Shifting south-eastern North Sea macrofauna bioturbation potential over the past three decades: a response to increasing SST and regionally decreasing food supply

Meyer, Julia; Nehmer, Petra; Kröncke, Ingrid

doi:10.3354/meps12802

Cited by 7 publications

(14 citation statements)

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“…Overall, concurrent long-term patterns of taxonomic and trait-based benthic community variability in the south-eastern North Sea were found. Moreover, our results confirmed results of previous studies that found similar large-scale patterns of taxonomic and trait-based benthic community structures of three periods from 1986 to 2015 [36, 51]. Despite the concurrent taxonomic and trait-based patterns, our analysis revealed basic long-term changes, next to distinct environmental drivers, between the four stations and between both approaches.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…At the nearshore areas, abundances of A . filiformis increased after 2010, while at the offshore areas a maximum in abundance was found after 2000/01, followed by stable abundances, which correlates with a peak in total dissolved nitrite [36].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The theoretical community bioturbation potential (BPc) is a proxy for macrofauna-environment interaction, reflected in the biogenic modification of the sediment through particle reworking and (water) movements [34, 35]. Even if BPc is an estimate of the possible potential of a community to bioturbate and not a direct measurement of a defined process, it is the most valuable method for already existing data [36]. Next to biomass and abundance, BPc includes the traits sediment reworking and mobility of benthic organisms, which are most important when describing macrofauna sediment interaction, as a consequence of mobility, feeding mode, or burrowing activities [34, 35, 37].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, focus of the present study lay on bioturbation-related traits, because bioturbation is directly linked with ecosystem functioning. Thus, we are assuming that BPc and related trait classification [34, 35] can be used as a functional, trait-based classification for describing most important environmental interactions of macrofauna communities [36, 40].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent large-scale studies on trait-based benthic communities of the south-eastern North Sea revealed three spatially different communities in 1986 and 2015, with a spatial extend similar to abundance-based communities [36]. Studies of Meyer et al [36] revealed distinct changes of these three stable trait-based macrofauna communities in the south-eastern North Sea, which were driven by a decrease in food availability due to fluctuations in nitrogen to phosphorus (N:P) ratios [52] and decreasing riverine nutrient input, synchronous to SST changes. However, there is a lack in continuous long-term studies of functional variability, to investigate the functional community variability and diversity, and to assess causes and consequences of changes for the marine and benthic ecosystem.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Shifts in trait-based and taxonomic macrofauna community structure along a 27-year time-series in the south-eastern North Sea

Meyer

Kröncke

2019

PLoS ONE

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Current research revealed distinct changes in ecosystem functions, and thus in ecosystem stability and resilience, caused by changes in community structure and diversity loss. Benthic species play an important role in benthic-pelagic coupling, such as through the remineralization of deposited organic material, and changes to benthic community structure and diversity have associated with changes in ecosystem functioning, ecosystem stability and resilience. However, the long-term variability of traits and functions in benthic communities is largely unknown. By using abundance and bioturbation potential of macrofauna samples, taken along a transect from the German Bight towards the Dogger Bank in May 1990 and annually from 1995 to 2017, we analysed the taxonomic and trait-based macrofauna long-term community variability and diversity. Taxonomic and trait-based diversity remained stable over time, while three different regimes were found, characterised by changes in taxonomic and trait-based community structure. Min/max autocorrelation factor analysis revealed the climatic variables sea surface temperature (SST) and North Atlantic Oscillation Index (NAOI), nitrite, and epibenthic abundance as most important environmental drivers for taxonomic and trait-based community changes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Shifts in trait-based and taxonomic macrofauna community structure along a 27-year time-series in the south-eastern North Sea

Meyer

Kröncke

2019

PLoS ONE

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Macrofauna as a major driver of bentho‐pelagic exchange in the southern North Sea

Neumann

Beusekom

Eisele

et al. 2021

Limnology & Oceanography

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The contribution of sediments to nutrient cycling of the coastal North Sea is strongly controlled by the intensity of fluxes across the sediment water interface. Pore‐water advection is one major exchange mechanism that is well described by models, as it is determined by physical parameters. In contrast, biotransport (i.e., bioirrigation, bioturbation) as the other major transport mechanism is much more complex. Observational data reflecting biotransport, from the German Bight for example, is scarce. We sampled the major sediment provinces of the German Bight repeatedly over the years from 2013 to 2019. By employing ex situ whole core incubations, we established the seasonal and spatial variability of macrofauna‐sustained benthic fluxes of oxygen and nutrients. A multivariate, partial least squares analysis identified faunal activity, in specifically bioturbation and bioirrigation, alongside temperature, as the most important drivers of oxygen and nutrient fluxes. Their combined effect explained 63% of the observed variability in oxygen fluxes, and 36–48% of variability in nutrient fluxes. Additional 10% of the observed variability of fluxes were explained by sediment type and the availability of plankton biomass. Based on our extrapolation by sediment provinces, we conclude that pore‐water advection and macrofaunal activity contributed equally to the total benthic oxygen uptake in the German Bight.

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Interregional comparison of benthic ecosystem functioning: Community bioturbation potential in four regions along the NE Atlantic shelf

Gogina

Zettler

Vanaverbeke

et al. 2020

Ecological Indicators

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Bioturbation is one of the key mediators of biogeochemical processes in benthic habitats that can have a high contribution to seafloor functioning and benthic pelagic coupling in coastal waters. Previous studies on bioturbation were limited to point locations and extrapolations in single regions, but have not accounted for regional differences under changing environmental conditions, though there are indications that species contributions will differ across regions or with biotic and abiotic context. To capture those differences and assess global patterns and commonalities, multi-regional analyses are imperative. Here for the first time, bioturbation potential (BPc), a functional indicator of benthic community bioturbation, was estimated based on macrofauna data from four regions (i.e. German Baltic Sea, German North Sea, Belgian part of the North Sea and the Eastern English Channel). For each region and sediment type we identified key species contributing to BPc. Comparison within and across regions demonstrated regional differences, and both overlap and mismatch between species that are functionally important and those that are dominant in biomass. Knowledge on the functionally important species is crucial when management objectives include the protection of certain ecosystem functions. Available environmental layers were used as predictors to model the spatial distribution of BPc for each area and to explore the underlying drivers of differences. Random forest models were trained using as response variables either i) BPc initially calculated per station; or ii) BPpthe species-specific contribution to BPcfor key species Please note that this is an author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version is available on the publisher Web site. (with subsequent summation of their predicted full-coverage distributions to BPc). Maps of BPc distribution predicted by random forest were compared with those generated using natural neighbour interpolation. Overall, derived BPc values increased towards the German parts of the North and Baltic Seas. The relevance of BPc for ecosystem processes and functions, however, vary with biotic and abiotic settings. Results revealed a strong association of BPc with species diversity and region, but less with sediment grain size. A large range of BPc occurred when species richness was low. This suggests that the provisioning of high bioturbation activity is possible also under low diversity, where it is vulnerable due to reduced resilience. The executed multi-regional analysis allowed identifying regional differences in performance of macrofauna, suggesting the need for region-specific conservation and management strategies. Highlights ► First multi-regional analysis of macrofauna community bioturbation potential (BPc). ► Functionally important key species differ regionally and between sediments. ► Overall BPc values decreased from the Baltic Sea towards Eastern English Channel. ► Relevance of BPc for ecosystem f...

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Shifting south-eastern North Sea macrofauna bioturbation potential over the past three decades: a response to increasing SST and regionally decreasing food supply

Cited by 7 publications

References 68 publications

Shifts in trait-based and taxonomic macrofauna community structure along a 27-year time-series in the south-eastern North Sea

Shifts in trait-based and taxonomic macrofauna community structure along a 27-year time-series in the south-eastern North Sea

Macrofauna as a major driver of bentho‐pelagic exchange in the southern North Sea

Interregional comparison of benthic ecosystem functioning: Community bioturbation potential in four regions along the NE Atlantic shelf

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