Spatial patterns of the gastropod Olivella minuta reveal the importance of tide-dominated beaches and the subtidal zone for sandy beach populations

Author(s)

Corte, Guilherme N. ^{[1, 2]} ; Yokoyama, Leonardo Q. ^{[2, 3]} ; Tardelli, Daniel T. ^[2] ; Checon, Helio H. ^{[1, 2]} ; Turra, Alexander ^[2]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Dept Biol Anim, BR-13083970 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Oceanog, Dept Oceanog Biol, Lab Manejo Ecol & Conservacao Marinha, BR-05508120 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Inst Mar, Dept Ciencias Mar, Lab Ecol & Gestao Costeira, BR-11070100 Santos, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: REGIONAL STUDIES IN MARINE SCIENCE; v. 39, SEP 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

The main ecological hypotheses on spatial patterns of intertidal sandy beach populations predict that they are mainly influenced by morphodynamic features, with most population parameters (e.g., number of individuals, reproductive effort, recruitment rates) increasing from wave-dominated reflective to wave-dominated dissipative beaches. Yet, these hypotheses did not take into account tidemodified and tide-dominated environments due to the lack of data from these habitats. Also, they were based on species inhabiting the intertidal and supratidal zones while those living in the intertidalsubtidal beach gradient (marine component of the Littoral Active Zone) remain largely overlooked. We investigated differences in abundance and size of the sea snail Olivella minuta in the intertidal and subtidal zones of two beach types: a wave-dominated dissipative beach and a tide-dominated sandmud flat. Samplings were performed at three different times (September and December 2011, and March 2012). Abundance was higher at the tidal flat, with a high number of small (young) and large (old) individuals. On the other hand, individuals from the dissipative beach mainly belonged to larger size classes. Furthermore, we observed that individuals were more homogeneously distributed in the across-shore gradient of the tidal flat, with a similar number of individuals inhabiting both intertidal and subtidal zones, whereas most individuals (especially young ones) from the dissipative beach were found in the subtidal zone. Overall, our results support the importance of beach morphodynamics as a main driver of sandy beach populations along the Littoral Active Zone and emphasize the relevance of tide-dominated environments for coastal species. Importantly, our results demonstrate the ecological role of the subtidal zone for sandy beach macrobenthic populations and the necessity of performing ecological investigations along the whole Littoral Active Zone. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/17071-9 - Preserving sandy beaches: biodiversity, goods and services, and impacts on a neglected ecosystem
• Grantee: Guilherme Nascimento Corte
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 18/22036-0 - Evaluating the potential of different benthic indicators to assess sandy beach ecological integrity: subsides for management and monitoring practices
• Grantee: Hélio Hermínio Checon
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 09/15893-5 - Interpopulation variability in sandy beaches: case study about the zonation, reproduction, and growth of Olivella minuta (Gastropoda, Olividae)
• Grantee: Leonardo Querobim Yokoyama
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 09/17585-6 - Population ecology of Olivella minuta (Link, 1807) (Gastropoda, Olividae) in the intertidal of Araçá and Barequeçaba beaches, northern coast of São Paulo State
• Grantee: Alexander Turra
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 15/03804-9 - Environmental governance of macrometropolis paulista in face of climate variability
• Grantee: Pedro Roberto Jacobi
• Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Thematic Grants