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Objectives
The overall objective of NOAA's Estuarine Living Marine Resources
(ELMR) Program is to develop a consistent data base on
the distribution, relative abundance, and life history characteristics
of ecologically and economically important fishes and invertebrates
in the Nation's estuaries. Specific objectives include:
- Identify key species of estuarine fishes and invertebrates
in each region (West Coast, Gulf of Mexico, Southeast,
Mid-Atlantic, and North Atlantic) of the continental
U.S., based on their ecological and economic importance;
- Collect existing information (survey data sets,
published and unpublished studies, etc.) for these species
in each region;
- Analyze survey data sets and synthesize existing
information to rank the monthly relative abundance
of each species (by life stage) within each salinity zone of
each estuary, using estuarine salinity zones (NOAA 1985) as
a spatial framework for organizing the synthesized data;
- Collect information on estuarine life history characteristics
of all of the selected species.
- Summarize and synthesize life history information
in a series of tables and text summaries;
- Conduct extensive peer-review of synthesized data
and life history summaries with local and regional
fishery scientists and managers;
- Publish summaries of distribution and abundance
data, and life history characteristics, in
a series of regional reports;
- Ensure free availability of information through
distribution of regional ELMR reports, web-enabled
access to ELMR data, and preparation of custom data and map
products upon request;
- Apply the ELMR data to address local and regional
resource management issues; and
- Update and revise ELMR data as needed.
Project Summary
In 1985, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) launched the Estuarine Living Marine Resources (ELMR)
project to develop a consistent data base on the presence,
distribution, relative abundance, and life history characteristics
of ecologically and economically important fishes and invertebrates
in the nation's estuaries. It has been conducted jointly by NOAA's National
Ocean Service (NOS), NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), and other
agencies and institutions. The nationwide data base was completed in 1994,
and includes data for 153 species found in 122 estuaries and coastal embayments
in five regions. Regional revisions were completed for the Gulf of Mexico and
Southeast in 1998.
The data base is divided into five study regions and contains
the monthly relative abundance of each species' life stage
by estuary for three salinity zones (seawater, mixing, and
tidal fresh), as identified in NOAA's National Estuarine
Inventory (NEI) Data Atlas-Volume I and supplement (NOAA 1985).
Regional data summary reports have been published for the North
Atlantic (Jury et al. 1994), Mid-Atlantic (Stone et al. 1994),
Southeast (Nelson et al. 1991), Gulf of Mexico (Nelson et al.
1992), and West Coast (Monaco et al. 1990). Regional life history
summary reports have been published for the West Coast (Emmett
et al. 1991) and Gulf of Mexico (Pattillo et al. 1997). A
National Overview report was completed in 2000 (Nelson and
Monaco 2000). All reports are available for free upon request.
Since completion of the national ELMR data base in 1994, it
has been updated, revised, improved, and applied to specific
problems in natural resource management. To further refine
the spatial resolution of the ELMR framework, a multivariate
methodology was applied to derive five bio-salinity zones in
four "salinity seasons" for Gulf of Mexico and Southeast estuaries.
In addition, ELMR data for the adult and juvenile life stages
of species have been revised based on recent resource surveys
using trawl and other gear. The revised ELMR data were then
linked with the seasonal estuarine bio-salinity zones for the
Gulf of Mexico and Southeast regions, and incorporated into
a Geographic Information System (GIS) to enable spatial organization
of the data. The improved ELMR data base has been used for
a variety of applications, including Habitat Suitability Modeling
(HSM), Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mapping, HazMat
response (oil spill) planning, and the identification of Essential
Fish Habitat (EFH).
Products
Completed -
Published Reports:
- Nelson, D.M., and M.E. Monaco. 2000. National
overview and evolution of NOAA's Estuarine Living Marine
Resources (ELMR) Program. NOAA Tech. Memo. NOS NCCOS CCMA-144.
60 p.
- Pattillo, M.E., et al. 1997. Distribution
and abundance of fishes and invertebrates in Gulf of Mexico
estuaries, Vol. II: Species life history summaries. ELMR
Rep. No. 11. NOAA/NOS SEA Division, Silver Spring, MD. 377
p.
- Jury, S.H., et al. 1994. Distribution and
abundance of fishes and invertebrates in North Atlantic estuaries.
ELMR Rep. No. 13. NOAA/NOS SEA Division, Silver Spring, MD.
221 p.
- Stone, S.L., et al. 1994. Distribution and
abundance of fishes and invertebrates in Mid-Atlantic estuaries.
ELMR Rep. No. 12. NOAA/NOS SEA Division, Silver Spring, MD.
280 p.
- Nelson, D.M. (editor), et al. 1992. Distribution
and abundance of fishes and invertebrates in Gulf of Mexico
estuaries, Vol. I: Data summaries. ELMR Rep. No. 10. NOAA/NOS
SEA Division, Rockville, MD. 273 p. pdf
Link
- Nelson, D.M., et al. 1991. Distribution and
abundance of fishes and invertebrates in southeast estuaries.
ELMR Rep. No. 9. NOAA/NOS SEA Division, Rockville, MD.
167 p. pdf Link
- Emmett, R.L., et al. 1991. Distribution and
abundance of fishes and invertebrates in west coast estuaries,
Vol. II: Species life history summaries. ELMR Rep. No. 8.
NOAA/NOS SEA Division, Rockville, MD. 329 p. pdf Link
- Monaco, M.E., et al. 1990. Distribution and
abundance of fishes and invertebrates in west coast estuaries,
Vol. I: Data summaries. ELMR Rep. No. 4. NOAA/NOS Strategic
Assessment Branch, Rockville, MD. 232 p. pdf Link
*Contact Project Manager for copies of reports
Data
Database — Downloadable Data
ELMR relative abundance data can be downloaded from this website,
by using the search keys for Region, Estuary, Species, Life
Stage, and Salinity Zone as follows:
- Select Region (GULF OF MEXICO, MIDATLANTIC, NORTH ATLANTIC,
SOUTHEAST, OR WEST COAST).
A list of estuaries within the
selected region will appear.
- Select Estuary or estuaries within the region.
- Select Species, but remember that not all species occur
in all regions.
- Select Life Stage (ADULTS, EGGS, JUVENILES, LARVAE, SPAWNING,
or ALL)
- Select Salinity Zone. Each estuary contains one to five
salinity zones.
- Click the Search button. Data will appear on your screen,
along with a record of the search parameters.
- Select Fixed Width, Tab Delimited, or CSV format. Click
the Download Format button to download a file of the displayed
data. The downloaded data file will contain sixteen fields - Estuary,
Common Name, LifeStage, Salzone, and twelve months (J F M
A M J J A S O N D). Data on monthly relative abundance rankings
are interpreted as: = no data available, 0 = not present,
2 = rare, 3 = common, 4 = abundant, 5 = highly abundant.
ELMR Metadata
Partners
Relevant Links
Time Frame
Completed: 1985 - 2000
For More Information
Project Manager:
David Moe Nelson, Marine Biologist
1305 East West Highway
SSMC-IV, N/SCI-1
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301-713-3028 x154