Deep-sea meiofauna and macrofauna diversity and functional diversity: are they related?

Baldrighi, Elisa; Manini, Elena

doi:10.1007/s12526-015-0333-9

Cited by 22 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 103 publications

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“…They concluded that the meio‐ and macrobenthic nematodes were distinct assemblages in terms of community structure, body size and functional groups, and that large nematodes should be included in macrobenthic studies. The study by Baldrighi and Manini () of meio‐ and macrobenthic nematodes and polychaetes from six sites in the deep Mediterranean Sea reached a similar conclusion. Other studies that have identified macrofaunal nematodes to the species level are those of Pavithran et al.…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 58%

“…As far as we are aware, faunal trends between macrofaunal nematodes and polychaetes have never been compared directly, although there are previous studies comparing macrofauna and meiofauna in which nematodes were included in both size fractions (Netto et al., ; Renaud, Ambrose, Vanreusel, & Clough, ; Sharma et al., ). In particular, Baldrighi and Manini () reported a significant eastward decrease in the density of meio‐ and macrofauna, as well as a positive relationship between the diversity of total macrofauna and meiofauna, macro‐ and meiofaunal nematodes, and meiofaunal nematodes and macrofaunal polychaetes, from six continental slope areas in the Western and Eastern Mediterranean Sea (1,200–2,800 m water depth). The trophic structure of macrobenthic nematodes and polychaetes exhibited a significant change along the continental slope from west to east, with the percentage of carnivores/scavengers/predators increasing for both groups in the central–eastern basin.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Macrofaunal nematodes of the deep Whittard Canyon (NE Atlantic): assemblage characteristics and comparison with polychaetes

et al. 2016

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Large nematodes form an important component of deep-sea macrofaunal assemblages, but are often considered to be part of the meiobenthos and are rarely studied.We analysed the standing stocks, diversity, and functional group and genus-level composition of macrofaunal nematodes at lower bathyal depths (3,500 m water depth) in the Whittard Canyon system (NE Atlantic) and on the adjacent continental slope. Five replicate sample sets were obtained using a Megacorer, at four locations (three canyon branches, one slope). Sediment samples were processed on a 500-μm mesh to provide both nematode and polychaete data from the same samples. The dominant nematode genera included Paramesacanthion, Metacylicolaimus, Cylicolaimus and Phanodermopsis. Nematode standing stocks (density and biomass) increased significantly from slope to canyon locations. Similarly, nematode dominance increased substantially (and diversity decreased) from slope to canyon locations. Nematode feeding groups and tail shape groups also appeared to exhibit common trends across study locations. Nematode genus-level faunal composition varied significantly between slope and canyon locations. We describe and discuss the broadly similar trends detected in the matching polychaete data, noting some differences in the polychaete density and diversity responses. We suggest that the similar trends in macrofaunal nematode and polychaete ecology across our four study locations reflect responses to both changing sedimentology and food availability. K E Y W O R D Sdeep sea, macrobenthos, nematodes, polychaetes, submarine canyon, Whittard Canyon

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 58%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Macrofaunal nematodes of the deep Whittard Canyon (NE Atlantic): assemblage characteristics and comparison with polychaetes

et al. 2016

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“…Data of meiofauna abundance, structural and functional diversity from the Mediterranean basin have been presented in Baldrighi and Manini (2015) and the relationship with macrofaunal structural and functional diversity has been investigated. In the present study, the same dataset has been used, with the addition of new data from the Atlantic area (i.e., macrofaunal diversity, benthic biomass, environmental features) and ecosystem functioning and efficiency proxies.…”

Section: Study Area and Sampling Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For macrofauna analysis, the top 20 cm of sediment from each box-corer and the overlying water were sieved through a 300-µm mesh sieve to retain all macrobenthic organisms (here considered sensu lato, including nematodes, copepods, foraminifera, etc.) (Baldrighi and Manini, 2015). The residue left in the sieve was immediately fixed in buffered formalin solution (10%), and stained with Rose Bengal.…”

Section: Processing Of Environmental and Biological Samplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Functional diversity was assessed using 4 indices ( Table 1): trophic diversity ( −1 ), expected number of deposit feeders (EDF (30) ), expected number of predator species (EPR (20) ), and bioturbation potential (BP) (Baldrighi and Manini, 2015;Quéiros et al, 2015). The trophic diversity index was included, because affinity to a given trophic group entails a discrete selection of food sources, hence a different ecological role (Dunne et al, 2002), and feeding mechanisms are held to be central processes structuring marine ecosystems and providing a strong link between species and ecosystem functions (Pearson and Rosenberg, 1987).…”

Section: Taxonomic and Functional Diversity Of Macrofaunamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the Relationship between Macrofaunal Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in the Deep Sea

et al. 2017

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The global scale of the biodiversity crisis has stimulated research into the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (BEF). Even though the deep sea is the largest biome on Earth, BEF studies in deep-sea benthic ecosystems are scant. Moreover, the small number of recent studies, which mostly focus on meiobenthic nematodes, report conflicting results that range from a very clear positive relationship to none at all. In this BEF study, the deep-sea macrofauna were used as a model to investigate the structural and functional diversity of macrofauna assemblages at three depths (1,200, 1,900, and 3,000 m) in seven open-slope systems from the North-Eastern Atlantic Ocean to the Central-Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The presence and nature of BEF relationships were studied considering two spatial scales, the large and the basin scale, in different environmental settings. Total benthic biomass and macrofaunal predator biomass were used as proxies to assess ecosystem functioning. Ecosystem efficiency was expressed as macrofaunal biomass to biopolymeric carbon content ratio, macrofaunal biomass to prokaryotic biomass ratio, macrofaunal biomass to meiofaunal biomass ratio, and meiofaunal biomass to prokaryotic biomass ratio. On both large and basin spatial scales, some significant relationships between macrofaunal diversity and ecosystem functioning and efficiency were reported. When significant, the nature of BEF relations was positive and exponential or linear supporting the general idea that a higher diversity can enhance ecosystem functioning. Other BEF relationships were explained by the effect of environmental variables. More data from different deep-sea systems are needed, to better elucidate the consequences of biodiversity loss on the ocean floor.

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Fields of General Scientific Importance and Public Interest

Giere

2019

SpringerBriefs in Biology

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Deep-sea meiofauna and macrofauna diversity and functional diversity: are they related?

Cited by 22 publications

References 103 publications

Macrofaunal nematodes of the deep Whittard Canyon (NE Atlantic): assemblage characteristics and comparison with polychaetes

Macrofaunal nematodes of the deep Whittard Canyon (NE Atlantic): assemblage characteristics and comparison with polychaetes

Exploring the Relationship between Macrofaunal Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in the Deep Sea

Fields of General Scientific Importance and Public Interest

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