby waters of Vine- yard Sound and Cape Cod Bay. To understand these differences, it is necessary to look at the New England Bight as a whole, from Long Island
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