Conceptual Framework for Assessing Ecosystem Health.

Over the past century, the environment of the Gulf of Mexico has been significantly altered and impaired by extensive human activities. A national commitment to restore the Gulf was finally initiated in response to the unprecedented Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. Consequently, there is a critical need for an assessment framework and associated set of indicators that can characterize the health and sustainability of an ecosystem having the scale and complexity of the Gulf.

Benthic microalgae serve as the major food resource for porcelain crabs ( spp.) in oyster reefs: gut content and pigment evidence.

Suspension-feeding porcelain crabs ( spp.) are often the most abundant decapod crustaceans in oyster reef habitat. Analysis of water column and subtidal algal biomass from three Texas estuaries suggests that planktonic food resources are insufficient for porcelain crab growth.

Shorebird use of coastal wetland and barrier island habitat in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Gulf Coast contains some of the most important shorebird habitats in North America. This area encompasses a diverse mixture of estuarine and barrier island habitats with varying amounts of freshwater swamps and marshes, bottomland hardwood forests, and coastal prairie that has been largely altered for rice and crawfish production, temporary ponds, and river floodplain habitat. For the purposes of this review, discussion is confined to general patterns of shorebird abundance, distribution, and macro- and microhabitat use in natural coastal, estuarine, and barrier island habitats on the Gulf of Mexico Coast.