Effects of the Zostera noltei meadows on benthic macrofauna in North Atlantic coastal ecosystems of Morocco: spatial and seasonal patterns

Bououarour, Oussama; Kamcha, Reda El; Boutoumit, Soilam; Pouzet, Pierre; Maanan, Mohamed; Bazairi, Hocein

doi:10.1007/s11756-021-00718-9

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…reported from Z. noltei in Galicia, Spain (36; Junoy and Viéitez, 1992) but are well above the ones reported from beds located in south west Netherlands (22; Bouma et al, 2009) and Portugal (21; Baeta et al, 2009). Our diversity levels also compare with those reported from Z. noltei meadows in the south-western coast of France (means of 27-39 species per site, with a total of 126 species; Blanchet et al, 2004), the Morocco coast (8-29 species per site, 69 species in total; Bououarour et al, 2021), or the diversity of peracaridans in the northwestern Iberian Peninsula (33-42 peracarid species; Esquete et al, 2011). Together, these records suggest that the diversity levels described here are at the upper end of those reported for this eelgrass in the region and elsewhere.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…On each survey date, seven random sediment samples were collected from the central area of the eelgrass bed by SCUBA diving, while other seven were also randomly collected from the nearby bare sediments. Replication levels were deemed appropriate considering prior studies in the area (Surugiu et al, 2013) and elsewhere (e.g., Włodarska-Kowalczuk et al, 2014;Bououarour et al, 2021). Samples were collected with a 10 cm-diameter hand-held corer (inserted up to 15 cm deep) and transferred underwater to labeled jars.…”

Section: Study Site and Sampling Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Hotspot in the Romanian Black Sea: Eelgrass Beds Drive Local Biodiversity in Surrounding Bare Sediments

et al. 2021

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Ecosystem engineers create habitat and provide conditions otherwise unavailable for the development of diverse communities. In marine soft-bottoms in particular, the biodiversity sustained by a matrix of relatively uniform sediments can be drastically enhanced by the presence of ecosystem engineers such as seagrasses. Unfortunately, the influence of seagrass meadows on the diversity of surrounding sediments is often unrecognized in spite of its importance, especially in coastlines exposed to multiple sources of pollution. This study examined composition and diversity associated with a bed of Zostera noltei Hornemann, 1832, and its surrounding bare sediments in a highly urbanized coastal area of the Romanian Black Sea. Dissimilarity levels were quantified and key species driving the differences between uniform (bare) and complex (eelgrass) sedimentary habitats were identified. 48 taxa were collected and counted, with epifaunal and infaunal species each accounting for nearly half of that diversity. Abundance, richness and diversity were strikingly higher in eelgrass-associated sediments, a difference driven primarily by various species of snails, crustaceans, polychaetes and bivalves. Between-habitat differences remained significant even after the removal of epifaunal species and each dataset undergoing strong data transformation. These results suggest that even small eelgrass beds, located in the vicinity of multiple sources of stress, can act as hotspots and make a substantial contribution to local benthic diversity.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Study Site and Sampling Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Hotspot in the Romanian Black Sea: Eelgrass Beds Drive Local Biodiversity in Surrounding Bare Sediments

et al. 2021

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“…According to DistLM results, variations in belowground biomass, salinity, and percentage of mud explained a larger part of the variation in benthic fauna than other abiotic parameters within the studied systems. Indeed, the presence of seagrass influences the macrofaunal diversity and biomass [65] and the biomass of seagrass affects the organization of benthic macrofaunal assemblages [66]. Moreover, variations might be related to substrate type and organic residues [67].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Latitudinal Variation into the Macrofaunal Assemblages Associated to Zostera noltei Seagrass along the Atlantic Coast of Morocco

Bououarour

Boutoumit

Kamcha

et al. 2021

International Journal of Zoology

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Large-scale research on seagrass-associated benthic fauna is very important for future regional marine conservation. In our study, we investigated spatial and latitudinal variation of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages associated to Zostera noltei Hornemann, 1832 beds from five semi-enclosed coastal systems (SECSs) ranging from 23°N to 34°N along the Atlantic coast of Morocco. Overall, 17,320 individuals were reported as belonging to 96 taxa. The ecological community descriptors differ significantly at the level of the site. Specific richness showed an inconsistent significant pattern with latitude. The multivariate analyses of the assemblage’s composition showed 57% of total variation observed in benthic assemblages, while the PERMANOVA analysis confirmed that this variation is significant at the level of the site. According to DistLM results, variations in belowground biomass, and percentage of mud, were the important predictor variables explaining this variation along the large scale of the studied SECS. However, such patterns could be related to other factors such as habitat heterogeneity and regional, biogeographic, and anthropogenic factors. The present study marked the first attempt on broad-scale ecological research of seagrass beds in Morocco and offers baseline data for planning the broad-scale conservation of biodiversity in seagrass beds that remain suffering from multiple human-induced threats such as coastal developments and climate change.

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“…In Morocco, this species is the main type of seagrass in the Atlantic semi-enclosed coastal systems (SECSs): the Merja Zerga, Sidi Moussa, Oualidia, and Khnifiss lagoons and the bay of Dakhla, which are all Ramsar sites. Many authors have demonstrated the significant contribution that Z. noltei makes to the biological, ecological, and environmental value of these protected yet vulnerable areas (Hammada 2007 ; Maanan et al 2013 ; Boutahar et al 2019 ; Bououarour et al 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monitoring the Spatial and Interannual Dynamic of Zostera noltei

et al. 2023

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Seagrass is a vital structural and functional element of the marine environment worldwide and is highly valued for its ecological benefits. Monitoring the evolution of the seagrass habitat is essential to understand how this coastal ecosystem changes, and to develop good environmental management practices. For the present study, two remote sensing methods were used to map and monitor Zostera noltei Hornemann, 1832 ( Z. noltei ), in the Merja Zerga lagoon from 2010 to 2020. These methods which are the random forest algorithm and the object-oriented classification, were convenient to provide significant results. The first approach employed Sentinel-2 images from 2018 to 2020, which were used to extract information on changes in Z. noltei (commonly called dwarf eelgrass) distribution and aboveground biomass estimation. The second involved three orthophotography (orthophoto) mosaics from the years 2010, 2016, and 2018, which were analyzed to map the distribution of the species. It was revealed that Z. noltei coverage has increased by 212 ha since 2010, with most of the growth occurring in the center and upstream part of the lagoon. The mean aboveground biomass of dwarf eelgrass in the lagoon was 78.5 DW/m² in 2018, 92.6 DW/m² in 2019, and 115.2 g DW/m² in 2020. The approach used in this study has provided important insights into the dynamic and mean biomass of Z. noltei in the Merja Zerga lagoon. It is therefore a valuable, non-destructive method that uses freely-available Sentinel-2 satellite data.

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Effects of the Zostera noltei meadows on benthic macrofauna in North Atlantic coastal ecosystems of Morocco: spatial and seasonal patterns

Cited by 8 publications

References 55 publications

A Hotspot in the Romanian Black Sea: Eelgrass Beds Drive Local Biodiversity in Surrounding Bare Sediments

A Hotspot in the Romanian Black Sea: Eelgrass Beds Drive Local Biodiversity in Surrounding Bare Sediments

Latitudinal Variation into the Macrofaunal Assemblages Associated to Zostera noltei Seagrass along the Atlantic Coast of Morocco

Monitoring the Spatial and Interannual Dynamic of Zostera noltei

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