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Stanca E, Parsons ML. Examining the dynamic nature of epiphytic microalgae in the Florida Keys: What factors influence community composition? JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL MARINE BIOLOGY AND ECOLOGY 2021; 538:151538. [PMID: 36117944 PMCID: PMC9481181 DOI: 10.1016/j.jembe.2021.151538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The factors that influence the composition of marine epiphytic microalgal assemblages are poorly-understood. To address this short-coming, 93 samples were collected from four distinct regions in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) during winter and summer months to test the model that epiphytic microalgal communities are influenced by environmental gradients related to different sites, seasons, and host macrophyte species. One hundred and eighty-three morphotypes from 13 classes (7 phyla) were identified, dominated by 106 Bacillariophyta (77 identified to species equivalent or below), 37 Cyanophyta (13 identified to species equivalent or below), and 30 Dinophyta (21 identified to species equivalent or below). The largest proportion of variability in epiphytic communities was related to physico-chemical parameters (37%), followed by site location (ocean-versus bayside; 15%), seasonal differences (11%), and host macrophyte species (10%). Four physico-chemical variables were found to be most influential: wave height, temperature, ammonium concentration, and salinity. Only six out of 616 epiphyte - host comparisons exhibited significant differences in individual epiphyte taxon abundance between different host species (within site and season), further demonstrating that host-specificity was not strongly evident in this study. Overall, the results of this (sub)tropical study indicate that changing environmental characteristics between sites and seasons were the primary drivers influencing epiphyte community composition. Similar findings were found in an accompanying study of phytoplankton and other studies from temperate and (sub)polar regions, suggesting that common, underlying processes exist among these disparate environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Stanca
- Coastal Watershed Institute, Florida Gulf Coast University, 10501 FGCU Blvd South, Fort Myers, FL 33965, USA
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, Strada Provinciale Lecce-Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Michael L. Parsons
- Coastal Watershed Institute, Florida Gulf Coast University, 10501 FGCU Blvd South, Fort Myers, FL 33965, USA
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Burfeid-Castellanos AM, Martín-Martín RP, Kloster M, Angulo-Preckler C, Avila C, Beszteri B. Epiphytic diatom community structure and richness is determined by macroalgal host and location in the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica). PLoS One 2021; 16:e0250629. [PMID: 33930042 PMCID: PMC8087030 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0250629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 04/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The marine waters around the South Shetland Islands are paramount in the primary production of this Antarctic ecosystem. With the increasing effects of climate change and the annual retreat of the ice shelf, the importance of macroalgae and their diatom epiphytes in primary production also increases. The relationships and interactions between these organisms have scarcely been studied in Antarctica, and even less in the volcanic ecosystem of Deception Island, which can be seen as a natural proxy of climate change in Antarctica because of its vulcanism, and the open marine system of Livingston Island. In this study we investigated the composition of the diatom communities in the context of their macroalgal hosts and different environmental factors. We used a non-acidic method for diatom digestion, followed by slidescanning and diatom identification by manual annotation through a web-browser-based image annotation platform. Epiphytic diatom species richness was higher on Deception Island as a whole, whereas individual macroalgal specimens harboured richer diatom assemblages on Livingston Island. We hypothesize this a possible result of a higher diversity of ecological niches in the unique volcanic environment of Deception Island. Overall, our study revealed higher species richness and diversity than previous studies of macroalgae-inhabiting diatoms in Antarctica, which could however be the result of the different preparation methodologies used in the different studies, rather than an indication of a higher species richness on Deception Island and Livingston Island than other Antarctic localities.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rafael P. Martín-Martín
- Laboratory of Botany, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Science, University of Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Carlos Angulo-Preckler
- Norwegian College of Fishery Science, UiT, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Conxita Avila
- Faculty of Biology, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology, and Environmental Sciences, and Institute of Biodiversity Research (IrBIO), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia
| | - Bánk Beszteri
- Universität Duisburg-Essen, Phycology, Essen, Germany
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Shift in polar benthic community structure in a fast retreating glacial area of Marian Cove, West Antarctica. Sci Rep 2021; 11:241. [PMID: 33420319 PMCID: PMC7794547 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-80636-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Glacier retreat is a major long-standing global issue; however, the ecological impacts of such retreats on marine organisms remain unanswered. Here, we examined changes to the polar benthic community structure of "diatoms" under current global warming in a recently retreated glacial area of Marian Cove, Antarctica. The environments and spatiotemporal assemblages of benthic diatoms surveyed in 2018-2019 significantly varied between the intertidal (tidal height of 2.5 m) and subtidal zone (10 and 30 m). A distinct floral distribution along the cove (~ 4.5 km) was characterized by the adaptive strategy of species present, with chain-forming species predominating near the glacier. The predominant chain-forming diatoms, such as Fragilaria striatula and Paralia sp., are widely distributed in the innermost cove over years, indicating sensitive responses of benthic species to the fast-evolving polar environment. The site-specific and substrate-dependent distributions of certain indicator species (e.g., F. striatula, Navicula glaciei, Cocconeis cf. pinnata) generally reflected such shifts in the benthic community. Our review revealed that the inner glacier region reflected trophic association, featured with higher diversity, abundance, and biomass of benthic diatoms and macrofauna. Overall, the polar benthic community shift observed along the cove generally represented changing environmental conditions, (in)directly linked to ice-melting due to the recent glacier retreat.
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An Assessment of the Influence of Host Species, Age, and Thallus Part on Kelp-Associated Diatoms. DIVERSITY 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/d12100385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Diatom community composition and abundances on different thallus parts of adult and juvenile specimens of Eckloniamaxima and Laminariapallida were examined in False Bay, South Africa, using light and scanning electron microscopy. Altogether, 288 thallus portions were analysed. Diatom abundances ranged from 0 to 404 cells mm−2 and were generally higher on E. maxima and juvenile thalli than L. pallida and adult specimens. Moreover, diatom abundances differed between the various thallus parts, being highest on the upper blade and lowest on the primary blade. A total of 48 diatom taxa belonging to 28 genera were found. Gomphoseptatum Medlin, Nagumoea Witkowski and Kociolek, Cocconeis Ehrenberg, and Navicula Bory were the most frequently occurring genera, being present in 84%, 65%, 62.5%, and 45% of the analysed samples, respectively. Among these, Cocconeis and Gomphoseptatum were the most abundant, contributing 50% and 27% of total diatom cells counted collectively across all samples. Permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) revealed that all investigated main factors (kelp species and age and thallus part), as well as their two- and three-way interactions, except for the interaction between the host species and age, were significant. The high residual variance (72%) indicated that the sum of other unexamined factors contributed the largest component of the variation observed in the kelp-associated diatom communities, and grazing and possible defence strategies utilised by kelps are proposed as processes playing an important role in the structuring of epiphytic diatom communities. Possible endophytism of tissue-boring diatoms colonizing both kelp species is briefly discussed.
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Kang YH, Kim S, Choi SK, Moon K, Choi HG, Ko YW, Hawes I, Kim SH, Kim JH, Park SR. Composition and structure of the marine benthic community in Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica: Responses of the benthic assemblage to disturbances. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0225551. [PMID: 31790456 PMCID: PMC6886853 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2019] [Accepted: 11/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The community structure and assemblages of marine benthic organisms were investigated in coastal areas near the Jang Bogo Antarctic Research Station in Terra Nova Bay during the 2012-2018 summer seasons. We also examined the recovery pattern of marine benthic organisms following disturbance due to the construction of the Jang Bogo Station. A total of 26 taxa were identified in the study area during the experimental period. Species number and diversity indices (richness, evenness, and diversity) were relatively low compared to data previously reported from Terra Nova Bay. Sphaerotylus antarcticus, Clavularia frankliniana, Hydractinia sp., Iridaea cordata, Fragilariopsis spp., Alcyonium antarcticum, and Metalaeospira pixelli were the dominant species in this area. Of these, the diatom Fragilariopsis spp. were the most abundant species, indicating their key role in maintaining the marine benthic community and controlling biogeochemical cycling. During the construction of the Jang Bogo Station, sediment coverage increased and diatoms declined due to the release of sediment into the coastal area. In February 2014, one month after the disturbance due to cyclone, the diatom coverage increased dramatically and thereby species number, richness index, and diversity index steadily rose from 2015 to 2018. However, non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination analysis of species similarities among sampling times showed that community structure had not completely recovered by 2018. Thus, long-term monitoring is required to elucidate the post-disturbance settlement mechanisms of marine benthic organisms at the study area in Terra Nova Bay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Hee Kang
- Department of Earth and Marine Sciences, Jeju National University, Jeju, Republic of Korea
| | - Sanghee Kim
- Department of Polar Life Sciences, Korea Polar Research Institute, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Sun Kyeong Choi
- Estuarine & Coastal Ecology Laboratory, Department of Marine Life Sciences, Jeju National University, Jeju, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyeonglim Moon
- Estuarine & Coastal Ecology Laboratory, Department of Marine Life Sciences, Jeju National University, Jeju, Republic of Korea
| | - Han-Gu Choi
- Department of Polar Life Sciences, Korea Polar Research Institute, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Wook Ko
- Department of Polar Life Sciences, Korea Polar Research Institute, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Ian Hawes
- Coastal Marine Field Station, University of Waikato, Sulphur Point, Tauranga, New Zealand
| | - Sa-Heung Kim
- Marine Biodiversity Research Institute, INTHESEA KOREA Inc., Jeju, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji Hee Kim
- Department of Polar Life Sciences, Korea Polar Research Institute, Incheon, Republic of Korea
- * E-mail: (SRP); (JHK)
| | - Sang Rul Park
- Coastal Marine Field Station, University of Waikato, Sulphur Point, Tauranga, New Zealand
- * E-mail: (SRP); (JHK)
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Muthukrishnan T, Al Khaburi M, Abed RMM. Fouling Microbial Communities on Plastics Compared with Wood and Steel: Are They Substrate- or Location-Specific? MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2019; 78:361-374. [PMID: 30535914 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-018-1303-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2018] [Accepted: 11/27/2018] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Although marine biofouling has been widely studied on different substrates, information on biofouling on plastics in the Arabian Gulf is limited. Substrate- and location-specific effects were investigated by comparing the microbial communities developed on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyethylene (PE) with those on steel and wood, at two locations in the Sea of Oman. Total biomass was lower on PET and PE than on steel and wood. PET had the highest bacterial abundance at both locations, whereas chlorophyll a concentrations did not vary between substrates. MiSeq 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing revealed comparable operational taxonomic unit (OTU) richness on all substrates at one location but lower numbers on PET and PE at the other location. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) showed distinct clusters of the bacterial communities based on substrate (analysis of similarity (ANOSIM), R = 0.45-0.97, p < 0.03) and location (ANOSIM, R = 0.56, p < 0.0001). The bacterial genera Microcystis and Hydrogenophaga and the diatoms Licmophora and Mastogloia were specifically detected on plastics. Desulfovibrio and Pseudomonas spp. exhibited their highest abundance on steel and Corynebacterium spp. on wood. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed fissure formation on PET and PE, indicating physical degradation. The presence of free radicals on PET and carbonyl bonds (C=O) on PE, as revealed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, indicated abiotic degradation while hydroxyl groups and spectral peaks for proteins and polysaccharides on PE indicated biotic degradation. We conclude that fouling microbial communities are not only substrate-specific but also location-specific and microbes developing on plastics could potentially contribute to their degradation in the marine environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thirumahal Muthukrishnan
- Biology Department, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University, P. O. Box 36, PC, 123, Al Khoud, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Maryam Al Khaburi
- Biology Department, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University, P. O. Box 36, PC, 123, Al Khoud, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Raeid M M Abed
- Biology Department, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University, P. O. Box 36, PC, 123, Al Khoud, Sultanate of Oman.
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Abed RMM, Al Fahdi D, Muthukrishnan T. Short-term succession of marine microbial fouling communities and the identification of primary and secondary colonizers. BIOFOULING 2019; 35:526-540. [PMID: 31216872 DOI: 10.1080/08927014.2019.1622004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2019] [Revised: 05/16/2019] [Accepted: 05/17/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Microbial succession during the initial stages of marine biofouling has been rarely studied, especially in the Arabian Gulf. This study was undertaken to follow temporal shifts in biofouling communities in order to identify primary and secondary colonizers. Quantitative analysis revealed a significant increase in total biomass, coverage of macrofoulers, chlorophyll a concentrations, and bacterial counts with time. The relative abundance of the adnate diatoms increased with time, whereas it decreased in the case of the plocon diatoms. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination based on MiSeq data placed the bacterial communities in three distinct clusters, depending on the time of sampling. While the relative abundance of Alphaproteobacteria and Flavobacteriia decreased with time, suggesting their role as primary colonizers, the relative abundance of Actinobacteria and Planctomycetia increased with time, suggesting their role as secondary colonizers. Biofouling is a dynamic process that involves temporal quantitative and qualitative shifts in the micro- and macrofouling communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raeid M M Abed
- Biology Department, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University , Al Khoud , Sultanate of Oman
| | - Dhikra Al Fahdi
- Biology Department, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University , Al Khoud , Sultanate of Oman
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Seasonality modulates the predictive skills of diatom based salinity transfer functions. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0199343. [PMID: 30458002 PMCID: PMC6245675 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0199343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 11/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The value of diatoms as bioindicators in contemporary and palaeolimnological studies through transfer function development has increased in the last decades. While such models represent a tremendous advance in (palaeo) ecology, they leave behind important sources of uncertainties that are often ignored. In the present study we tackle two of the most important sources of uncertainty in the development of diatom salinity inference models: the effect of secondary variables associated to seasonality and the comparison of conventional cross-validation methods with a validation based on independent datasets. Samples (diatoms and environmental variables) were taken in spring, summer and autumn in the freshwater and brackish ditches of the province of North Holland in 1993. Different locations of the same province were sampled again in 2008-2010 to validate the models. We found that the abundance of the dominant species significantly changed between the seasons, leading to inconsistent estimates of species optima and tolerances. A model covering intra-annual variability (all seasons combined) provides averages of species optima and tolerances, reduces the effect of secondary variables due to the seasonality effects, thus providing the strongest relationship between salinity and diatom species. In addition, the ¨all-season¨ model also reduces the edge effects usually found in all unimodal-based calibration methods. While based on cross-validation all four models seem to perform relatively well, a validation with an independent dataset emphasizes the importance of using models covering intra-annual variability to perform realistic reconstructions.
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Majewska R, de Vijver BV, Nasrolahi A, Ehsanpour M, Afkhami M, Bolaños F, Iamunno F, Santoro M, De Stefano M. Shared Epizoic Taxa and Differences in Diatom Community Structure Between Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) from Distant Habitats. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2017; 74:969-978. [PMID: 28477173 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-017-0987-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/18/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
The first reports of diatoms growing on marine mammals date back to the early 1900s. However, only recently has direct evidence been provided for similar associations between diatoms and sea turtles. We present a comparison of diatom communities inhabiting carapaces of green turtles Chelonia mydas sampled at two remote sites located within the Indian (Iran) and Atlantic (Costa Rica) Ocean basins. Diatom observations and counts were carried out using scanning electron microscopy. Techniques involving critical point drying enabled observations of diatoms and other microepibionts still attached to sea turtle carapace and revealed specific aspects of the epizoic community structure. Species-poor, well-developed diatom communities were found on all examined sea turtles. Significant differences between the two host sea turtle populations were observed in terms of diatom abundance and their community structure (including growth form structure). A total of 12 and 22 diatom taxa were found from sea turtles in Iran and Costa Rica, respectively, and eight of these species belonging to Amphora, Chelonicola, Cocconeis, Navicula, Nitzschia and Poulinea genera were observed in samples from both locations. Potential mechanisms of diatom dispersal and the influence of the external environment, sea turtle behaviour, its life stage, and foraging and breeding habitats, as well as epibiotic bacterial flora on epizoic communities, are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roksana Majewska
- Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, School of Biological Sciences, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom, 2520, South Africa.
- South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Private Bag 1015, Grahamstown, 6140, South Africa.
- Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", via Vivaldi 43, 81100, Caserta, Italy.
| | - Bart Van de Vijver
- Department of Bryophyta & Thallophyta, Botanic Garden Meise, Nieuwelaan 38, B-1860, Meise, Belgium
- Department of Biology, ECOBE, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Ali Nasrolahi
- Department of Aquatic Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, G.C., Evin, Tehran, 198 396 9411, Iran
| | - Maryam Ehsanpour
- Department of Aquatic Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, G.C., Evin, Tehran, 198 396 9411, Iran
| | - Majid Afkhami
- Young Researchers and Elite Club, Bandar Abbas Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandar Abbas, Iran
| | - Federico Bolaños
- Escuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Franco Iamunno
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Naples, Italy
| | - Mario Santoro
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2 - 80055, Portici, Naples, Italy
| | - Mario De Stefano
- Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", via Vivaldi 43, 81100, Caserta, Italy
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Campana GL, Zacher K, Deregibus D, Momo FR, Wiencke C, Quartino ML. Succession of Antarctic benthic algae (Potter Cove, South Shetland Islands): structural patterns and glacial impact over a four-year period. Polar Biol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-017-2197-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Muthukrishnan T, Dobretsov S, De Stefano M, Abed RMM, Kidd B, Finnie AA. Diatom communities on commercial biocidal fouling control coatings after one year of immersion in the marine environment. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2017; 129:102-112. [PMID: 28499739 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2017.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2017] [Revised: 04/30/2017] [Accepted: 05/02/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Little is known about the effect of commercial biocidal fouling control coatings on fouling diatom communities and their growth forms after long periods of exposure in the marine tropical environment. The current study investigated the abundance and composition of fouling diatom communities developed on 11 commercially available biocidal antifouling coatings, covering the three main technology types in recent historic use (Self-Polishing Copolymers, Self-Polishing Hybrid and Controlled Depletion Polymers) after one year of static immersion at two locations in Muscat, Oman (Marina Shangri La and Marina Bandar Rowdha). Light microscopy demonstrated that the total abundance of diatoms and the relative abundance of growth forms were significantly affected by the choice of biocidal antifouling coating and experimental location. Using scanning electron microscopy, a total of 21 diatom genera were identified which were grouped into adnate, motile, plocon and erect growth forms. The adnate growth forms, mainly the genera Amphora, Cocconeis and Mastogloia, dominated the other growth forms in terms of their relative abundance. Current results revealed the importance of exposure location and choice of biocidal antifouling coating on the relative abundance of diatom growth forms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thirumahal Muthukrishnan
- Department of Marine Science and Fisheries, College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 34, Al Khoud, Muscat 123, Oman
| | - Sergey Dobretsov
- Department of Marine Science and Fisheries, College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 34, Al Khoud, Muscat 123, Oman; Center of Excellence in Marine Biotechnology, Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 50, Al Khoud, Muscat 123, Oman.
| | - Mario De Stefano
- Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, The Second University of Naples, Via Vivaldi 43, 80127, Caserta, Italy
| | - Raeid M M Abed
- Department of Biology, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 36, Al Khoud, Muscat 123, Oman
| | - Barry Kidd
- AkzoNobel/International Paint Ltd., Stoneygate Lane, Felling, Gateshead, United Kingdom
| | - Alistair A Finnie
- AkzoNobel/International Paint Ltd., Stoneygate Lane, Felling, Gateshead, United Kingdom
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