Nutrient dynamics along a New York Bight transect at Long Branch, New Jersey from May to October 1983

Our study addresses the question of the relati ve contribution of the estuarine outflow and onwelled nutrients to phytoplankton production of the near shore coastal zone outside the apex. To study the time course of these inputs and their relationship to primary productivity, dissolved oxygen depletion rates, and marine life in general, weekly measurements of hydrographic, chemical and biological variables, along a transect off Long Branch, New Jersey, together with daily monitoring at the Long Branch Fishing Pier, were undertaken beginning in May 1983. These frequent weekly samplings compliment larger scaled New York Bight wide surveys which are made approximately four times during the stratified season (Whitledge et al., this annual report).