Spatial patterns of intertidal peracarids, associated with the alga Corallina elongata, were studied along the whole Iberian Peninsula. A total of 28,215 specimens were collected, comprising 78 different species (57 amphipods, 16 isopods, 4 tanaids and 1 cumacean), most of them with Atlantic-Mediterranean distribution (60%) and only 9% of Mediterranean endemics. Gammarids were dominant in abundance and number of species, representing more than 70% of the total peracarids. The most common species collected during the present study were the caprellid Caprella penantis, the gammarids Hyale schmidti, Hyale stebbingi, Jassa cf. falcata and Stenothoe monoculoides, the isopod Ischyromene lacazei and the tanaid Tanais dulongii. Caprellids and tanaidaceans presented their highest populations in the stations of the Strait of Gibraltar, whereas isopods were more abundant in Atlantic stations. Univariate analyses did not reflected differences in number of species, abundance and ShannonWeaver diversity between Mediterranean and Atlantic. However, cluster analyses and Whittaker index, as measure of ß-diversity, showed a different species composition between Mediterranean and Atlantic and a replacement of species along the coast, especially at the Strait of Gibraltar. The turnover mainly affected species of the same genera, probably related with sympatric speciation. CCA and BIO-ENV analyses showed high correlations between environmental measures (especially conductivity) and peracarid distribution. Mediterranean species tolerated higher values of conductivity and temperature, while Atlantic species were associated with stations characterized by higher oxygen concentrations.
Abundance patterns of intertidal caprellids associated with the alga Corallina elongata were studied along the Iberian Peninsula. Nineteen stations were selected. The Mediterranean coast showed higher seawater temperature and conductivity and lower dissolved oxygen and turbidity than the Atlantic coast. Cover of C. elongata was negatively correlated with seawater temperature and decreased towards the Mediterranean sites. Number of caprellid species and abundances were higher in stations in the Strait of Gibraltar, probably related with the currents' dynamic around this area. In general, caprellids associated with C. elongata were more abundant along the Mediterranean than along the Atlantic, in spite of the lower algal cover in Mediterranean stations. Caprella hirsuta and C. liparotensis were restricted to the Mediterranean coast whereas C. penantis was only found in the Atlantic and the Strait of Gibraltar. Although C. grandimana has been reported along the Mediterranean, its presence on Corallina elongata was restricted to the Strait of Gibraltar. Oppositely, Caprella liparotensis, which usually inhabits Atlantic and Mediterranean intertidal ecosystems, was only present in the Mediterranean and did not coexist with C. penantis along the Atlantic. Probably, competence process among C. grandimana, C. hirsuta, C. liparotensis and C. penantis are regulating the distribution patterns on the intertidal alga Corallina elongata. On the other hand, canonical correspondence analysis showed a clear preference of Caprella penantis at sites with high oxygen concentrations, whereas C. hirsuta was mainly influenced by higher temperature and conductivity.
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