Human-induced changes in the trophic functioning of sandy beaches |
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Institution: | 1. Laboratoire des Sciences de l''Environnement Marin (LEMAR), UMR CNRS 6539, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Université de Bretagne Occidentale, Plouzané, France;2. Åbo Akademi University, Environmental and Marine Biology, Turku, Finland;3. Observatoire des Sciences de la mer et de l''univers, UMS 3113, Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Plouzané, France;1. MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade de Coimbra, 3004-517 Coimbra, Portugal;2. Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via Romana, 17, 50125 Florence, Italy;3. Laboratório de Ecologia Marinha, Departamento de Ecologia e Recursos Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil;4. Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
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Abstract: | The increasing anthropogenic disturbance on coastal ecosystems has threatened ecological interactions and ecosystems functioning. To investigate if human pressure affects the trophic structure of sandy beaches, mass-balanced models were applied on two Brazilian sandy beaches with distinct human impact degree. The food web models included detritus, phytoplankton, macroinvertebrates, fish and seabirds. Macroinvertebrates in non-urbanized sectors represented the highest production fraction consumed by predators. The energy transfer and the cycling indicator were more efficient in the non-urbanized sectors than urbanized ones. The results indicate that macroinvertebrates sensitive to direct human impact such as trampling are important to the trophic functioning of sandy beaches. Establishing a threshold for the number of beachgoers or dispersing recreational activities to avoid crowds may be tangible ways to mitigate the trampling impact on macroinvertebrates. |
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Keywords: | Beach ecosystem Macrofauna Trophic interactions Anthropogenic impact |
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