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Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of gastropod assemblages in rocky shores.

ABSTRACT: Gastropod assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats were studied over large spatial scales to (1) describe broad-scale patterns in assemblage composition, including patterns by feeding modes, (2) identify latitudinal pattern of biodiversity, i.e., richness and abundance of gastropods and/or regional hotspots, and (3) identify potential environmental and anthropogenic drivers of these assemblages. Gastropods were sampled from 45 sites distributed within 12 Large Marine Ecosystem regions (LME) following the NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas) standard protocol (www.nagisa.coml.org). A total of 393 gastropod taxa from 87 families were collected. Eight of these families (9.2%) appeared in four or more different LMEs. Among these, the Littorinidae was the most widely distributed (8 LMEs) followed by the Trochidae and the Columbellidae (6 LMEs). In all regions, assemblages were dominated by few species, the most diverse and abundant of which were herbivores. No latitudinal gradients were evident in relation to species richness or densities among sampling sites. Highest diversity was found in the Mediterranean and in the Gulf of Alaska, while highest densities were found at different latitudes and represented by few species within one genus (e.g. Afrolittorina in the Agulhas Current, Littorina in the Scotian Shelf, and Lacuna in the Gulf of Alaska). No significant correlation was found between species composition and environmental variables (r?0.355, p>0.05). Contributing variables to this low correlation included invasive species, inorganic pollution, SST anomalies, and chlorophyll-a anomalies. Despite data limitations in this study which restrict conclusions in a global context, this work represents the first effort to sample gastropod biodiversity on rocky shores using a standardized protocol across a wide scale. Our results will generate more work to build global databases allowing for large-scale diversity comparisons of rocky intertidal assemblages.

SUBMITTER: Miloslavich P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3742765 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of gastropod assemblages in rocky shores.

Miloslavich Patricia P Cruz-Motta Juan José JJ Klein Eduardo E Iken Katrin K Weinberger Vanessa V Konar Brenda B Trott Tom T Pohle Gerhard G Bigatti Gregorio G Benedetti-Cecchi Lisandro L Shirayama Yoshihisa Y Mead Angela A Palomo Gabriela G Ortiz Manuel M Gobin Judith J Sardi Adriana A Díaz Juan Manuel JM Knowlton Ann A Wong Melisa M Peralta Ana C AC

PloS one 20130813 8

Gastropod assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats were studied over large spatial scales to (1) describe broad-scale patterns in assemblage composition, including patterns by feeding modes, (2) identify latitudinal pattern of biodiversity, i.e., richness and abundance of gastropods and/or regional hotspots, and (3) identify potential environmental and anthropogenic drivers of these assemblages. Gastropods were sampled from 45 sites distributed within 12 Large Marine Ecosystem regions (LME) fol ...[more]

PMID: 23967204

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Project description:This study examined echinoderm assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats for large-scale distribution patterns with specific emphasis on identifying latitudinal trends and large regional hotspots. Echinoderms were sampled from 76 globally-distributed sites within 12 ecoregions, following the standardized sampling protocol of the Census of Marine Life NaGISA project (www.nagisa.coml.org). Sample-based species richness was overall low (<1-5 species per site), with a total of 32 asteroid, 18 echinoid, 21 ophiuroid, and 15 holothuroid species. Abundance and species richness in intertidal assemblages sampled with visual methods (organisms >2 cm in 1 m(2) quadrats) was highest in the Caribbean ecoregions and echinoids dominated these assemblages with an average of 5 ind m(-2). In contrast, intertidal echinoderm assemblages collected from clearings of 0.0625 m(2) quadrats had the highest abundance and richness in the Northeast Pacific ecoregions where asteroids and holothurians dominated with an average of 14 ind 0.0625 m(-2). Distinct latitudinal trends existed for abundance and richness in intertidal assemblages with declines from peaks at high northern latitudes. No latitudinal trends were found for subtidal echinoderm assemblages with either sampling technique. Latitudinal gradients appear to be superseded by regional diversity hotspots. In these hotspots echinoderm assemblages may be driven by local and regional processes, such as overall productivity and evolutionary history. We also tested a set of 14 environmental variables (six natural and eight anthropogenic) as potential drivers of echinoderm assemblages by ecoregions. The natural variables of salinity, sea-surface temperature, chlorophyll a, and primary productivity were strongly correlated with echinoderm assemblages; the anthropogenic variables of inorganic pollution and nutrient contamination also contributed to correlations. Our results indicate that nearshore echinoderm assemblages appear to be shaped by a network of environmental and ecological processes, and by the differing responses of various echinoderm taxa, making generalizations about the patterns of nearshore rocky habitat echinoderm assemblages difficult.

Project description:Várzea forests account for 17% of the Amazon basin and endure an annual inundation that can reach 14 m deep during 6-8 months. This flood pulse in combination with topography directly influences the várzea vegetation cover. Assemblages of several taxa differ significantly between unflooded terra firme and flooded várzea forests, but little is known about the distribution of medium and large sized terrestrial mammals in várzea habitats. Therefore, our goal was to understand how those habitats influence mammalian species distribution during the dry season. Specifically, we: (1) compared the species composition between a terra firme (Amanã Sustainable Development Reserve) and a várzea forest (Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve); and (2) tested the influence of the várzea habitat classes on the number of records, occurrence and species composition of mammalian assemblages. The sampling design in each reserve consisted of 50 baited camera trap stations, with an overall sampling effort of 5015 camera trap days. We used Non-Metric Multidimension Scaling (NMDS) to compare species composition between terra firme and várzea forests, and used Generalized Linear Models (GLM) to assess how habitat types and a habitat diversity index affect mammal distributions. We recorded 21 medium and large sized mammalian species, including 20 species in terra firme and only six in várzea (3443 records). Flood pulse and isolation in várzea forest drove the dissimilarity between these two forest types. In várzea forest, medium size mammals, in general, avoided habitats associated with long flooding periods, while jaguars (Panthera onca) appeared to prefer aquatic/terrestrial transition zones. Habitats that remain dry for longer periods showed more mammalian occurrence, suggesting that dispersion via soil is important even for semi-arboreal species. This is the first study to evaluate differential use of várzea habitats by terrestrial mammalian assemblages.

Dataset Information

Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of gastropod assemblages in rocky shores.

Publications

Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of gastropod assemblages in rocky shores.

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