Response of intertidal sandy-beach macrofauna to human trampling: An urban vs. natural beach system approach

Reyes-Martínez, Ma José; Ruiz-Delgado, M. Carmen; Sánchez-Moyano, J. E.; García‐García, Francisco José

doi:10.1016/j.marenvres.2014.11.005

Cited by 47 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…This fishing activity prevents the establishment of benthic communities and thus reduces the stability of the sediment surface, in the same way as observed in the Venice lagoon by Aspden et al [29]. In addition, human trampling represents another practice with a negative effect on macrofauna biodiversity and the population dynamics of bivalves [7,30]. In this way, Rossi et al [7] showed that human trampling on the intertidal mudflats of Paulina Polder (Netherlands) could have a negative impact at small scales, clearly modifying the abundance and population dynamics on both the target clams, the Baltic tellin Macoma balthica (Linnaeus ) and the cockle Cerastoderma edule.…”

Section: Immediate Impact Of Clam Harvesting On Intertidal Benthic Comentioning

confidence: 84%

Immediate Effect of Clam Harvesting on Intertidal Benthic Communities in the Mudflat Zones of Kneiss Islands (Central Mediterranean Sea)

Mosbahi¹,

Pezy²,

Dauvin³

et al. 2016

J Aquac Res Development

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Section: Immediate Impact Of Clam Harvesting On Intertidal Benthic Comentioning

confidence: 84%

Immediate Effect of Clam Harvesting on Intertidal Benthic Communities in the Mudflat Zones of Kneiss Islands (Central Mediterranean Sea)

Mosbahi¹,

Pezy²,

Dauvin³

et al. 2016

J Aquac Res Development

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“…Detrimental ecological effects of physical impacts from vehicles are generally manifested over large areas and are persistent [37, 38]. By comparison, trampling effects can, on lightly used beaches, be more localized and transient [35], but lead to persistent reductions in invertebrates on more intensively used shores [5, 33, 35, 39]. Thus, whether trampling will have negative consequences for shorebirds will largely depend on the intensity of human foot traffic, particularly during the breeding season.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The harmful consequences of trampling are well documented for coastal dunes, especially the impacts on vegetation [4]. For the non-vegetated part of the shore, seawards of the dunes, trampling impacts are either insufficiently quantified or are confounded with more diffuse pressures from urbanization, shore armouring, or grooming [5, 6]. The two studies that could attribute changes in shallow-buried beach invertebrates to human trampling show declines in abundance for species of the middle and lower shore [7, 8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Early Shorebird Will Catch Fewer Invertebrates on Trampled Sandy Beaches

et al. 2016

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Many species of birds breeding on ocean beaches and in coastal dunes are of global conservation concern. Most of these species rely on invertebrates (e.g. insects, small crustaceans) as an irreplaceable food source, foraging primarily around the strandline on the upper beach near the dunes. Sandy beaches are also prime sites for human recreation, which impacts these food resources via negative trampling effects. We quantified acute trampling impacts on assemblages of upper shore invertebrates in a controlled experiment over a range of foot traffic intensities (up to 56 steps per square metre) on a temperate beach in Victoria, Australia. Trampling significantly altered assemblage structure (species composition and density) and was correlated with significant declines in invertebrate abundance and species richness. Trampling effects were strongest for rare species. In heavily trafficked plots the abundance of sand hoppers (Amphipoda), a principal prey item of threatened Hooded Plovers breeding on this beach, was halved. In contrast to the consistently strong effects of trampling, natural habitat attributes (e.g. sediment grain size, compactness) were much less influential predictors. If acute suppression of invertebrates caused by trampling, as demonstrated here, is more widespread on beaches it may constitute a significant threat to endangered vertebrates reliant on these invertebrates. This calls for a re-thinking of conservation actions by considering active management of food resources, possibly through enhancement of wrack or direct augmentation of prey items to breeding territories.

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“…Many scholars worldwide have begun to pay attention to the degradation and threats of beach ecosystems, and macrobenthos is considered as an adequate indicator of the status of the ecological environment (Reyes‐Martínez, Ruíz‐Delgado, Sánchez‐Moyano, & García‐García, ; Salas et al, ; Schlacher & Thompson, ). Macrobenthic assemblages occupy sandy beaches, where most recreational activities are concentrated and are sensitive to recreational disturbances (Schlacher et al, ; Schlacher & Thompson, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The literature related to macrobenthos is substantial (Defeo & McLachlan, ; Manokaran, Khan, & Lyla, ; McLachlan & Dorvlo, ; McLachlan, Jaramillo, & Donn, ; Schlacher et al, ), but these organisms are rarely discussed in studies of recreational beach ecosystems. Recently, scholars have begun to focus on this field (Reyes‐Martínez et al, ; Schlacher & Thompson, ), but such studies have been confined to minor beach sites (Defeo et al, ). There are few studies related to China's recreational sandy beach ecosystems, and existing research on the theoretical and implementation aspects of this subject is insufficient.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the response of sandy‐beach macrobenthos to recreation and the ecological status of the beach ecosystem at Liandao, China

Zou

Zhong

et al. 2020

Marine Ecology

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Sandy beaches, prime recreational assets that attract more people than other types of shorelines, are the main assets underpinning many coastal economies and developments. However, the intense stressors to the ecology of sandy beaches caused by recreational activities are generally underestimated or ignored. This study was the first to emphasize the ecological characteristics of recreational beaches in China and assess the response of macrobenthos at Liandao Beach, a typical sandy beach in the central part of China. Using the Before/During/After/Control/Impact (BDACI) method, differences in multiple variables (species richness, mean density, diversity) between a heavily recreationally impacted transect (TrH/Impact) and a less‐impacted transect (TrL/Control) in different impact periods (Before, During & After) were applied to assess the response of sandy‐beach macrobenthos to recreation and tourism. Meanwhile, a comparison between the macrobenthos conditions of the studied beach and reference conditions calculating from historical data of similar beaches with little recreation and tourism disturbances was carried out. Furthermore, the quality control chart approach was used to detect in detail the macrobenthos stable state and yearly response to recreational activities. The results showed that recreation and tourism posed a serious threat to the beach ecosystem; macrobenthos on the studied beach were seriously disturbed by recreational activities, and their variations were highly negatively related to the human recreational level. After monthly recreational impacts, the macrobenthos decreased sharply and recovered with difficulty during 1 year. Over the long‐term, the macrobenthos had a sharp decreasing trend, which indicated that the ecological environment of the beach was highly disturbed. Conservation measures for recreational beaches are very challenging because of the economic value and popularity of sandy beaches as recreational sites. However, practicable conservation measures could be implemented that prevent or slow ecological degradation. A number of management and conservation suggestions are put forward, such as the establishment of the ecological carrying capacity of Liandao Beach in terms of direct recreational use, creation of themed exhibitions related to the beach macrobenthos and beach ecosystem and dissemination of this knowledge to visitors, implementation of spatial zoning of beach use, visitor management and environmental education.

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Response of intertidal sandy-beach macrofauna to human trampling: An urban vs. natural beach system approach

Cited by 47 publications

References 47 publications

Immediate Effect of Clam Harvesting on Intertidal Benthic Communities in the Mudflat Zones of Kneiss Islands (Central Mediterranean Sea)

Immediate Effect of Clam Harvesting on Intertidal Benthic Communities in the Mudflat Zones of Kneiss Islands (Central Mediterranean Sea)

The Early Shorebird Will Catch Fewer Invertebrates on Trampled Sandy Beaches

Assessing the response of sandy‐beach macrobenthos to recreation and the ecological status of the beach ecosystem at Liandao, China

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