indicating that the water is of a clarity sufficient to allow

greater visibility; that is, the Secchi Depths at these

stations are limited by the bottom and not by the clarity

of the water. This close correlation between Secchi Depths

and light transmittance in coastal waters has also been re-

cently reported by Holmes (1970).

 The amount of suspended matter (Table 7) in the water

varies throughout the study area, as is obvious on visual

inspection. Further, those sites which routinely have high

turbidity are also most heavily affected during periodic

flooding. of interest is the observation that, following

the initial drop in concentration of suspended solids, con-

tributed by flooding on May 9th to 10th, there was a second

slighter increase about a week later (Figure 7). This in-

crease is attributed to organic debris from organisms dam-

aged or killed by the suddenly lowered salinity. Beginning

on May 18th, when enough mud had cleared from the water to

make a noticeable improvement in clarity, large amounts of

floating material was noted throughout the Lagoon. Most ot

it was recognized as fragments of Thalassia, various fila-

mentous algae, and hydroids which are abundant on the mangrove

roots.

 On Hay 11, after the storm, the entire area was heavily

silted and visibility was poor everywhere. The plume of muddy


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