Structural and Functional Aspects of the Ecology of Submerged Aquatic Macrophyte Communities in the Lower Chesapeake Bay. Volume 2: Submarine Light Quantity and Quality in the Lower Chesapeake Bay and Its Potential Role in the Ecology of Submerged Seagrass Communities

摘要

The research reported on in the volume is concerned with the underwater light environment and its relationship to submerged aquatic vegetation. Since light energy is the force by which all ecosystems are driven and since it has been suggested by some researchers that the light environment of the Chesapeake Bay has deteriorated coincident with declining SAV distribution, a research program was devised to analyze the underwater light environment of the lower Chesapeake Bay with respect to seagrasses. As estuarine waters are frequently heavily laden with both autochthonous and allchthonus loads of both organic and inorganic suspended and dissolved materials--all of which affect the spectral distribution of light underwater. The results of these studies along with an analysis of past and present research on the topic reported for the Chesapeake Bay, a primer on aquatic optics and a comparative report on underwater irradiance in a tropical seagrass bed are presented in the report.