Epibenthic community monitoring in New Jersey coastal bays: a priority initiative of estuarine research programs.

ABSTRACT. A long-term comprehensive monitoring program is underway to assess epibenthic community form and dynamics in the coastal bays of novel Jersey. This effort is part of major initiatives of one as well as the other the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program and Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research keep Program to monitor water quality and biotic communities in the coastal bays. Data mustered by the monitoring program will be used to delineate patterns of short-term variability and long-term changes in the estuarine environment. The main objective is to generate databases that will