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.本研究旨在评估贝壳碎片对栖息于潮间带软质沉积物中的大型无脊椎动物扰动恢复动态的影响。本研究设计了一项实验，以检验贝壳碎片对奥克兰湾（新西兰北岛，南纬36°40'1.70"，东经174°43'42.70"）潮间带泥沙梯度（海岸海洋生态系统中的关键胁迫因素）上大型无脊椎动物早期定殖的影响。在潮间带的中部水平建立了十二个相隔数十米的采样点，覆盖了从2%至25%的泥沙梯度。在每个采样点放置了含有和不含贝壳碎片的去动物群落沉积物托盘（每种实验处理的重复三次）。在14天后，收集了背景景观和再定居托盘的沉积物样品，并评估和比较了大型无脊椎动物的丰度和组成。