Community structure and spatial distribution of benthic fauna in the Bellingshausen Sea (West Antarctica) |
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Authors: | J I Saiz F J García M E Manjón-Cabeza J Parapar A Peña-Cantero T Saucède J S Troncoso A Ramos |
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Institution: | 1. Dpto. Zoología y BCA, Universidad del País Vasco/EHU, Apdo. 644, 48080, Bilbao, Spain 2. Dpto. Sistemas Físicos, Químicos y Naturales, Fac. Ciencias Experimentales, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, 41013, Sevilla, Spain 3. Dpto. Biología Animal, Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Teatinos s/n, 29071, Málaga, Spain 4. Dpto. Bioloxía Animal, Universidade da Coru?a, Alejandro da Sota 1, 15008 A, Coru?a, Spain 5. Instituto Cavanilles de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, Universidad de Valencia/Fundación General Universidad de Valencia, Apdo. 22085, 46071, Valencia, Spain 6. Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne, CNRS, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000, Dijon, France 7. Dpto. e Ecoloxía Bioloxía Animal, Universidade de Vigo, Campus Lagoas-Marcosende s/n, 36200, Vigo, Spain 8. Instituto Espa?ol de Oceanografía, Punta del Apio, Apdo. 1552, 36200, Vigo, Spain
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Abstract: | The structure and spatial distribution of the macrofauna community of the Bellingshausen Sea in the western sector of Antarctica
was studied during the ‘BENTART–06’ oceanographic expedition. This is one of the least explored Antarctic seas. A total of
20 box cores were sampled at 11 stations ranging from 157 to 3,304 m depth, using an USNEL-type box corer (BC) dredge. Representatives
of 25 higher taxa of invertebrates were collected. Deeper sampling sites were less rich in taxa (4–7 taxa), whereas the figures
were higher at shallower sites (up to 17 taxa). Faunal density on the sea bottom revealed a horizontal spatial gradient from
the western sites with extremely low figures (90 indiv./m2) towards the eastern ones with the highest figures (1,360 indiv./m2) close to the Antarctic Peninsula. Several abiotic factors (depth, redox, organic matter, carbonates and particle size of
surficial sediments) were measured simultaneously on the sea floor to characterise the substrate preferences of the fauna.
Positive correlations were found between the faunal distribution and a combination of depth, redox values, and organic matter
content of sediments. This indicates decreasing availability of food in the deeper bottoms of the Bellingshausen Sea with
a prevalence of depauperated bottoms dominated almost exclusively by a foraminiferans community. |
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Keywords: | Abiotic factors Abundance Antarctica Bellingshausen Sea Macrobenthos PRIMER |
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