Spatio-temporal variations of biomass and abundance in bathyal non-crustacean megafauna in the Catalan Sea (North-western Mediterranean) |
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Authors: | Eva Ramírez-Llodra Manuel Ballesteros Joan B Company Luis Dantart Francisco Sardà |
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Institution: | (1) Institut de Ciències del Mar (CMIMA-CSIC), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain;(2) Facultat de Biologia, Dept. Biologia Animal, Universitat de Barcelona, Avg. Diagonal 645, 08028 Barcelona, Spain |
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Abstract: | The spatio-temporal variations in diversity, biomass and abundance of bathyal invertebrates (excluding decapod crustaceans,
which have been analysed elsewhere) from the North-western Mediterranean margin are described. The upper canyon (∼450 m),
middle slope (∼650 m) and lower slope (∼1,200 m) habitats were investigated throughout the year. The first two sites are visited
daily by a specialised commercial fisheries’ fleet, while the deeper site has not been impacted by fishing activities. A total
of 140 species from 12 phyla were collected from the 3 study areas. Of these, the Mollusca, Echinodermata, Polychaeta and
Cnidaria were the most speciose groups. The patterns of species diversity (H′) and evenness (E) were similar in time and space. The upper canyon and middle-slope sites were dominated by echinoderms and molluscs, while
the lower-slope site was dominated by cnidarians and sponges. Multifactorial ANOVA showed significant spatio-temporal differences
in the biomass and/or abundance only in echinoderms, molluscs, cnidarians and polychaetes. The faunal differences observed
were explained by habitat type, but not by season. The role of submarine canyons and commercial fishing on shaping the diversity
and biomass of bathyal Mediterranean invertebrates is discussed.
Luis Dantart: Deceased March 2005 |
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