Tidal circulation and larval transport through a Barrier Island inlet
As a part of the NOAA South Atlantic Bight Recruitment Experiment (SABRE), a detailed modeling study is in progress to define likely larval transport pathways in the vicinity of Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. Modeled tidal circulation near the inlet has been verified using data from a NOAA tide study conducted in the mid 1970s. Particle tracking results indicate that larval ingress is most effective close to shore and that a substantial residual eddy exists to the west of the inlet and just offshore of the western ebb tidal delta. This eddy may play a significant role in trapping and preventing larvae from entering the inlet. Results also indicate a substantial difference in the way that transport occurs on the east and west sides of the inlet due to the inlet geometry and the configuration of primary channels that lie immediately inland. The latter results are independent of any assumed simple day/night behavior and are remarkably consistent with larval and drifter data from a multidisciplinary field study in Beaufort Inlet during March of 1996.
