Seagrasses, oyster reefs, and salt marshes are critical coastal habitats that support high densities of juvenile fish and invertebrates. Yet which species are enhanced through these nursery habitats, and to what degree, remains largely unquantified. Densities of young-of-year fish and invertebrates in seagrasses, oyster reefs, and salt marsh edges as well as in paired adjacent unstructured habitats of the northern Gulf of Mexico were compiled. Species consistently found at higher densities in the structured habitats were identified, and species-specific growth and mortality models were applied to derive production enhancement estimates arising from this enhanced density. Enhancement levels for fish and invertebrate production were similar for seagrass (1370 [SD 317] g m^–2 y^–1for 25 enhanced species) and salt marsh edge habitats (1222 [SD 190] g m^–2 y^–1, 25 spp.), whereas oyster reefs produced ~650 [SD 114] g m^–2 y^–1(20 spp). This difference was partly due to lower densities of juvenile blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) on oyster reefs, although only oyster reefs enhanced commercially valuable stone crabs (Menippe spp.). The production estimates were applied to Galveston Bay, Texas, and Pensacola Bay, Florida, for species known to recruit consistently in those embayments. These case studies illustrated variability in production enhancement by coastal habitats within the northern Gulf of Mexico. Quantitative estimates of production enhancement within specific embayments can be used to quantify the role of essential fish habitat, inform management decisions, and communicate the value of habitat protection and restoration.

海草、牡蛎礁和盐沼是重要的沿海栖息地，支持高密度的幼鱼和无脊椎动物。然而，通过这些苗圃栖息地，哪些物种得到了增强，在何种程度上得到了增强，在很大程度上仍未量化。编制了海草、牡蛎礁和盐沼边缘以及墨西哥湾北部成对的相邻非结构化栖息地中的幼鱼和无脊椎动物的密度。确定了在结构化栖息地中始终以较高密度发现的物种，并应用了特定物种的生长和死亡率模型来推导出由这种密度增加引起的增产估计。鱼类和无脊椎动物产量的增强水平与海草相似 (1370 [SD 317] gm ^–2 y ^–125 种增强物种）和盐沼边缘栖息地（1222 [SD 190] gm ^–2 y ^–1 , 25 spp.），而牡蛎礁产生了约 650 [SD 114] gm ^–2 y ^–1（20 spp）。这种差异部分是由于牡蛎礁上幼年蓝蟹（Callinectes sapidus）的密度较低，尽管只有牡蛎礁增加了具有商业价值的石蟹（Menippe）属）。产量估计适用于德克萨斯州加尔维斯顿湾和佛罗里达州彭萨科拉湾，已知物种在这些海湾中持续招募。这些案例研究说明了墨西哥湾北部沿海栖息地增产的变化。特定海湾内增产的定量估计可用于量化基本鱼类栖息地的作用，为管理决策提供信息，并传达栖息地保护和恢复的价值。