Currents in the area of the oyster-mussel farm as a factor of the optimum functioning of the mari farm (Sevastopol, Black Sea)

• Main Authors: M. A. Popov, A. V. Erokhin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: A. O. Kovalevsky Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas of RAS 2017-12-01
• Series: Морской биологический журнал
• Subjects: marine farm; currents; discrete tracers; wind frequency; Black Sea
• Online Access: https://mbj.marine-research.org/article/view/97
• ISSN: 2499-9768; 2499-9776

Research of currents is one of the primary tasks in the organization of an oyster-mussel farm. The main influence of the currents is on the distribution of shellfish feeding, the transfer and settling of larvae, and the supply of oxygen to the inhabitants of the farm. For the first time, studies of currents in the area of mariculture were conducted in 1999–2002. The aim of this work is to assess the effect of currents on the functioning of the oyster-mussel farm, as well as to clarify the information about the currents in the mariculture area. To measure the speed and direction of the currents, freely drifting landmarks with different depths of the damper were used. The coordinates of the tracers were recorded using the GPS receiver “Garmin 72 H”. All in all for the period 2014–2016 17 launches were conducted. In addition, the speed and direction of the wind in the vicinity of the farm were studied. It was found that the average currents velocity in the region of the truss at the surface was 11 cm·s-1, at depths of 6 and 10 m – 3 cm·s-1. The absolute values of the current velocity varied from 0.3 to 23.0 cm·s-1 at all horizons. Directions of currents on the surface coincided with the direction of the wind, in rare cases, minor deviations of the currents were observed due to the influence of the shoreline and the bottom. Compensatory counterflows are noted in the near-bottom horizons of the Karantinnaya Bay. Dominant directions of currents were determined, using the rose of the frequency of local wind directions. The most frequent directions of the currents on the farm were from the open sea (southern, south-eastern and eastern points) and the Karantinnaya Bay (northern and northeastern points). Currents of the western and south-western direction, carrying water from the Sevastopol Bay, were more rare. Almost no current of north-western direction was observed. In general, the speed and direction of the currents in the oyster-mussel farm were found favorable and optimal for the development of suspended conchioculture.