Abstract
Eelgrass is a critical marine fisheries habitat in Massachusetts which has seen a reduction in areal coverage of 20% in the last decade. Analyses of loss are based on aerial imagery that is costly and time-consuming to collect and process. Methods with finer spatial and temporal resolution are of interest in order to better catalog and understand local-scale losses and expansions of eelgrass coverage. Three singlebeam and sidescan units were tested and used to update eelgrass maps in Duxbury Bay, Massachusetts in 2014. Although mapping methods differed, loss of several meadows in the bay between 2012 and 2014 was confirmed.
Presenter Bio
Dr. Ford received her PhD in geological oceanography from the URI Graduate School of Oceanography. She currently manages the Fisheries Habitat Program at DMF, which handles ocean planning, environmental review, and habitat research that focuses on eelgrass, marshes, and artificial reefs. Her research focuses on mapping and classifying seafloor habitats with video and acoustic methods. She is a member of the NEFMC Habitat PDT, the Mass. Ocean Science Advisory Council, and represents DMF on the Northeast Regional Planning Body. She is an adjunct professor at U Mass. Dartmouth and teaches GIS.
Publication Date
2-13-2015
Document Type
Presentation
Recommended Citation
Ford, Kathryn, "Mapping Eelgrass with Sonar" (2015). Seminars. 166.
https://scholars.unh.edu/ccom_seminars/166