Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-94fs2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T17:19:07.845Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Trophic structure of soft-bottom macrobenthos in an inlet in north-western Spain

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 May 2009

Eva Cacabelos ,
Marta Domínguez  and
Jesús S. Troncoso
Eva Cacabelos*
Affiliation:
Área de Bioloxía Animal, Facultade de Ciencias do Mar, Universidade de Vigo, 36310 Lagoas-Marcosende, Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain
Marta Domínguez
Affiliation:
Área de Bioloxía Animal, Facultade de Ciencias do Mar, Universidade de Vigo, 36310 Lagoas-Marcosende, Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain
Jesús S. Troncoso
Affiliation:
Área de Bioloxía Animal, Facultade de Ciencias do Mar, Universidade de Vigo, 36310 Lagoas-Marcosende, Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: E. Cacabelos, Área de Bioloxía Animal, Facultade de Ciencias do Mar, Universidade de Vigo, 36310 Lagoas-Marcosende, Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain email: cacabelos@uvigo.es
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The trophic composition of macrobenthic communities in intertidal and subtidal soft-bottoms of the Ensenada de San Simón (north-western Spain) was found to be related to a number of environmental variables. Distribution and abundance of trophic groups have been studied, to provide essential baseline information for monitoring the area, after its designation as a Natura 2000 Special Conservation Zone. Analyses of trophic data showed a numerical predominance of the herbivores in the inner part of the inlet, while sites at the oceanic-influenced area were numerically dominated by surface-deposit feeders. These dominances were mainly due to Hydrobia ulvae in the intertidal area and to polychaetes at the subtidal one. Both univariate and multivariate statistical analyses showed that the sediment composition (organic matter and silt–clay contents) and temperature of the bottom water influenced the benthic macrofauna and were correlated with their trophic composition, abundance and distribution.

Keywords

trophic structuresoft bottomsbenthosmacrofaunaestuary
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 89 , Issue 3 , May 2009 , pp. 439 - 447
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abella, F.E., Parada, J.M. and Mora, J. (1996) Relationship between the macrobenthic community structure and the presence of mussel rafts culture in the Ría de Vigo (NW Iberian Peninsula). Crangon 1, 111–118.Google Scholar
Álvarez-Iglesias, P., Rubio, B. and Vilas, F. (2003) Pollution in intertidal sediments of San Simón Bay (Inner Ría de Vigo): total heavy metal concentrations and speciation. Marine Pollution Bulletin 46, 491–521.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ambrogi, R., Bedulli, D. and Occhipinti, A. (1989) Variazioni nella ripartizione tra gruppi trofici di organismi di fondo mobile nell'area marina del Delta Padano. Oebalia 16, 47–55.Google Scholar
Barnes, R.S.K. (1981) Factors affecting climbing in the coastal gastropod Hydrobia ulvae. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 61, 301–306.Google Scholar
Boaventura, D., Cancela da Fonseca, L. and Teles-Ferreira, C. (1999) Trophic structure of macrobenthic communities on the Portuguese coast. A review of lagoonal, estuarine and rocky littoral habitats. Acta Oecologica 20, 407–415.Google Scholar
Bray, R.J. and Curtis, J.I. (1957) An ordination of the upland forest communities of southern Wisconsin. Ecological Monographs 27, 325–349.Google Scholar
Cabanas, J.M., González, J.J., Mariño, J., Pérez, A. and Román, G. (1979) Estudio del mejillón y de su epifauna en los cultivos flotantes de la ría de Arousa. Boletín del Instituto Español de Oceanografía 5, 45–80.Google Scholar
Cacabelos, E., Gestoso, L. and Troncoso, J.S. (2008) Macrobenthic fauna in the Ensenada de San Simón (Galicia, north-western Spain). Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 88, 237–245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clarke, K.R. and Warwick, R.M. (1994) Change in marine communities: an approach to statistical analysis and interpretation. UK: Natural Environmental Research Council, 144 pp.Google Scholar
Cocito, S.S., Fanucci, S., Niccolai, I., Morri, C. and Bianchi, C.N. (1990) Relationships between trophic organization of benthic communities and organic matter in Tyrrhenian Sea sediments. Hydrobiologia 207, 53–60.Google Scholar
Conde, A. and Domínguez, J. (2004) Biodeposiciones del cultivo de mejillón de acuicultura en Galicia: ¿contaminante o recurso? III Congreso Iberoamericano Virtual de Acuicultura. http://www.revistaaquatic.com/civa2004/Google Scholar
Dauvin, J.C. (1988) Structure et organisation trophique du peuplement des sables grossiers à Amphioxus lanceolatus–Venus fasciata de la baie de Morlaix (Manche occidentale). Cahiers de Biologie Marine 29, 163–185.Google Scholar
Fauchald, K. and Jumars, P.A. (1979) The diet of worms: a study of polychaete feeding guilds. Oceanography and Marine Biology: an Annual Review 17, 193–284.Google Scholar
Fenchel, T. (1977) Aspects of the descomposition of seagrasses. In McRoy, C.P. and Helfferich, C. (eds) Seagrass ecosystems: a scientific perspective. New York: Marcel Dekker, pp. 123–145.Google Scholar
Folk, R.L. and Ward, W.C. (1957) Brazos river bar: a study in the significance of grain size parameters. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 27, 3–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gambi, M.C. and Giangrande, A. (1985a) Analisi della struttura trofica del popolamento dei policheti nei fondi mobili di due aree del Mar Tirreno. Oebalia 11, 215–222.Google Scholar
Gambi, M.C. and Giangrande, A. (1985b) Caratterizzazione e distribuzione delle categorie trofiche dei policheti nei fondi mobili del Golfo di Salerno. Oebalia 11, 223–240.Google Scholar
García-Arberas, L. and Rallo, A. (2002) The intertidal soft-bottom infaunal macrobenthos in three Basque estuaries (Gulf of Biscay): a feeding guild approach. Hydrobiologia 475/476, 457–468.Google Scholar
Gaston, G.R. and Nasci, J.C. (1988) Trophic structure of macrobenthic communities in the Calcasieu Estuary, Lousiana. Estuaries 11, 201–211.Google Scholar
Giangrande, A., Licciano, M. and Pagliara, P. (2000) The diversity of diets in Syllidae (Polychaeta). Cahiers de Biologie Marine 41, 55–65.Google Scholar
Guitián, F. and Carballas, J. (1976) Técnicas de análisis de suelos. Santiago de Compostela, Spain: Pico Sacro, ed.Google Scholar
Hootsmans, M.J.M. and Vermaat, J.E. (1985) The effect of periphyton-grazing by three epifaunal species on the growth of Zostera marina L. under experimental conditions. Aquatic Botany 22, 83–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jacobs, R.P.W.M., Hegger, H.H. and Ras-Willems, A. (1983) Seasonal variations in the structure of a Zostera community on tidal flats in the SW Netherlands, with special reference to the benthic fauna. Proceedings of the Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, Series C. 86, 347–375.Google Scholar
Junoy, J. (1996) La Ría de Foz, comunidades bentónicas. Servicio de Publicaciones de la Diputación Provincial de Lugo, Spain.Google Scholar
Lastra, M., Palacio, J., Sánchez, A. and Mora, J. (1991) Estructura trófica infralitoral de la Bahía de Santander. Cahiers de Biologie Marine 32, 333–351.Google Scholar
León, I., Méndez, G. and Rubio, B. (2004) Fases geoquímicas del Fe y grado de piritización en sedimentos de la Ría de Pontevedra (NO de España): implicaciones del cultivo del mejillón en bateas. Ciencias Marinas 30, 585–602.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Levinton, J.S. (1977) Ecology of shallow water deposit-feeding communities Quisset Harbor, Masachusetts. In Coull, B.C. (ed.) Ecology of marine benthos, 6. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, pp. 191–227.Google Scholar
Levinton, J.S. and Bianchi, T.S. (1981) Nutrition and food limitation of deposit-feeders. I. The role of microbes in the growth of mud snails (Hydrobiidae). Journal of Marine Research 39, 531–545.Google Scholar
Maurer, D., Watling, L., Leathem, W. and Kinner, P. (1979) Seasonal changes in feeding types of estuarine benthic invertebrates from Delaware Bay. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 36, 125–155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muniz, P. and Pires, M.S. (1999) Trophic structure of polychaetes in the São Sebastião Channel (southeastern Brazil). Marine Biology 134, 517–528.Google Scholar
Nombela, M.A. and Vilas, F. (1986–1987) Medios y submedios en el sector intermareal de la Ensenada de San Simón. Ría de Vigo (Pontevedra): Secuencias sedimentarias características. Acta Geológica Hispánica 21–22, 223–231.Google Scholar
Nombela, M.A., Vilas, F., Rodríguez, M.D. and Ares, J.C. (1987) Estudio sedimentológico del litoral gallego: III. Resultados previos sobre los sedimentos de los fondos de la Ría de Vigo. Thalassas 5, 7–19.Google Scholar
Nombela, M.A., Vilas, F., Alejo, I., García-Gil, S., Rubio, B. and Pazos, O. (1992). Oceanografía del transecto: Isla de San Simón-Muelle de San Adrián. Ensenada de San Simón (Ría de Vigo), NO de España. Thalassas 10, 77–88.Google Scholar
Nombela, M.A., Vilas, F. and Evans, G. (1995) Sedimentation in the mesotidal Rías Bajas of Galicia (north-western Spain): Ensenada de San Simón, Inner Ría de Vigo. Special Publications of the International Association of Sedimentologists 24, 133–149.Google Scholar
Olabarria, C., Urgorri, V. and Troncoso, J. (1998) An analysis of the community structure of subtidal and intertidal benthic mollusks of the Inlet of Baño (Ría de Ferrol). American Malacological Bulletin 14, 103–120.Google Scholar
Olabarria, C., Urgorri, V. and Troncoso, J. (1999) Trophic structure of the molluscan fauna in the Inlet of Baño (NW Spain): distribution, ordination and relationship to environmental parameters. Bollettino Malacologico 34, 87–96.Google Scholar
Palacio, J., Mora, J., Lastra, M. and Planas, M. (1993) Estructura trófica de la macrofauna intermareal: evolución en un área afectada por vertidos orgánicos. Publicaciones Especiales del Instituto Español de Oceanografía 11, 415–422.Google Scholar
Parapar, J. (1991) Anélidos poliquetos bentónicos de la Ría de Ferrol (Galicia). PhD thesis. University of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.Google Scholar
Pearson, T.H. (2001) Functional group ecology in soft-sediment marine benthos: the role of bioturbation. Oceanography and Marine Biology: an Annual Review 39, 233–267.Google Scholar
Petersen, C.G.J. (1918) The sea-bottom and its production of fish-food. A survey of the work done in connection with the valuation of the Danish waters from 1883–1917. Reports of the Danish Station of Biology 25, 1–62.Google Scholar
Rakocinski, C.F., Brown, S.S., Gaston, G.R., Heard, R.W., Walker, W.W. and Summers, J.K. (1997) Macrobenthic responses to natural and contaminant-related gradients in northern Gulf of Mexico estuaries. Ecological Applications 7, 1278–1298.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rakocinski, C.F., Brown, S.S., Gaston, G.R., Heard, R.W., Walker, W.W. and Summers, J.K. (2000) Species-abundance-biomass responses to sediment chemical contamination. Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Stress and Recovery 7, 201–214.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rhoads, D.C. and Young, D.K. (1970) The influence of deposit-feeding organisms on sediment stability and community trophic structure. Journal of Marine Research 28, 150–177.Google Scholar
Rodrigues, A.M. and Quintinho, V. (1985) Estudo granulométrico e cartografía dos sedimentos superficiais da Lagoa de Obidos (Portugal). Comunicaçöes dos Serviços Geológicos de Portugal 71, 231–242.Google Scholar
Sanders, H.L. (1958) Benthic studies in Buzzards Bay. I. animal–sediment relationships. Limnology and Oceanography 3, 245–258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sanders, H.L. (1968) Marine benthic diversity: a comparative study. American Naturalist 102, 243–282.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sokal, R.R. and Rohlf, F.J. (1980) Introducción a la bioestadística. Barcelona: Ed. Reverté, S.A.Google Scholar
ter Braak, C.J.F. and Prentice, C. (1988) A theory of gradient analysis. Advances in Ecological Research 18, 271–317.Google Scholar
Thorson, G. (1957). Bottom communities (sublittoral or shallow shelf). Memoirs of the Geological Society of America 67, 461–534.Google Scholar
Trask, P.D. (1932) Origin and environment of source sediments of petroleum. Houston, TX: Houston Gulf Publications Co.Google Scholar
Troncoso, J., Urgorri, V. and Olabarria, C. (1996) Estructura trófica de los moluscos de sustratos duros infralitorales de la Ría de Ares y Betanzos (Galicia, NO España). Iberus 14, 131–141.Google Scholar
Vilas, F., Nombela, M.A., García-Gil, E., García-Gil, S., Alejo, I., Rubio, B. and Pazos, O. (1995) Cartografía de sedimentos submarinos: Ría de Vigo. Memoria del Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Medio Ambiente (Área de Estratigrafía) de la Universidad de Vigo. Ed. Xunta de Galicia.Google Scholar
Wilson, J.G. and Jeffrey, D.W. (1994) Benthic biological pollution indices in estuaries. In Kramer, K.J.M. (ed.) Biomonitoring of coastal waters and estuaries. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 311–327.Google Scholar