Florida Bay Science Program: a synthesis of research on Florida Bay

This report documents the progress made toward the objectives established in the Strategic Plan revised in 1997 for the agencies cooperating in the program. These objectives are expressed as five questions that organized the research on the Florida Bay ecosystem: Ecosystem History What was the Florida Bay ecosystem like 50, 100, and 150 years ago? Question 1—Physical Processes How and at what rates do storms, changing freshwater flows, sea level rise, and local evaporation and precipitation influence circulation and salinity patterns within Florida Bay and exchange between the bay and adjacent waters? Question 2—Nutrient Dynamics What is the relative importance of the influx of external nutrients and of internal nutrient cycling in determining the nutrient budget for Florida Bay? What mechanisms control the sources and sinks of the bay’s nutrients? Question 3—Plankton Blooms What regulates the onset, persistence, and fate of planktonic algal blooms in Florida Bay? Question 4—Seagrass Ecology What are the causes and mechanisms for the observed changes in the seagrass community of Florida Bay? What is the effect of changing salinity, light, and nutrient regimes on these communities? Question 5—Higher Trophic Levels What is the relationship between environmental and habitat change and the recruitment, growth, and survivorship of animals in Florida Bay? Each question examines different characteristics of the Florida Bay ecosystem and the relation of these to the geomorphological setting of the bay and to processes linking the bay with adjacent systems and driving change.This report also examines the additional question of what changes have occurred in Florida Bay over the past 150 years

1999 Florida Bay and adjacent marine systems science conference; November 1-5, 1999; Westin Beach Resort, Key Largo, FL

The Florida Bay Science Conference provides an opportunity annually for researchers to exchange technical information, share that information with resource managers and other interested conference attendees, and establish collaborative partnerships. This year’s conference allows investigators from more than 90 research and monitoring projects the opportunity to highlight their findings in platform and poster presentations

2005 Florida Bay and Adjacent Marine Systems Science Conference; Hawk’s Cay Resort Duck Key, Florida; December 11-14, 2005: program and abstract book

Conference themes addressed: Applications and Restoration Targets, the Mangrove-Estuarine Transition Zone, Benthic Habitats, Water Quality, Physical Processes, Higher Trophic Levels, and Adjacent Systems

Fifth Florida Bay Science Conference: Joint Conference on the Science and Restoration of the Greater Everglades and Florida Bay Ecosystem; Westin Innisbrook, Palm Harbor, FL; April 13-18, 2003: "From Kissimmee to the Keys"

This joint conference is to provide a forum for physical, biological, and social scientists to share their knowledge and research results concerning restoration of the Greater Everglades and Florida Bay Ecosystem