Environmental factors affecting benthic macrofauna along a gradient of intermediate sandy beaches in northern Spain

Rodil, Iván F.; Lastra, Mariano

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2004.03.016

Cited by 67 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…The inability of the present study to identify a single key physical factor that influences the biotic parameters concords with the observations by Brazeiro (2001) and Rodil and Lastra (2004) that no single physical factor actually accounts for changes in the total number of species, individual abundance and biomass.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Rodil and Lastra, 2004) highlight the usefulness of composite variables/measures, rather than individual variables, in explaining observed biotic patterns. McLachlan et al (1993) found that Dean's parameter is a good predictor of the total number of species, abundance and biomass for microtidal beaches from different geographic regions; however, since wave-related data were not recorded in the present study, another beach classification index, BDI, was calculated.…”

Section: Statistical Analysesmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Long or short? Investigating the effect of beach length and other environmental parameters on macrofaunal assemblages of Maltese pocket beaches

Deidun

Schembri

2008

Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

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Keywords: macrofaunal assemblages sandy beaches psammophiles beach length beach width a b s t r a c t Despite numerous published studies that have evaluated the influence of different physical parameters, including beach slope, sediment organic content and grain size, on beach macrofaunal assemblages, very few studies have investigated the influence of beach length on biotic attributes of the same assemblages. Four beaches on the Maltese Islands were sampled using pitfall traps at night for eight consecutive seasons during [2001][2002][2003]. Macrofaunal collections were dominated by arthropods, mostly isopods (especially Tylos europaeus) and tenebrionid beetles (especially Phaleria spp.). The environmental variables of beach slope, exposure to wave action, sediment organic content, mean particle diameter, log beach length, beach width and the beach deposit index (BDI) were regressed against a number of biotic parameters, including log individual abundance, total species, Shannon-Wiener (H 0 ) diversity index value and the psammophilic fraction of the total species collected, whilst BIO-ENV and NMDS were used to identify the physical parameter which could best explain observed biotic patterns. RELATE was used to assess the long-term persistence of macrofaunal assemblages on beaches of different lengths. Results from this study suggest that, whilst the influence of beach length and beach width on individual abundance and total species number is unimportant, these 'beach-area' parameters may affect the taxonomic composition of a beach assemblage, mainly in terms of the psammophilic fraction of assemblages, as well as the permanence of macrofaunal assemblages on a beach. Shorter and narrower beaches were found to be more prone to sporadic and random events of colonisation by euryoecious species. In the absence of human disturbance and mass mortality events, beaches of limited dimensions can still maintain stable macrofaunal assemblages. Individual abundance and total species number could not be related to a single or small suite of physical parameters. The study further highlights the need to include biological interactions, the degree of human disturbance and other variables such as environmental heterogeneity and the connectivity of the individual beaches when assessing inter-beach differences in macrofaunal assemblages.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Statistical Analysesmentioning

confidence: 98%

Long or short? Investigating the effect of beach length and other environmental parameters on macrofaunal assemblages of Maltese pocket beaches

Deidun

Schembri

2008

Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

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“…In agreement with SEH and HHH predictions, studies conducted worldwide have shown a consistent decrease in community (McLachlan 1990, Defeo et al 1992, McLachlan et al 1993, Jaramillo et al 2000, Soares 2003, Rodil & Lastra 2004, McLachlan & Dorvlo 2005 and population (truly intertidal species: Nel et al 2001, de la Huz et al 2002, Contreras et al 2003 In relation to the patterns found at the population level, it has been postulated that post-settlement processes prevent intertidal species from establishing populations on reflective beaches. Moreover, it has been hypothesized that dissipative beaches can act as 'source' habitats, whereas reflective beaches would constitute 'sink' habitats where reproduction patterns of resident species are insufficient to balance mortality.…”

mentioning

confidence: 52%

Effects of morphodynamic and estuarine gradients on the demography and distribution of a sandy beach mole crab: implications for source–sink habitat dynamics

Celentano¹,

Gutiérrez²,

Defeo³

2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Several conceptual models relating biological and morphodynamic variables have been developed in sandy beach ecology. On estuarine sandy beaches, a major environmental factor influencing macrofaunal distribution is salinity. In this setting, the concurrent role of large-scale estuarine and morphodynamic gradients in shaping demographic patterns is still uncertain. To explain largescale variations in demographic aspects of the mole crab Emerita brasiliensis, 16 Uruguayan sandy beaches distributed along the estuarine gradient generated by the Rio de la Plata were characterized in terms of beach morphology, sediment traits and salinity over a 2 yr period. Abundance (total and discriminated by reproductive and recruitment components), biomass and body size of E. brasiliensis significantly increased from estuarine reflective to oceanic dissipative beaches. Further, generalized models (both additive and linear) showed that salinity, mean grain size and swash width were the most important explanatory factors of spatio-temporal variations in abundance. Sexually mature individuals and megalopae were almost absent in estuarine and oceanic reflective beaches, whereas oceanic dissipative beaches showed polymodal size structures with fully represented population components, together with extended reproductive and recruitment periods. We conclude that (1) morphodynamic and estuarine gradients are inextricably linked, affecting mole crab demography; and (2) estuarine and oceanic reflective beaches operate as sink habitats where populations do not prosper, whereas oceanic dissipative beaches act as source habitats. We thus provide empirical support to the source-sink hypothesis recently developed for sandy beaches. These long-term variations in demographic processes should be complemented by connectivity studies and genetic analyses in order to gain a deeper understanding of metapopulation dynamics in sandy beaches.KEY WORDS: Mole crab · Emerita · Demography · Salinity · Sandy beaches · Morphodynamics · Generalized additive models 398: 193-205, 2010 ing in lower abundance, fecundity, growth and survival rates than in dissipative beaches. In agreement with SEH and HHH predictions, studies conducted worldwide have shown a consistent decrease in community (McLachlan 1990, Defeo et al. 1992, McLachlan et al. 1993, Jaramillo et al. 2000, Soares 2003, Rodil & Lastra 2004, McLachlan & Dorvlo 2005 and population (truly intertidal species: Nel et al. 2001, de la Huz et al. 2002, Contreras et al. 2003 In relation to the patterns found at the population level, it has been postulated that post-settlement processes prevent intertidal species from establishing populations on reflective beaches. Moreover, it has been hypothesized that dissipative beaches can act as 'source' habitats, whereas reflective beaches would constitute 'sink' habitats where reproduction patterns of resident species are insufficient to balance mortality. This has been called the 'source-sink hypothesis' for intertidal sandy beach populations (Defeo & McLac...

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“…Hydrodynamic stress plays an important role in controlling spatial patterns of meiofauna density and community structure (Covazzi et al, 2001). Exposed marine beaches have been defined as physically stressful environments (McLachlan, 1983;Rodil & Lastra, 2004) and thus the best way to understand population variability in these ecosystems is by documenting responses to abiotic factors (Jaramillo & McLachlan, 1993;Brazeiro, 2001). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial and temporal changes in interstitial meiofauna on a sandy ocean beach of South America

et al. 2007

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A B S T R A C TSpatial and temporal patterns of meiofauna community from a Brazilian sandy beach were investigated. The objective of this work was to analyze the meiofauna distribution using a statistical model that considers the biological data as variables, and granulometric characteristics, organic matter, and temperature as covariables. Four zones were sampled throughout one year in a Brazilian sandy beach and three sediment cores were taken monthly from each zone. The meiofauna was composed by 12 taxa, with tardigrades and nematodes comprising 92% of the total fauna. The meiofauna mean density varied from 1556.25 to 13125.25 ind.10 cm -2 , with the highest densities in December. The results of multiple regression showed that the mean effects of zones, vertical layers, and months on the organisms were significantly correlated with the principal taxa of meiofauna. The retention zone and the 0-10 cm layer presented the highest densities. The temporal distribution showed different patterns and some taxa were more abundant in the dry season, and others in the rainy season. Sedimentological variables had strong and significant effects on the meiofauna taxa. According to the results, physical variables at the retention zone create optimal living conditions for the meiobentos, making this zone an area that favors the basic and applied ecological studies. R E S U M OOs padrões de distribuição espacial e temporal da meiofauna em uma praia arenosa do Brasil foram analisados usando um modelo estatístico que considerou os dados biológicos como variáveis e as características granulométricas, % de matéria orgânica, temperatura como covariáveis. Quatro zonas litorais foram amostradas durante o período de um ano e três cores de sedimento foram coletados em cada zona. A meiofauna foi composta de 12 taxa principais e os Tardigrada e Nematoda representaram 92% da fauna total. A densidade média da meiofauna variou de 1.556,25 a 13.125,25 ind.10cm -2 , com as mais altas densidades em dezembro. Os resultados da regressão múltipla mostraram que os efeitos médios das zonas, estratos e meses nos organismos foram significativamente correlacionados com os principais grupos da meiofauna. A zona de retenção e o estrato de 0-10 cm apresentaram os mais altos valores de densidade. A distribuição temporal mostrou diferentes padrões, onde alguns taxa foram mais abundantes na estação seca e outros na estação úmida. As variáveis sedimentológicas tiveram um forte efeito significante sobre os grupos meiofaunísticos. As ótimas condições de vida da zona de retenção para o meiobentos fazem desta região uma área favorável para estudos de ecologia básica e aplicada.

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Environmental factors affecting benthic macrofauna along a gradient of intermediate sandy beaches in northern Spain

Cited by 67 publications

References 12 publications

Long or short? Investigating the effect of beach length and other environmental parameters on macrofaunal assemblages of Maltese pocket beaches

Long or short? Investigating the effect of beach length and other environmental parameters on macrofaunal assemblages of Maltese pocket beaches

Effects of morphodynamic and estuarine gradients on the demography and distribution of a sandy beach mole crab: implications for source–sink habitat dynamics

Spatial and temporal changes in interstitial meiofauna on a sandy ocean beach of South America

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