Evaluation of the benthic resource value of impounded and non-impounded tidal creeks in Virginia, USA

Abstract

Potential effects of impounding tidal creeks include alterations in the resource value of downstream wetland habitats. Benthic invertebrates serve as food for higher trophic levels (e.g. crabs and fishes) and, because of their sedentary life style, are constrained to cope with local environmental conditions. Comparisons of macrobenthic invertebrate biomass available to higher levels were made between two impounded and non-impounded creek pairs in coastal Virginia. The results indicate that neither the total amount nor the distribution of this resource varied between impounded and non-impounded creeks. The implication is that impounding the headwater regions of a tidal creek does not severely reduce the resource value of downstream habitats to higher trophic levels.