Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-c4f8m Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-25T01:10:35.277Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Macrofaunal communities on the continental shelf off Victoria Land, Ross Sea, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2011

Peter Rehm ,
Rachel A. Hooke  and
Sven Thatje
Peter Rehm*
Affiliation:
Animal Physiology, Biozentrum Grindel, University of Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany
Rachel A. Hooke
Affiliation:
School of Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK
Sven Thatje
Affiliation:
School of Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK
*
peter.rehm@uni-hamburg.de
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In austral summer 2004 benthic macrofauna was sampled along a latitudinal gradient along the northern Victoria Land coast (Ross Sea). An Agassiz trawl was used for semi-quantitative data collection of macrozoobenthos at depths from 84 to 537 m. Multivariate analysis of abundance of higher taxonomic units discriminated between the four sample sites along the latitudinal gradient. A SIMPROF analysis emphasized these geographical clusters, as the samples showed no significant differences within each cluster. A change in community structure with depth was not observed. The dominant taxonomic groups along the Victoria Land coast were Echinodermata (39%), Arthropoda (24%), Polychaeta (14%), and Mollusca (12%), not accounting for colonial organisms. Thus, the overall structure of the benthic community off the Victoria Land coast is comparable to other Antarctic regions and shows a closer relationship to the eastern Weddell Sea shelf, which may be attributable to the extensive impact of grounded ice affecting both areas.

Keywords

Agassiz trawlcluster analysismacrozoobenthosSIMPROFlatitudinal gradient
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 23 , Issue 5 , October 2011 , pp. 449 - 455
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2011

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

Arnaud, P.M., López, C.M., Olaso, I., Ramil, F., Ramos-Esplá, A.A. Ramos, A. 1998. Semi-quantitative study of macrobenthic fauna in the region of the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. Polar Biology, 19, 160–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arntz, W.E., Thatje, S., Linse, K., Avila, C., Ballesteros, M., Barnes, D.K.A., Cope, T., Cristobo, F.J., De Broyer, C., Gutt, J., Isla, E., López-González, P., Montiel, A., Munilla, T., Ramos-Espla, A.A., Raupach, M., Rauschert, M., Rodríguez, E. Teixidó, N. 2006. Missing link in the Southern Ocean: sampling the marine benthic fauna of remote Bouvet Island. Polar Biology, 29, 83–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arrigo, K.R., Robinson, D.H., Worthen, D.L., Dunbar, R.B., DiTullio, G.R., van Woert, M. Lizotte, M.P. 1999. Phytoplankton community structure and the drawdown of nutrients and CO2 in the Southern Ocean. Science, 283, 365–367.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Barry, J.P. Dayton, P.K. 1988. Current patterns in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica and their relationship to local biotic communities. Polar Biology, 8, 367–376.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barry, J.P., Grebemeier, J.M., Smith, J. Dunbar, R.B. 2003. Oceanographic versus seafloor-habitat control of benthic megafaunal communities in the S.W. Ross Sea, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, 78, 327–354.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blazewicz-Paszkowycz, M. Ligowski, R. 2002. Diatoms as food source indicator for some Antarctic Cumacea and Tanaidacea. Antarctic Science, 14, 11–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bray, J.R. Curtis, J.T. 1957. An ordination of the upland forest of southern Wisconsin. Ecological Monographs, 27, 225–349.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bullivant, J.S. 1967. Ecology of the Ross Sea benthos. Bulletin of the New Zealand Department of Science and Industrial Research, 176, 49–75.Google Scholar
Cantone, G., Castelli, A. Gambi, M.C. 2000. Benthic polychaetes of Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea: species composition, biogeography, and ecological role. In Faranda, F.M., Guglielmo, L. & Ianora, A., eds. Ross Sea ecology. Berlin: Springer, 551–561.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cattaneo-Vietti, R., Bavestrello, G., Cerrano, C., Giano, E., Mazella, L., Pansini, M. Sará, M. 2000. The role of sponges of Terra Nova Bay ecosystem. In Faranda, F.M., Guglielmo, L. & Ianora, A., eds. Ross Sea ecology. Berlin: Springer, 539–549.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chiantore, M., Guidetti, M., Cavallero, M., De Domenico, F., Albertelli, G. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2006. Sea urchins, sea stars and brittle stars from Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea, Antarctica). Polar Biology, 29, 467–475.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Choudhury, M. Brandt, A. 2007. Composition and distribution of benthic isopod (Crustacea, Malacostraca) families off the Victoria-Land Coast (Ross Sea, Antarctica). Polar Biology, 30, 1421–1437.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clarke, A. Crame, J.A. 1992. The Southern Ocean benthic fauna and climate change: a historical perspective. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, B338, 299–309.Google Scholar
Clarke, K.R. Gorley, R.N. 2000. Primer 5 for Windows, version 5.2.1. Plymouth: PRIMER-E Ltd.Google Scholar
Cummings, V.J., Thrush, S.F., Chiantore, M., Hewitt, J.E. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2010. Macrobenthic communities of the north-western Ross Sea shelf: links to depth, sediment characteristics and latitude. Antarctic Science, 22, 793–804.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cummings, V., Thrush, S., Norkko, A., Andrew, N., Hewitt, J., Funnell, G. Schwarz, A.-M. 2006. Accounting for local scale variability in benthos: implications for future assessments of latitudinal trends in the coastal Ross Sea. Antarctic Science, 18, 633–644.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dayton, P.K., Robilliard, G.A., Paine, R.T. Dayton, L.B. 1974. Biological accommodation in the benthic community at McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. Ecological Monographs, 44, 105–128.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dayton, P.K. Oliver, J.S. 1977. Antarctic soft-bottom benthos in oligotrophic and eutrophic environments. Science, 197, 55–58.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dayton, P.K., Robilliard, G.A. Paine, R.T. 1970. Benthic faunal zonation as a result of anchor ice at McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. In Holdgate, M.W., ed. Antarctic ecology, vol. 1. London: Academic Press, 244–258.Google Scholar
De Domenico, F., Chiantore, M., Buongiovanni, S., Ferranti, M.P., Ghione, S., Thrush, S., Cummings, V., Hewitt, J., Kröger, K. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2006. Latitude versus local effects on echinoderm assemblages along the Victoria Land coast, Ross Sea, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 18, 655–662.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Galéron, J., Herman, R.L., Arnaud, P.M., Arntz, W.E., Hain, S. Klages, M. 1992. Macrofaunal communities on the continental shelf and slope of the southeastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 12, 283–290.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gambi, M.C. Bussotti, S. 1999. Composition, abundance and stratification of soft-bottom macrobenthos from selected areas of the Ross Sea shelf (Antarctica). Polar Biology, 21, 347–354.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gambi, M.C., Castelli, A. Guizzardi, M. 1997. Polychaete populations of the shallow soft bottoms off Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea, Antarctica): distribution, diversity and biomass. Polar Biology, 17, 199–210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gerdes, D., Hilbig, B. Montiel, A. 2003. Impact of iceberg scouring on macrobenthic communities in the high-Antarctic Weddell Sea. Polar Biology, 26, 295–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gerdes, D., Isla, E., Knust, R., Mintenbeck, K. Rossi, S. 2008. Response of Antarctic benthic communities to disturbance: first results from the artificial Benthic Disturbance Experiment on the eastern Weddell Sea Shelf, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 31, 1469–1480.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gerdes, D., Klages, M., Arntz, W.E., Herman, R.L., Galéron, J. Hain, S. 1992. Quantitative investigations on macrobenthos communities of the southeastern Weddell Sea shelf based on multibox corer samples. Polar Biology, 12, 291–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gutt, J. 2000. Some “driving forces” structuring communities of the sublittoral Antarctic macrobenthos. Antarctic Science, 12, 297–313.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gutt, J. Starmans, A. 1998. Structure and biodiversity of megabenthos in the Weddell and Lazarev seas (Antarctica): ecological role of physical parameters and biological interactions. Polar Biology, 20, 229–247.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gutt, J., Fricke, A., Teixidó, N., Potthoff, M. Arntz, W.E. 2005. Mega-epibenthos at Bouvet Island (South Atlantic): a spatially isolated biodiversity hot spot on a tiny geological spot. Polar Biology, 29, 97–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Higgs, N.D., Reed, A.J., Hooke, R., Honey, D.J., Heilmayer, O. Thatje, S. 2009. Growth and reproduction in the Antarctic brooding bivalve Adacnarca nitens (Philobryidae) from the Ross Sea. Marine Biology, 156, 1073–1081.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Keys, J.R. 1983. Iceberg quantities, shapes and sizes in western Ross and D'Urville seas. Antarctic Journal of the United States, 18(5), 125–127.Google Scholar
Kröger, K. Rowden, A.A. 2008. Polychaete assemblages of the northwestern Ross Sea shelf: worming out the environmental drivers of Antarctic macrobenthic assemblage composition. Polar Biology, 31, 971–989.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peck, L.S., Brockington, S., Vanhove, S. Beghyn, M. 1999. Community recovery following catastrophic iceberg impacts in Antarctica. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 186, 1–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Povero, P., Castellano, M., Ruggieri, N., Monticell, L.S., Saggiomo, V., Chiantore, M., Guidetti, M. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2006. Water column features and their relationship with sediments and benthic communities along the Victoria Land coast, Ross Sea, summer 2004. Antarctic Science, 18, 603–613.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rehm, P., Thatje, S., Mühlenhardt-Siegel, U. Brandt, A. 2007. Composition and distribution of the peracarid crustacean fauna along a latitudinal transect off Victoria Land (Ross Sea, Antarctica) with special emphasis on the Cumacea. Polar Biology, 30, 871–881.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rehm, P., Thatje, S., Arntz, W.E., Brandt, A. Heilmayer, O. 2006. Distribution and composition of macrozoobenthic communities along a Victoria-Land Transect (Ross Sea, Antarctica). Polar Biology, 29, 782–790.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Saggiomo, V., Catalano, G., Mangoni, O., Budillon, G. Carrada, G.C. 2002. Primary production processes in ice-free waters of the Ross Sea (Antarctica) during the austral summer 1996. Deep-Sea Research II, 49, 1787–1801.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Salzwedel, H.L., Rachor, E. Gerdes, D. 1985. Benthic macrofauna communities in the German Bight. Veröffentlichungen des Institutes für Meeresforschung Bremerhaven, 20, 199–267.Google Scholar
Schiaparelli, S., Albertelli, G. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2003. The epibiotic assembly on the sponge Haliclona dancoi (Topsent, 1901) at Terra Nova Bay (Antarctica, Ross Sea). Polar Biology, 26, 342–347.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schiaparelli, S., Lörz, A.-N. Cattaneo-Vietti, R. 2006. Diversity and distribution of mollusc assemblages on the Victoria Land coast and the Balleny Islands, Ross Sea, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 18, 615–631.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Starmans, A., Gutt, J. Arntz, W.E. 1999. Mega-epibenthic communities in Arctic and Antarctic shelf areas. Marine Biology, 135, 269–280.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stransky, B. 2008. Description of the Rauschert sled and its sampling efficiency. Mitteilungen des hamburgischen zoologischen Museeums und Instituts, 105, 23–30.Google Scholar
Teixidó, N., Garrabou, J., Gutt, J. Arntz, W.E. 2007. Iceberg disturbance and successional spatial patterns: the case of the shelf Antarctic benthic communities. Ecosystems, 10, 142–157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thatje, S., Gerdes, D. Rachor, E. 1999. A seafloor crater in the German Bight and its effects on the benthos. Helgoland Marine Research, 53, 36–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thatje, S., Hillenbrand, C.-D. Larter, R. 2005. On the origin of Antarctic marine benthic community structure. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 20, 534–540.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thrush, S., Dayton, P.K., Cattaneo-Vietti, R., Chiantore, M., Cummings, V., Andrew, N., Hawes, I., Kim, S., Kvitek, R. Schwarz, A.-M. 2006. Broad-scale factors influencing the biodiversity of coastal benthic communities of the Ross Sea. Deep-Sea Research II, 53, 959–971.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Voß, J. 1988. Zoogeographie und Gemeinschaftsanalyse des Makrozoobenthos des Weddellmeeres (Antarktis). Berichte zur Polarforschung, 45, 1–145.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Rehm Supplementary Material

Rehm Supplementary Material

Download Rehm Supplementary Material(File)
File 75.8 KB