Spatial and temporal variations in biodiversity of polychaetes (Annelida, Polychaeta) along a multipurpose coastline (original) (raw)
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Biodiversity of polychaetous annelids in Bahía de Todos Santos, Baja California México
Zoosymposia
The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the structure, distribution, and temporal variation in the composition of benthic polychaeta and their relation to abiotic characteristics in marine sediments along the continental shelf of Bahia de Todos Santos, Baja California, Mexico. Benthic macrofauna and environmental variables were collected to coordinated with a long-term ocean monitoring project known as the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program. A total of nineteen stations were collected in September 1998, twenty stations in November 2003, fifteen stations in December 2013 and sixteen stations in September 2018. These data were compared to assess the response of benthic polychaete assemblages to natural and human induced changes in sediment characteristics. All stations were sampled using a Van Veen grab (0.1 m2) at depths between 15 to 206 m. Sites were selected using a multiple density nested random-tessellation stratified design. Environmental parameters...
2011
Changes in benthic community structure are strongly related to environmental factors, and we need to determine how these natural changes occur in order to interpret the possible changes associated with anthropogenic impacts. The aim of this survey was to characterize and classify the polychaete assemblages inhabiting unpolluted soft bottoms in the Spanish Mediterranean in relation to environmental factors. Thirteen localities were sampled at depths between 9 and 31 m, from 2004 to 2006. Multivariate techniques showed that the structure of polychaete assemblages detected in 2004 was consistent over time and correlations between polychaetes and environmental factors were detected. The study area comprises four kinds of communities mainly characterized by polychaete assemblages, sediment types, and depth.
The use of polychaetes (Annelida) as indicator species of marine pollution: a review
Revista De Biologia Tropical, 2008
Polychaetes are usually the most abundant taxon in benthic communities and have been most often utilized as indicator species of environmental conditions. This review finds that, while the use of indicator species for a particular pollutant is not simple, polychaetes can provide a useful means of assessing the effects of poor environmental conditions. Polychaetes may be used as sensitive monitors of water quality especially in terms of the effects of pollutants on life history characteristics. They may also be utilized as general indicators of community diversity but those species indicative of lower diversity may differ geographically and temporally. While sewage is often a mixture of high organic material and other pollutants such as heavy metals and pesticides, high organic situations associated with aquaculture facilities indicates that members of the Capitella capitata species complex and the dorvilleid genus Ophryotrocha are often dominant. Some species of polychaetes are able to live in sediments very high in trace metal content and body burden of these metals often does not reflect sediment concentrations due to regulation by these species. Many species seem relatively resistant to organic contaminants and pesticides and the effects of these pollutants on life history characteristics of these species may provide a more sensitive assay method. Recent studies using biomarkers in polychaetes to indicate general heavy metal or pesticide contamination has shown some success. Polychaete species known to occur in appreciable densities in the Gulf of Nicoya, Costa Rica, and which have been most often used as indicator species of pollution, are listed as potential taxa for environmental monitoring in this tropical estuary. Rev. Biol.
Polychaete distribution pattern on the Valencian Community coast, Spanish Mediterranean
Ciencias Marinas, 2011
Changes in benthic community structure are strongly related to environmental factors, and we need to determine how these natural changes occur in order to interpret the possible changes associated with anthropogenic impacts. The aim of this survey was to characterize and classify the polychaete assemblages inhabiting unpolluted soft bottoms in the Spanish Mediterranean in relation to environmental factors. Thirteen localities were sampled at depths between 9 and 31 m, from 2004 to 2006. Multivariate techniques showed that the structure of polychaete assemblages detected in 2004 was consistent over time and correlations between polychaetes and environmental factors were detected. The study area comprises four kinds of communities mainly characterized by polychaete assemblages, sediment types, and depth.
Bulletin, Southern California Academy of Sciences, 2005
The diversity patterns of the polychaete fauna from a Pacific coastal lagoon were described. Polychaetes were collected in 1995 and 1998. This lagoon is formed by 2 arms: the western arm named Bahia Falsa and the eastern arm named Bahia San Quintin. 46 stations were sampled with a geological box corer. A total of 3,275 polychaetes, 28 families, 56 genera, and 104 species were identified in 1995, and 3,168 polychaetes were collected in 1998, 21 families, 39 genera and 65 species. From all the macrofauna collected in both surveys, polychaetes represented 45.2%. From the species collected, 55% correspond to new records for the area. Families Dorvilleidae, Polynoidae, Oweniidae, Scalibregmatidae, Sternapsidae and Sigalionidae present in 1995, were not in 1998 survey. The stations with higher abundances (Ͼ 100 specimens/0.02 m 2) were located on the southern half of Bahia San Quintin. Species richness and diversity were also higher in San Quintin Bay. From the 30 families previously reported for San Quintin lagoon, 23 have been collected and 6 families were added: Ampharetidae, Oweniidae, Scalibregmatidae, Sternapsidae, Dorvilleidae and Sigalionidae. Families not found in both surveys were: Paraonidae, Magelonidae, Apistobranchidae, Sphaerodoridae, Trichobranchidae, Chrysopetalidae and Arenicolidae. Results showed slightly lower redox potential values (Ϫ336 to ϩ187 mV), slightly higher sediment temperatures (19.8Њ-22.1ЊC) and organic matter contents (0.3-4.1%) in 1998. From 1995 to 1998 a change in the composition and structure of the polychaete communities was noted; species richness diminished from 104 to 65 species. The trophic complexity changed with an increase of deposit-feeders, the abundance of other trophic categories decreased, indicating a loss of complexity. Significant changes in the abundance of some families were detected, some increased their abundances: Spionidae from 17% to 48%, Orbiniidae from 4% to 13%; other families decreased in terms of abundance and number of species: Lumbrinereidae from 11% to 1.4%, Nereididae from 9% to 1% and Sabellidae from 14% to 5%. These modifications altered the composition and structure of the polychaete communities in this lagoon. Increased anthropogenic disturbance (oyster culture, agriculture) and environmental variability due to the ENSO 97-98 may have affected recruitment and survival of some polychaete species.
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 1998
The distribution and population structure of the serpulid polychaete Ditrupa arietina were assessed along the section of the Mediterranean coast between Barcelona and Montpellier. The study combined: (1) the analysis of the existing historical data referring to the period before the 1970s; (2) the results of impact assessment surveys carried out in the late 1980s and the 1990s; and (3) the results of two surveys carried out in the Bay of Blanes and along the coast between Cape Cerbère and Port-la-Nouvelle during 1996. The results of the surveys carried out in the 1990s show the occurrence of high densities (i.e. >1000 ind m 2 ) of Ditrupa arietina at all the sites sampled. These results can be compared with the few reports of this species before 1970, leading to the conclusion that D. arietina has recently increased all along the Catalan coast. Ditrupa arietina is preferentially found between 20 and 30 m depth, which mostly corresponds to well-sorted fine sands and muddy sands. Both the results of population monitoring and the heterogeneity of population structure at small spatial scale show that the dynamics of this species is unstable. The observed distribution pattern is therefore interpreted as resulting from a response to both wide-scale environmental parameters (accounting for the dramatic increase of the species at a wide geographical scale), and to local environmental factors (accounting for small-scale heterogeneity in population structure). Analysis of the relationship between sedimentary data and densities of D. arietina suggests that this species is highly sensitive to the presence of fine sediments. However, because of the regional importance of the phenomenon, it is concluded that the dramatic increase of D. arietina along both the Spanish and the French Catalan coast does not result from sediment instability.
Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies …, 2004
This paper describes diversity patterns of the polychaete fauna in Bah! ıa Todos Santos (Pacific Ocean, Baja California, Mexico). Thirty-nine stations were sampled in October 1994. Measurements of depth, temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, organic content and sediment particle size were made. Polychaetes constituted 64% of all invertebrate macrofauna, with 13,757 specimens in 44 families representing 203 species. The best represented families were Spionidae, Capitellidae, Paraonidae, Cirratulidae, Maldanidae, Ampharetidae and Nephtyidae. Bah! ıa Todos Santos presented high species richness (species/station); values varied between 6 (near the harbor) and 67 species (next to Estero Punta Banda). Higher species richness values (48 species to 67/station) were located in the southern section of the bay. Abundances (individuals/station) were generally high (120-1434) except for some coastal stations. Nearly onethird of the stations presented H 0 values higher than 4.00. Diversity (H 0 ) values ranged from 2.06 to 4.80; higher diversity values were found in the southern section of the bay.
Continental Shelf Research, 2011
This study presents a comprehensive assessment of the diversity and spatial distribution of the soft-bottom benthic macrofauna communities along the Portuguese continental shelf and discusses the relationship between biological and environmental data. A total of 145 sites were sampled using a 0.1 m 2 Smith-McIntyre grab covering the whole west and south coast of Portugal, at depths ranging 13 and 195 m. More than 30,000 specimens were identified corresponding to 737 taxa, mostly annelids (43% of the total taxa). The most frequent species were Ampharete finmarchica, Ampelisca sp. and Lumbrineris lusitanica while the most abundant were Mediomastus fragilis, Polygordius appendiculatus and Ampharete finmarchica. Abundance ranged between 7 and 1307 specimens per 0.1 m 2 and alpha diversity reached a maximum of 96 taxa per 0.1 m 2 . Gravel sediments, and shallow and sheltered areas presented higher diversity values than mud sediments and deeper sites. Six major benthic assemblages were identified: (a) Coarse sediments, mostly located on the western shelf, with Protodorvillea kefersteini, Pisione remota, Angulus pygmaeus and several other interstitial species; (b) near shore fine sands with Magelona johnstoni, Urothoe pulchella and Angulus fabula; (c) Abra alba community in northwestern deep muddy sands; (d) Southwestern very deep muddy sands characterized by Galathowenia oculata, Lumbrinerides amoureuxi and other burrowers and tubicolous polychaetes; (e) Euchone rubrocincta, Nematonereis unicornis and other warmer water species in muddy sands of the southern and sheltered shelf; and (f) muds dominated by Sternaspis scutata, Heteromastus filiformis and Psammogammarus caecus. Sediment grain-size, organic matter, depth and hydrodynamic regime were the variables best related to the macrofauna distribution patterns, highlighting the transitional characteristics of this northeastern Atlantic area, where northern and subtropical faunas can coexist.