Hard coastal-defence structures as habitats for native and exotic rocky-bottom species

Vaselli, Stefano; Bulleri, Fabio; Benedetti‐Cecchi, Lisandro

doi:10.1016/j.marenvres.2008.06.002

Cited by 118 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Assemblages can vary considerably, with some substrates being dominated by fouling species (Bacchiocchi & Airoldi 2003, Qvarfordt et al 2006) and others hosting assemblages not unlike those found on natural shores . The majority of studies, however, find that artificial structures are poor surrogates of natural habitats, often supporting less species diversity (Moschella et al 2005, Gacia et al 2007, Vaselli et al 2008, Pister 2009, Ravinesh & Bijukumar 2013, lower abundances (Connell 2001) or different assemblages entirely (Bulleri & Chapman 2010, Megina et al 2013. Seawalls, in particular, have often been compared to natural rocky shores due to their structural similarities -both are hard-substrata, intertidal environments (Chapman & Bulleri 2003, Moschella et al 2005, Pister 2009, Ravinesh & Bijukumar 2013, Aguilera et al 2014.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity surveys and stable isotope analyses reveal key differences in intertidal assemblages between tropical seawalls and rocky shores

Lai¹,

Loke²,

Bouma³

et al. 2018

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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As coastal cities around the world expand, and sea levels and the frequency of storms rise, natural shorelines are steadily being replaced by artificial defences such as seawalls. A growing number of studies have documented the assemblages that inhabit these novel environments, and some have contrasted them against those found in their natural analogues: rocky shores. Most of this work has, however, been conducted in temperate regions, and there is limited research on seawalls in the tropics. To address this, we conducted monthly surveys of adjacent seawall and rocky shores at multiple sites around Singapore for 1 yr. Our results concur with previous temperate studies -artificial seawalls support a lower diversity but share a substantial number of species with rocky shores. Multivariate analyses reveal that assemblage differences were largely driven by species that were found in both habitats (e.g. detritivore Ligia exotica, grazer Monodonta labio and carnivorous whelk Drupella margariticola) but occurred in different abundances. We also conducted (for the first time on seawalls) stable isotope analyses to elucidate the diets of the common species found in both habitats. Turf algae, which were found to be present in significantly lower abundances on seawalls, could possibly contribute substantially to the diets of many dominant herbivores. Future seawall enhancement efforts in the tropics could therefore look into whether enhancing turf algae will improve biodiversity.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity surveys and stable isotope analyses reveal key differences in intertidal assemblages between tropical seawalls and rocky shores

Lai¹,

Loke²,

Bouma³

et al. 2018

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Realization that these structures generally support lower biodiversity than natural habitats (see for example Chapman 2003Chapman , 2006Chapman & Bulleri 2003;Moschella et al 2005;Vaselli et al 2008;Firth et al 2013a;Browne & Chapman 2014) has focused attention on designing structures that help facilitate specific ecological outcomes (Firth et al 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term modifications of coastal defences enhance marine biodiversity

et al. 2015

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SUMMARYRealization that hard coastal infrastructures support lower biodiversity than natural habitats has prompted a wealth of research seeking to identify design enhancements offering ecological benefits. Some studies showed that artificial structures could be modified to increase levels of diversity. Most studies, however, only considered the short-term ecological effects of such modifications, even though reliance on results from short-term studies may lead to serious misjudgements in conservation. In this study, a sevenyear experiment examined how the addition of small pits to otherwise featureless seawalls may enhance the stocks of a highly-exploited limpet. Modified areas of the seawall supported enhanced stocks of limpets seven years after the addition of pits. Modified areas of the seawall also supported a community that differed in the abundance of littorinids, barnacles and macroalgae compared to the controls. Responses to different treatments (numbers and size of pits) were speciesspecific and, while some species responded directly to differences among treatments, others might have responded indirectly via changes in the distribution of competing species. This type of habitat enhancement can have positive long-lasting effects on the ecology of urban seascapes. Understanding of species interactions could be used to develop a rule-based approach to enhance biodiversity.

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“…However, caution is needed as there is evidence that the impacts of natural and artificial rocky reefs on the structure of marine assemblages can differ, while being similar in the way they may affect the environment (e.g. wave exposure) (Barros et al, 2001;Knott et al, 2004;Vaselli et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of a breakwater on nearby rocky intertidal community structure

Martins

Amaral

Wallenstein

et al. 2009

Marine Environmental Research

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a b s t r a c tIt is widely recognised that coastal-defence structures generally affect the structure of the assemblages they support, yet their impact on adjacent systems has been largely ignored. Breakwaters modify the nearby physical environment (e.g. wave action) suggesting a local impact on biological parameters. In the present study, an ACI (After-Control-Impact) design was used to test the general hypothesis that the artificial sheltering of an exposed coast has a strong effect on the structure and functioning of adjacent systems. The effects of a reduction in hydrodynamics were clear for a number of taxa and included the replacement of barnacles, limpets and frondose algae by an increasing cover of ephemeral algae. These effects were evident both at early and late successional stages. Results suggest that the artificial sheltering of naturally exposed coasts can have a strong impact promoting a shift from consumer-to producer-dominated communities, which has important ecological and energetic consequences for the ecosystem.

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Hard coastal-defence structures as habitats for native and exotic rocky-bottom species

Cited by 118 publications

References 40 publications

Biodiversity surveys and stable isotope analyses reveal key differences in intertidal assemblages between tropical seawalls and rocky shores

Biodiversity surveys and stable isotope analyses reveal key differences in intertidal assemblages between tropical seawalls and rocky shores

Long-term modifications of coastal defences enhance marine biodiversity

Influence of a breakwater on nearby rocky intertidal community structure

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