Fucoid assemblages on the north coast of Spain: past and present (1977–2007)
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Cristina Lamela-Silvarrey
,
Ricardo Anadón
Abstract
Fucoid assemblages dominated by Pelvetia canaliculata, Fucus spiralis, F. vesiculosus, and Ascophyllum nodosum located at two sites on the central coast of Asturias (northern Spain) were sampled monthly in 1977. Repeating the same sampling methodology, a resurvey was done in 2007 to detect changes in the abundances of the species using the previous data as a baseline. Annual net primary production was lower for all the species in 2007, and there were differences in the timing of maximum biomass for P. canaliculata and F. vesiculosus, as well as a shortening of the growth period in 2007. Associated fauna also differed between dates. Higher abundances of Gibbula spp. occurred in 2007, whereas littorinid species densities in the upper intertidal were reduced in that year. As a result, the fucoid-grazers balance changed, with P. canaliculata and particularly F. vesiculosus, being the assemblages most sensitive to change. Observed modifications were not merely fluctuations in the biomass patterns of these species, but also responses to increases in air temperature and sea surface temperature and to a shift in the frequency and seasonality of upwelling episodes. Other long-term abiotic fluctuations not directly related to global warming should also be considered as possible drivers for these changes.
©2012 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Masthead
- Masthead
- Research Articles
- Fucoid assemblages on the north coast of Spain: past and present (1977–2007)
- New record of Sargassum denticarpum Ajisaka (Fucales, Phaeophyceae) from Iriomote Island (Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan)
- Seasonal periodicity and reproduction of brown algae (Phaeophyceae) at Puerto Deseado (Patagonia)
- Determining bathymetric distributions of the eelgrass Zostera marina L. in three turbid estuaries on the eastern North Pacific coast
- Morphological and molecular evidence demonstrates the amphi-Atlantic distribution of Laurencia catarinensis (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta)
- Effects of temperature, salinity, irradiance, and nutrients on the development of carposporelings and tetrasporophytes in Gracilaria domingensis (Kütz.) Sonder ex Dickie (Rhodophyta, Gracilariales)
- A novel method for phosphoprotein extraction from macroalgae
- Antioxidants in mangrove plants and endophytic fungal associations
- The marine halophytes Carpobrotus edulis L. and Arthrocnemum macrostachyum L. are potential sources of nutritionally important PUFAs and metabolites with antioxidant, metal chelating and anticholinesterase inhibitory activities
- Culture medium optimization and lipid profiling of Cylindrotheca, a lipid- and polyunsaturated fatty acid-rich pennate diatom and potential source of eicosapentaenoic acid
- Short Communications
- Application of image analysis software to the morphometrics of Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile and Cymodocea nodosa (Ucria) Ascherson
- Delayed modifications in plant-water relations in the coastal marsh halophyte Spartina patens following sudden increases in soil salinity
- Algicidal activity and potential antifouling defenses in macroalgae from the western Antarctic Peninsula including probable synergistic effects of multiple compounds
Articles in the same Issue
- Masthead
- Masthead
- Research Articles
- Fucoid assemblages on the north coast of Spain: past and present (1977–2007)
- New record of Sargassum denticarpum Ajisaka (Fucales, Phaeophyceae) from Iriomote Island (Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan)
- Seasonal periodicity and reproduction of brown algae (Phaeophyceae) at Puerto Deseado (Patagonia)
- Determining bathymetric distributions of the eelgrass Zostera marina L. in three turbid estuaries on the eastern North Pacific coast
- Morphological and molecular evidence demonstrates the amphi-Atlantic distribution of Laurencia catarinensis (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta)
- Effects of temperature, salinity, irradiance, and nutrients on the development of carposporelings and tetrasporophytes in Gracilaria domingensis (Kütz.) Sonder ex Dickie (Rhodophyta, Gracilariales)
- A novel method for phosphoprotein extraction from macroalgae
- Antioxidants in mangrove plants and endophytic fungal associations
- The marine halophytes Carpobrotus edulis L. and Arthrocnemum macrostachyum L. are potential sources of nutritionally important PUFAs and metabolites with antioxidant, metal chelating and anticholinesterase inhibitory activities
- Culture medium optimization and lipid profiling of Cylindrotheca, a lipid- and polyunsaturated fatty acid-rich pennate diatom and potential source of eicosapentaenoic acid
- Short Communications
- Application of image analysis software to the morphometrics of Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile and Cymodocea nodosa (Ucria) Ascherson
- Delayed modifications in plant-water relations in the coastal marsh halophyte Spartina patens following sudden increases in soil salinity
- Algicidal activity and potential antifouling defenses in macroalgae from the western Antarctic Peninsula including probable synergistic effects of multiple compounds
