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Structural gradients in an intertidal hard-bottom community: examining vertical, horizontal, and taxonomic clines in zoobenthic biodiversity

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Abstract

Measures of biodiversity along environmental gradients have long been the focus of marine ecological research. However, a general lack of comparability between studies and under-appreciation of co-occurring, less obvious clines has often undermined any general conclusions. Latitudinal, vertical, horizontal, and taxonomic gradients in intertidal biodiversity were assessed directly and indirectly using a large data set from one locality in southwest Ireland. A total of 153 epifaunal species, from 106 families and 13 phyla, was recorded from over 200,000 individuals in a sample area of 63 m2. Multivariate analysis revealed that the vertical gradient of immersion was the primary structuring factor in the community but that a flow-driven horizontal gradient was also important in structuring low- and mid-shore zones. Crustaceans, annelids, and molluscs were most numerous over the entire site, but bryozoans and sponges may have played the most significant role in driving the horizontal (flow-related) trend in species richness at lower levels on the shore. Comparison of species richness with sites from other locations around the world proved inconclusive in assessing a global trend in richness from the poles to the tropics. However, interpolation of this and similar studies may prove useful in future latitudinal investigations of hard-substratum intertidal biota. Higher-taxon surrogacy for species trends proved significant and useful at the scale investigated here, whereby analysis of data from family or even order level may prove an efficient method of future monitoring. More data are required to assess if the ‘top-down’ taxonomic approach will sufficiently mirror species trends at larger spatial scales. Overall, the generality of effects of environmental gradients on intertidal organisms may be more conclusive where entire communities are studied and consideration is given to other, less dominant clines.

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Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank David Barnes and Anne Crook for guidance and comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript and for field assistance. Two anonymous reviewers also contributed to improvements in the manuscript. I am grateful to James Bell for advice on analysis and sponge identification and the Lough Hyne Research Group for help during fieldwork. Thanks also to Declan O’Donnell (Duchas) for granting a permit to conduct research at Lough Hyne Marine Nature Reserve. This work was funded by the Higher Education Authority (H. E. A.), Ireland.

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  1. I. C. Davidson

    Present address: Environmental Sciences & Resources, Portland State University, Portland, OR, 97207-0751, USA

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  1. Department of Zoology, Ecology & Plant Science, University College Cork, Lee Maltings, Prospect Row, Cork, Ireland

    I. C. Davidson

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Correspondence to I. C. Davidson.

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Communicated by J.P. Thorpe, Port Erin

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Davidson, I.C. Structural gradients in an intertidal hard-bottom community: examining vertical, horizontal, and taxonomic clines in zoobenthic biodiversity. Marine Biology 146, 827–839 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-004-1478-4

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