Larval Behavior and Protective Implications for Sea Scallops and Surf Clams within the Middle Atlantic Bight: Part One, a Sensitivity Study

Abstract

In this study, sensitivity studies of larval behaviors were performed, using numerical modeling and analytical methods, for sea scallops (Placopecten magellanicus) and surf clams (Spisula solidissima) in the Middle Atlantic Bight during 2006 and 2010. Based on multiple experiments, a regional ocean modeling system (ROMS) was implemented as the primary physical model, and larval individual behavior models (IBMs) for sea scallops and surf clam larvae were implemented and coupled to the ROMS. To simulate the physical environment and larval behavior using a series of numerical experiments, he coupled ROMS and IBMs were then employed and were driven by realistic dynamic forcing (e.g., winds, tides, and climatological mean boundaries), thermo-dynamic fluxes (e.g., solar radiation, sensible and latent heating), and hydrological forcing for larval behaviors such as vertical swimming and sinking, horizontal drifting with currents, growth, and settlement. Various growth patterns, release types, and larval behavioral parameters were analyzed and are summarized here, based on implications for the protection of sea scallops and surf clam larvae in the Middle Atlantic Bight.