Response of Shrimp Populations to Land-Derived Nitrogen in Waquoit Bay, Massachusetts

Land-derived nitrogen impacts are a major agent of change affecting estuarine populations. Some changes include macroalgae and phytoplankton blooms, which alter food webs and benthic habitats. N loads may influence the abundance, species composition, and growth rates of the shrimp species that are common in estuaries of Cape Cod, such as those in the genera Palaemonetes and Crangon. Estuaries of the Waquoit Bay estuarine system offer the opportunity to examine how shrimp of different species respond to different land-derived N loads, because different subestuaries are subject to different land-derived loads. In this study, the effects of differences in land-derived N loads on shrimp abundance, shrimp species composition, growth rate, and reproduction in estuaries of Waquoit Bay, Massachusetts were assessed. Full report here.