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Alves CM, Gomes MA, Troncoso JS, Gomes PT. Environmental influence on the functional ecological structure of benthic macrofaunal communities of the northwest Iberian coast. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 201:106712. [PMID: 39213894 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2024] [Revised: 08/16/2024] [Accepted: 08/26/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Evaluating the functional structure of benthic macrofaunal communities provides insights into how environmental drivers shape the ecosystem and establishes a baseline knowledge of the communities' dynamics and functioning. This understanding allows the prediction of responses to environmental changes and the implementation of efficient conservation and management strategies. Here we examine the structures and functions of benthic macrofaunal communities on the Northwest Iberian coast concerning environmental factors such as depth, hydrodynamic energy, and bottom type. The results suggest that the community assemblages and their function are structured by factors which influence food availability and habitat heterogeneity. The different sites exhibited different trait compositions and functional structures, indicating that distinct functions are performed according to environmental conditions. The communities found in sandy bottom areas with low hydrodynamic conditions presented frail functionality and demonstrated high vulnerability to alterations in their environment. Conversely, the communities found in rocky bottoms with high hydrodynamic conditions exhibited a fulfilled functional niche space, rendering them more resilient to such changes and less prone to loss of function. Although the analyses did not reveal significant differences in the factor depth, its influence on several factors seems relevant in shaping the functional structure of the communities. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the impact of local environmental conditions on ecosystem functioning, to effectively implement monitoring, management, and conservation strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catarina M Alves
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology, Department of Biology, Campus de Gualtar, University of Minho, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal; ECOCOST Lab, Marine Research Centre (CIM-UVIGO), Department of Ecology and Animal Biology University of Vigo, 36310, Vigo, Spain.
| | - Marisa A Gomes
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology, Department of Biology, Campus de Gualtar, University of Minho, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal; ECOCOST Lab, Marine Research Centre (CIM-UVIGO), Department of Ecology and Animal Biology University of Vigo, 36310, Vigo, Spain
| | - Jesus S Troncoso
- ECOCOST Lab, Marine Research Centre (CIM-UVIGO), Department of Ecology and Animal Biology University of Vigo, 36310, Vigo, Spain
| | - Pedro T Gomes
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology, Department of Biology, Campus de Gualtar, University of Minho, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal
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Xu Y, Sui J, Ma L, Li X, Wang H, Zhang B. Temporal variation of macrobenthic community zonation over nearly 60 years and the effects of latitude and depth in the southern Yellow Sea and East China Sea. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 739:139760. [PMID: 32544674 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2020] [Revised: 05/20/2020] [Accepted: 05/26/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
To examine the temporal variation of macrobenthic community zonation over nearly 60 years and the effects of latitude and depth in the southern Yellow Sea and East China Sea, a total of 1386 box-corer samples from four large spatial scale studies during 1958-1959, 2000-2004, 2011-2013 and 2014-2016 period, respectively, were compiled. A total of 26, 14, 13 and 18 communities were identified, respectively during the four periods with the same analytical method. The Yellow Sea Cold Water Mass (YSCWM) community, restricted to the 34°N latitude in the south and 50 m isobaths in the west, varied little in its spatial pattern over nearly 60 years, while other communities did not. The representative species in the YSCWM community changed from the polychaetes to the brittle stars during 1958-2016. However, in other large spatial scale communities except the YSCWM community, the representative species changed from the echinoderms, nemerteans or crustaceans to the polychaetes. For the revisited locations across studies, significant temporal and spatial variations in community structure at both species and family levels were detected. Macrobenthic species with high consecutive contributions to the community similarity were significantly influenced by latitude, depth, temperature and salinity, among which latitude and depth were the first two most significant environmental variables. Species diversity increased from 32 to 37°N during 1958-1959, but decreased during 2014-2016. It seems that the latitude of 32°N is an ecological barrier for macrobenthic community and diversity, but its effects weakened from 1958 to 2016. Species diversity roughly showed a first increasing then decreasing trend with the increase of the water depth in the southern Yellow Sea and East China Sea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong Xu
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Jixing Sui
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Lin Ma
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China.
| | - Xinzheng Li
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China.
| | - Hongfa Wang
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China
| | - Baolin Zhang
- Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China
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