. Ecology of Buzzards Bay : an estuarine profile. Estuarine ecology -- Massachusetts Buzzards Bay (Bay); Ecology -- Massachusetts Buzzards Bay Watershed. m Fig. The silversides (Menidia menidia). Photo by J. Fig. The mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus) Photo by J Teal. Nonresident species differ in their use of the marsh. Some use the marsh as spawning grounds, others for protective nursery grounds with abun- dant food for the growth of juveniles. The three- spined stickleback enters the marsh from Buzzards Bay in spring to spawn and then returns with its young back into the ba
. Ecology of Buzzards Bay : an estuarine profile. Estuarine ecology -- Massachusetts Buzzards Bay (Bay); Ecology -- Massachusetts Buzzards Bay Watershed. m Fig. The silversides (Menidia menidia). Photo by J. Fig. The mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus) Photo by J Teal. Nonresident species differ in their use of the marsh. Some use the marsh as spawning grounds, others for protective nursery grounds with abun- dant food for the growth of juveniles. The three- spined stickleback enters the marsh from Buzzards Bay in spring to spawn and then returns with its young back into the bay. Other invading fishes, such as the alewife, the Atlantic menhaden, the tautog, the sea bass, and the winter flounder use the marsh as a nursery ground and are only present as juve- niles during mid and late summer. Bluefish and striped bass enter the marshes as moderate to large adults for brief periods during high tide and leave during ebbing tide, feeding on many of the smaller resident species in late summer. In a study of the fish populations of Great Sippewissett salt marsh in West Falmouth, Werme (1981) found that resident fish were far more abun- dant than nonresidents (Table ), as is often the case for other fish and bird assemblages. Two resi- dent species, Atlantic silverside and mummichog, accounted for more than 90% of the fish in the marsh. Large differences were found in the growth rates between the resident and nonresident species, with nonresidents growing an average of 10 times as quickly as the resident fish (Table ). Investiga- tion of gut contents and fullness of the dominant resident and nonresident species were consistent with their different growth rates, with invading fish maintaining higher feeding rates than the resident fishes and generally consuming a higher percentage of animal foods (Table ). Resident species tended to be more omnivorous, frequently with high levels of algae and detritus in their guts. While their diet was generally low
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