The Relationship of Dissolved Oxygen Levels and Species Diversity and Observation Frequency of Bivalves in New York City Waters

Fawziyah Shamim, Britney Lacy, Noel Mathew, and Elijah Polanco

Our project, which was conducted by MHC sophomores Fawziyah Shamim, Britney Lacy, Noel Mathew, and Elijah Polanco, is dedicated to the populations of bivalves in New York City Harbor Waters. We were curious about environmental impacts on these species and decided to observe the relationship between dissolved oxygen (DO) levels, and the observation frequency and species counts of bivalves. We gathered data from NYC Open Data and iNaturalist to find DO values and observation and species counts. We then analyzed the data to see if there is a relationship between these variables. Overall, it was a very interesting project to take on and we are so happy to share our findings with the community!