Resource Library

The resources provided in the Resource Library include materials produced by Reserve staff and/or invited speakers. 

Maps

 

Watershed Maps

Population Density

 

Photos

Mission-Aransas Reserve Photos

 

Videos

Mission-Aransas Reserve videos on YouTube                         

A National Synthesis of Tidal Marshes to Detect Impacts of Climate Change across Multiple Scales

 

Journal Articles, Thesis, Dissertations & Books

Douglas, S., Xue, J., Hardison, A., Liu, Z. 2023. Phytoplankton community response to a drought-wet-climate transition in a subtropical estuary. Limnology and Oceanoagraphy. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.12348

Tunnell, Jace W.; Dunning, Kelly H.; Scheef, Lindsay P.; Swanson, Kathleen M. 2022. Plastic pellet (nurdle) abundance collected by citizen scientists on shorelines across several countries from 2018-11-07 to 2022-05-30 (NCEI Accession 0259486). NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.25921/ccz7-mq57.

Jiang, X., Conner, N., Tunnell, J.W., Liu, Z. 2022. Occurrence, distribution, and associated pollutants of plastic pellets (nurdles) in coastal areas of South Texas. Science of the Total Environment. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156826

 

Osland, M. J., A. R. Hughes, A. R. Armitage, S. H. Scyphers, J. Cebrian, S. H. Swinea, C. H. Shepard, M. S. Allen, L. C. Feher, J. A. Nelson, C. L. O'Brien, C. R. Sanspree, D. L. Smee, C. M. Snyder, A. P. Stetter, P. W. Stevens, K. M. Swanson, L. H. Williams, J. M. Brush, J. Marchionno, and R. Bardou. 2022. The impacts of mangrove range expansion on wetland ecosystem services in the southeastern United States: current understanding, knowledge gaps, and emerging research needs. Global Change Biology https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16111

Biggs, CR, Montie, EW, Kimball, M, Dunn, R, Boswell K, Transue L. 2021. Listen In: Acoustic Monitoring of Estuarine Communities Facing Ecosystem Change. National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative. 23 pp.

 

Quigg, A., Parsons, M., Bargu, S., Ozhan, K., Daly, K., Chakraborty, S., Kamalanathan, M., Erdner, D., Cosgrove, C. and Buskey, E.J. (2021) Marine Phytoplankton responses to oil and dispersant exposures: Review of studies performed in response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. Marine Pollution Bulletin 164 doi/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.122074 

 

Hardy, T., K. Winemiller, E. Buskey, G. Guillen, J. Trungale, D. Opdyke, T. Annear, A. Locke and C. Estes. (2021) Statewide Synthesis of Environmental Flow Studies (2014-2017). Texas Water Development Board Report

 

Dunning, K (2021) Adaptive governance of recreational ecosystem services following a major hurricane. Ecosystem Services.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2021.101324 

Jiang, X., Lu, K., Tunnell, J.W., and Liu, Z. (2021) The impacts of weathering on concentration and bioaccessibility of organic pollutants associated with plastic pellets (nurdles) in coastal environments. Marine Pollution Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112592 

 

Park, B.S., D.L. Erdner, H.P. Bacosa. Z. Liu and E.J. Buskey. (2020) Potential effects of bacterial communities on the formation of blooms of the harmful dinoflagellate Prorocentrum after the 2014 Texas City “Y” oil spill (USA). Harmful Algae 95 doi/10.1016/j.hal.2020.101802

 

Park, B.S. and E.J. Buskey. (2020) The potential impact of bacterial communities exposed to crude oil and light on the growth of the harmful algal blooming species Karenia brevis (Dinophyceae). Marine and Freshwater Research doi 10.107/MF19358

 

Shaheeq Mahmood Rony, S.M., Ren, J. Buskey, E. Sinha, T., and Lynn, T. (2020) Modeling Freshwater Inflows, Nutrient Dynamics and their Relationships to Algal Blooms in Nueces Bay, Texas. Final Report, Texas Coastal Management Program, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Contract No. 19-045-000-B079

 

Dunning, K (2020) Building resilience to natural hazards through coastal governance: a case study of Hurricane Harvey in Gulf of Mexico communities. Ecological Economics. DOI Link

 

Tunnell, J.W., Swanson, K., Dunning, K., and Scheef, L. (2020) Measuring plastic pellet (nurdle) abundance around the Gulf of Mexico using citizen scientists: establishing a platform for policy-relevant research. Marine Pollution Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110794

 

Wasson, K., Raposa, K., Almeida, M., Beheshti, K., Crooks, J.A., Deck, A., Dix, N., Garvey, C., Goldstein, J., Johnson, D.S., Lerberg, S., Marcum, P., Peter, C., Puckett, B., Schmitt, J., Smith, E., St. Laurent, K., Swanson, K., Tyrrell, M., Guy, R. (2019) Pattern and scale: evaluating generalities in crab distributions and marsh dynamics from small plots to a national scale. Ecology.

 

Harwell, M.A., Gentile, J.H., McKinney, L.D., Tunnell, J.W., Jr., Dennison, W.C., Kelsey, R.H., Stanzel, K.M., Stunz, G.W., Withers, K., and Tunnell, J. (2019) Conceptual Framework for Assessing Ecosystem Health. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management. https://doi.org/10.1002/ieam.4152

 

Wessel, C., Swanson, K., Weatherall, T., and Cebrian J. 2018 Accumulation and distribution of marine debris on barrier islands across the northern Gulf of Mexico. Marine Pollution Bulletin. DOI Link

 

Hutchison, L.M., Pollack, J.B., Swanson, K., and Yoskowitz, D. 2018. Operationalizing Blue Carbon in the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Texas. Coastal Management, DOI Link. 

Weatherall, T., Scheef, L.P., and Buskey, E.J. 2018. Spatial and temporal settlement patterns of blue crab (Callinectes sapidus and Callinectes similis) megalopae in a drought-prone Texas estuary. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science. 214:89-97. DOI Link.

Reyna NE, Hardison AK and Liu Z. 2017. Influence of Major Storm Events on the Quantity and Composition of Particulate Organic Matter and the Phytoplankton Community in a Subtropical Estuary, Texas. Front. Mar. Sci. 4:43. doi: 10.3389/fmars.2017.00043

Bruesewitz, D.A., W.S. Gardner, R.A. Mooney and E.J. Buskey. 2015. Seasonal water column ammonium cycling along a semi-arid subtropical river-estuary continuum: responses to episodic events and drought conditions. Ecosystems 18:792-812.

Buskey, E.J., M. Bundy, M Ferner, D. Porter, W. Reay, E. Smith and D. Trueblood, 2015. System-wide monitoring program of the National Estuarine Research Reserve system: Research and monitoring to address coastal management issues. In: Coastal Ocean Observing Systems: Advances and Syntheses. Pp. 392-414. Y. Liu, H. Kerkering and R.H. Weisberg (Eds.). Elsevier.

Turner, E.L., D.A. Bruesewitz, R.F. Mooney, P.A. Montagna, J.W. McClelland, A. Sadovski, and E.J. Buskey. 2014. Comparing performance of five nutrient- phytoplankton- zooplankton (NPZ) models in Coastal Lagoons. Ecological Modeling. 277:13-26.

Mohan, J.A., Walther, B.D., 2014. Spatiotemporal variation of trace elements and stable isotopes in subtropical estuaries: II. Regional, local, and seasonal salinity-element relationships. Estuaries and Coasts. DOI Link

Bittler, K.M., L.P. Scheef, E.J. Buskey. 2014. Freshwater inflows and blue crabs: The influence of salinity on selective tidal stream transport. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 514: 137-148 Doi:10.2254/meps10990.

Bruesewitz, D.A., Gardner, W.S., Mooney, R.F., Pollard, L., Buskey, E.J., 2013. Estuarine ecosystem function response to flood and drought in a shallow, semiarid estuary: Nitrogen cycling and ecosystem metabolism. Limnology and Oceanography 58(6): 2293-2309. DOI Link

Froeschke, B.F., Tissot, P., Stunz, G.W., Froeschke, J.T., 2013. Spatiotemporal predictive models for juvenile southern flounder in Texas estuaries. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 33(4): 817-828. DOI Link

Liu, Z., Breecker, D., Mayer, L.M., Zhong, J., 2013. Composition of size-fractioned sedimentary organic matter in coastal environments is affected by difference in physical forcing strength. Organic Geochemistry 60: 20-32. DOI Link

Crist, P., Madden, K., Hittle, J. Walker, D., Allen, T., Eslinger, D., 2013. Supporting cross-sector, cross-domain planning through interoperating toolkits. Journal of Conservation Planning 9: 21-37. DOI Link

Froeschke, B.F., Stunz, G.W., Robillard, M.M.R., Williams, J., Froeschke, J.T., 2013. A modeling and field approach to identify essential fish habitat for juvenile bay whiff (Citharichthys spilopterus) and southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma) within the Aransas Bay Complex, TX. Estuaries and Coasts. DOI Link

Evans, A., Madden, K., Morehead, S., 2012. The Ecology and Sociology of the Mission-Aransas Estuary: An Estuarine and Watershed Profile. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 183 pp. PDF

Mooney, R.F. and J.W. McClelland, 2012. Watershed export events and ecosystem responses in the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, South Texas. Estuaries and Coasts 35(6): 1468-1485. DOI Link

Campbell, L., Olson, R.J., Sosik, H.M., Abraham, A., Henrichs, D.W., Hyatt, C.J., Buskey, E.J., 2010. First harmful Dinophysis (Dinophyceae, Dinophysiales) bloom in the US is revealed by automated imaging flow cytometry. Journal of Phycology 46: 66-75. DOI Link

Froeschke, B., Sterba-Boatwright, B., Stunz, G.W., 2010. Assessing southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma) long-term population trends in the northern Gulf of Mexico using time series analyses. Fisheries Research 108: 291-298. DOI Link

Jimenez, J.M., 2008. Regulation of community structure: Top-down effects are modified by omnivory, nutrients, stress, and habitat complexity. Dissertation, University of Houston. PDF

Montagna, P.A., Brenner, J., Gibeaut, J., Morehead, S. 2011. Coastal Impacts. In: Schmandt, J., Clarkson, J., North, G.R. (Eds.), The Impact of Global Warming on Texas, 2nd edition. University of Texas Press, pp. 1-26. PDF

Mooney, R. F., 2009. Watershed export events and ecosystem responses in the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve. M.S. Thesis. University of Texas at Austin. PDF 

 

Technical Reports & Conference Proceedings

Scheef, L.P. and E.J. Buskey (2019) Assessing the effects of freshwater inflows and other key drivers on the population dynamics of blue crab and white shrimp using a multivariate time-series modeling framework: Phase 2. Final Report, Texas Water Development Board, Sponsor Project ID 1600011966

Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve. 2015. Freshwater Inflows: Determining Flow Regimes in the Face of Land Use Change, Climate Change, and Other Unknowns. National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative. PDF

Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve. 2015. An Assessment of Little Bay Water Quality and Seagrass Monitoring Program. PDF

Smith, L., Chavez-Ramirez, F., Lumb, L., and J. Gibeaut, 2014. Employing the Conservation Design Approach on Sea-Level Rise Impacts on Coastal Avian Habitats along the Central Texas Coast. Submitted to the Wildlife Management Institute, Contract GCPLCC 2012(2). PDF. Appendices PDF

Madden, K., Morehead, S., 2011. Mission-Aransas NERR Ecosystem Based Management Tool Demonstration Project: An Integrated Approach to Land Use Planning in Aransas County. UT Technical Report No. TR/11-001. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 37 pp. PDF

Dunton, K., Wilson, C., 2010. An Assessment of Little Bay Sediment and Water Quality in Relation to Indices of Seagrass Condition. UT Technical Report No. TR/10-001. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 79 pp. PDF

Beyer, T.G., Rasser, M., Morehead, S., 2007. Development of a Comprehensive Habitat Map for the Mission Aransas NERR Using the NERRS Habitat Classification Scheme: Matagorda Island, Texas. Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Port Aransas, Texas. 37 leaves. PDF

Crist, P., Madden, K., Eslinger, D., Walker, D., Anderson, A., Varley, I., Morehead, S., Dunton, K. Integrated Land-Sea Planning: Technical Guide to the Integrated Land-Sea Planning Toolkit. EBM Tools Network. PDF

EIS No. 20060078, Final EIS, NOA, TX, Programmatic—Texas National Estuarine Research Reserve and Management Plan, Mission-Aransas Estuary, Site Designation, Federal Approval, TX., Notice of Availability. Federal Register 71:52 (Friday, March 17, 2006) p. 13838. PDF

Leister, C., Morehead, S., 2009. Coastal Training Market Analysis and Needs Assessment: Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve: Final Report. UT Technical Report No. TR/09-001. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 62 pp. PDF

Mission-Aransas Reserve, 2011. Highlights of Activities and Program Strategies 2006-2011. The University of Texas at Austin, University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Austin, Tx. PDF

Morehead, S., Beyer, T.G., Dunton, K., 2007. Community Characterization of the Mission- Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve and Surrounding Areas. Revised May 3, 2007. UTMSI Report TR/07-001. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 42 leaves. PDF

NOAA, 2005. Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement: Federal Approval of the Texas National Estuarine Research Reserve and Management Plan, the Mission-Aransas Estuary. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, Estuarine Research Division, Silver Spring, Md., 1 v. PDF

NOAA, 2006. Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement: Federal Approval of the Texas National Estuarine Research Reserve and Management Plan, the Mission-Aransas Estuary. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, Estuarine Research Division, Silver Spring, Md., 1 v. PDF of FPEIS and PDF of Management Plan (19 MB)

NOAA, 2011. Final Evaluation Findings, Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, Estuarine Research Division, Silver Spring, Md. PDF 

Notice of Designation of the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve in Texas. Federal Register 71:101 (May 25, 2006) p. 30121-30122. Available from the Federal Register Online via GPO Access: wais.access.gpo.gov [DOCID:fr25my06-35] PDF

UTMSI, 2003. Texas National Estuarine Research Reserve: Site Nomination and Application for Predesignation Assistance. University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, Texas, 80 pp. PDF

Young, L.P., Smith, E. H., 2007. Applications of GIS Methods for Environmental Learning in South Texas. ESRI 2007GIS EDUC Annual Meeting Proceedings. 4 pp.PDF