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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Effects of coastal upwelling on the structure of macrofaunal communities in SE Brazil

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Author(s):
Quintana, Cintia O. [1] ; Bernardino, Angelo F. [2] ; de Moraes, Paula C. [1] ; Valdemarsen, Thomas [3] ; Sumida, Paulo Y. G. [1]
Total Authors: 5
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Oceanog, BR-05508120 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Univ Fed Espirito Santo, Dept Oceanog & Ecol, BR-29075910 Vitoria, Espirito Santo - Brazil
[3] Univ Southern Denmark, Inst Biol, DK-5230 Odense M - Denmark
Total Affiliations: 3
Document type: Journal article
Source: JOURNAL OF MARINE SYSTEMS; v. 143, p. 120-129, MAR 2015.
Web of Science Citations: 10
Abstract

The effects of coastal upwelling on the structure of macrofaunal communities were investigated in two shallow bays in SE Brazil. Water, sediment and fauna samples were collected at four time-points corresponding to austral summer, fall, winter and spring, respectively. Water column temperature and salinity profiles indicated that upwelling occurred in summer-spring (December and November), but not in fall-winter (April and August). The structure of macrofaunal communities differed consistently between these periods. The sediment content of labile organic matter did not vary as a function of upwelling and could not explain the changes in macrofaunal communities. Rather it appeared that macrofaunal community structure was determined by organic matter quality (i.e. phytoplankton composition), physical disturbance regimes and bottom-water temperature. Physical disturbance caused by S-SE winds, warm water temperatures (up to 26 degrees C) and resuspension-driven phytoflagellate blooms during non-upwelling were associated to higher density (2511-2525 ind m(-2)) and dominance of small opportunistic species such as spionid, paraonid and capitellid polychaetes. In contrast, stable hydrodynamic conditions, diatom blooms and lower water temperatures (down to 18 degrees C) during upwelling resulted in lower density of macrofauna (796-1387 ind m(-2)) and a shift in species composition to relatively large-sized magelonids and carnivorous polychaetes. Therefore, organic matter quality, physical disturbance regimes, and bottom-water temperature were the major factors regulating the life-cycles, composition and density of macrofaunal communities in these less productive subtropical upwelling systems. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 12/06121-1 - Pathways of organic matter degradation in marine coastal sediments: implications to ecosystem functioning
Grantee:Cintia Organo Quintana
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral