The Estuaries Section is sponsoring 2 symposia at the 2018 AFS Annual Meeting in Atlantic City, NJ.

Monstees of Climate Change
Organizers: Lee Benaka, Lynn Waterhouse, James Vasslides
Symposium Description: Full understanding of the effects of climate change on marine and freshwater ecosystems remains a hot topic of study. A variety of linked changes may also impact these environments and the species that dwell within, including warming temperatures, ocean acidification, de-oxygenation of water. While scientists have been assessing many of these impacts for decades, our understanding, tools, and management approaches are constantly evolving. The objectives of this symposium are to 1) highlight the most recent and pertinent research on these topics and 2) chart future areas of research. We aim to elicit broad discussion and draw contributions from a diversity of leading experts, young professionals, and students who are actively advancing this discipline of fisheries science. This symposium is meant to highlight talks by early career scientists and students, as a counterpart to the “Monsters of Climate Change” symposium which will feature talks from leading scientists in the field.

Life in the Big City: Understanding Urbanization Impacts on Estuarine Fishes and Shellfish
Organizers: James Vasslides and Catherine Johnston
Symposium Description: Estuaries provide critical habitat for an assortment of fish species that rely on them during some, or all of, their life history. Humans also depend on estuaries in a number of ways, as they provide a variety of economic, cultural, and ecological services. Nearly 50% of the population of the U.S. lives in coastal counties, most of that falling within estuarine watersheds. These watersheds are undergoing different rates of urbanization and the change from “natural” systems to those dominated by human development can impose significant stressors on estuaries. The purpose of this symposium is to explore the impacts of urbanization on estuarine fishes and shellfish. Many human activities have adverse consequences for estuarine organisms (e.g., dredging, shoreline hardening, flow manipulation, pollution, and introduced species to name a few) so topics of interest are diverse. We invite presentations from researchers working in estuaries across the country that examine both direct and more indirect impacts of urbanization on fishes and shellfish.