The McNabney Marsh has not seen tidal waters in about 100 years and due to the perseverance by and diligence of the Peyton Slough Wetlands Advisory Committee (PSWAC) members, the re-introduction of tidal waters was implemented in August 2008. Benthic infauna are primarily sedentary, invertebrate organisms that burrow in or live on the surface of sediments. Benthic infauna communities fluctuate in response to natural and human induced environmental perturbations and therefore can be important indicators of environmental health and form important components of many ecological monitoring programs. This study included sampling of benthos at five of the historically monitored sampling stations in the McNabney Marsh area before the tide gates were opened in August-2008 and one year later. Benthic community attributes will be summarized for each station using species richness and abundance measures and a qualitative comparison between the two sampling seasons will be summarized. An effort to characterize the McNabney Marsh benthic community in the context of other similar habitats in other parts of the Estuary and/or Suisun Bay will be made using existing data from other studies of benthos around the Estuary.

Contact Sarah Lowe for more information.

Collaborator

Susan McCormick (taxonomy services)

Funder

Mountain View Sanitary District

Programs and Focus Areas: 
Clean Water Program
Data Services
Location Information