Chapter 4 Habitats
Hard Shell Clams, and Bay Scallops use the SAV beds as nursery areas. SAV meadows are also frequented by adult Spot, Spotted Seatrout, Bluefish, Menhaden, Summer and Southern Flounder, Pink and Brown Shrimp, Hard Shell Clams, and Blue Crabs. Offshore reef fishes include Black Sea Bass, Gag, various snapper species, and Spottail Pinfish. They are the sole nursery grounds for Bay Scallops in North Carolina (SAFMC 1998) . Negative interactions between commercial fishery operations and wildlife often include Diamondback Terrapins, endangered sea turtles, Red-throated Loons, and other diving birds getting caught and drowning in crab pots, fishing gear, and gill nets. Recreational boaters may accidentally strike turtles, Manatees, and birds that use estuarine waters. Meteorological processes influence coastal and estuarine circulation, which influences larval transport in the estuarine system and colonization of nursery locations for flounder species. For flounder, a combination of winds determines the overall supply of larvae to the system, and some combination of wind and river discharge determines migration and settlement into specific nursery locations (Taylor et al. 2010) . Concentrations of prey organisms (worms, algae, crustaceans, mollusks, other invertebrates) associated with soft, shell, and ocean bottoms provide forage for numerous species of fish, shrimp, and crabs (NCDMF 2010, 2015) . Ospreys, egrets, herons, gulls, and terns feed on fauna in SAV beds, while swans, geese, and ducks feed directly on the grass itself. Green Sea Turtles use seagrass beds and juveniles may feed directly on the seagrasses (SAFMC 1998) . Increased salinity will affect species assemblages and influence food-web dynamics by reducing available habitat for species adapted to a specific range in water chemistries. Warming trends can impact corals and SAVs (Zimmerman 2020) and disrupt normal processes such as timing of phytoplankton blooms and larval development (NFWPCAS 2012) , thus affecting food chain dynamics. Larval dispersal will be affected by changes in water circulation patterns, flooding, and intense storm events (DiBacco et al. 2006; Cowen and Sponaugle 2009; Tisseuil et al. 2012) , which will influence geographic distribution of marine species (Block et al. 2011; Haase et al. 2012) . 4.2.14.6 Recommendations SAV beds and water column habitats act as nursery areas for most planktivorous larvae and juvenile pelagic species (e.g., Bluefish, River Herring, Menhaden, Spanish Mackerel) ( NCDMF 2010 ). In addition to fully aquatic species, these habitats are also important foraging areas for sea turtles and migratory and resident pelagic seabirds and waterfowl associated with open water areas. Section 4.2.2 provides recommendations appropriate for all aquatic communities, statewide. Actions specific to the river basins that contribute waters to estuarine aquatic communities are provided in Section 4.5. 4.2.14.6.1 Surveys Surveys are systematic and scientific methods of collecting information about the distribution, abundance, and ecology of wildlife or their habitats in a specific area at a specific time. A
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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