Season of Attachment and Growth of Sedentary Marine Organisms at Lamoine, Maine

Abstract

In recent years a number of studies have been made of the ecology of sedentary marine organisms in various regions. Interest in this subject has been stimulated by the problem of fouling of ships, buoys and other immersed objects. Aside from practical applications these animal and plant communities are of general ecological interest. Examples of papers dealing with this subject are those of Visscher ('27), Coe ('32), Pomerat and Reiner ('42), and Engle & Loosanoff ('44). None have dealt with the faunal region represented by Frenchman's Bay on the Coast of Maine, although a general biological survey of the Mt. Desert region has been made (Procter, '33), and its result~s have been useful in the present study. The objectives of the study at Lamoine were: (1) To identify the species of foulers; (2) To determine the seasonal range of attachment and the time of maximal attachment; (3) To study the growth of individual species after attachment; and (4) To correlate the amount and type of fouling with ecological conditions. Preliminary observations were made during the summer of 1942, and more extensive surveys carried out in 1943 and 1944. Dr. Benjamin Speicher has assisted in identification, and has given valuable suggestions based on several summers' observations at Lamoine.