Disturbance-recovery dynamics of seafloor communities

This
study was designed to evaluate the effects of shell debris on
disturbance-recovery dynamics of macroinvertebrate animals inhabiting
intertidal soft-sediments. We developed an experiment to test the effects of
shell debris on the early colonization of macroinvertebrates along a gradient
of increasing mud (a key stressor in coastal marine ecosystems) in the Okura
Estuary, North Island, New Zealand (36°40'1.70"S/174°43'42.70"E). Twelve
sites were established, tens of meters apart, at the mid-intertidal level that
encompassed the mud-sand gradient (from 2-25 % mud). Defaunated sediment trays with
and without shell debris were placed in each site (three replicates of each
experimental treatment). Sediment samples from the background landscape and
recolonization trays were collected after 14 days and macrofaunal abundances
and composition were assessed and compared.