Polychaete Associations in a Subtropical 
Environment (São Sebastião Channel, 
Brazil): A Structural Analysis

Abstract

Abstract. Analysis of polychaetes from 60 quantitative soft bottom samples (November 1993 – August 1994) from the São Sebastião Channel at 10 to 45 m yielded 126 species from a total of 12,003 individuals. The distribution of both the bottom sediment type and species was patchy. Abundance data were analysed with multivariate techniques and revealed a strong correlation between species and sediment variables. Polychaetes were more diverse, abundant and richer in species number in those sites with higher sandy fractions. On the other hand, sites where silt, clay and organic carbon predominated showed a poor annelid fauna. Here, pollution by the sewage discharge of a submarine pipe, the oil terminal activities and the clandestine oil tank washing have an important impact on the bottom fauna. Only little temporal variation in the composition of the polychaete associations was found during the study period.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and petroleum biomarkers in São Sebastião Channel, Brazil: Assessment of petroleum contamination

“…Muniz and Pires (1999), Muniz and Pires (2000) have reported altered community of benthic macrofauna in specific sites of SSC and primarily associated this event with anthropogenic contaminants such as hydrocarbons. However, the highest concentration of total PAH found in SSC sediments is lower than the minimum levels attributed to have biological toxicity called effects range low (ERL) proposed as a sediment quality guideline by Long and Morgan (1990).…”

“…Studies in the SSC indicated that the community structure of the benthic macrofauna is altered in certain areas possibly due to the exposure to hydrocarbons (Muniz and Pires, 1999;Muniz and Pires, 2000). In addition, a screening study of the distribution of hydrocarbons in sediment samples was conducted and indicated critical areas based on relatively high concentrations of hydrocarbons (Medeiros and Bícego, 2004a).…”

Benthic macrofauna structure in the northeast area of Todos os Santos Bay, Bahia State, Brazil: patterns of spatial and seasonal distribution

“…The importance of rare species in the interpretation of multivariate analyses is, to a certain degree, polemic LARSEN;THORNE, 2001). Usually these species are removed from the analyses, since they account for a low percentage of variance and lead to high noise, misleading results, especially when running multivariate analyses (BOULTON et al, 1992;PIRES, 1992;PIRES, 2000). This elimination is frequently arbitrary, lacking a clear biological and/or ecological explanation, with a possibly significant information loss.…”

Distribution of the Polychaete assemblages on the continental shelf of the Northern Gulf of California, Eastern Pacific

“…However, information about tropical habitats is scarce compared to temperate and high latitudes regions (Muniz & Pires 2000).…”