Composition and temporal change of the macrofauna in a shallow, sandy bottom in the Lysekil archipelago, western Sweden

Abstract

The macrofauna from a shallow (12 m), sandy bottom at Bredholmen in the outer Lysekil archipelago, western Sweden, was collected quantitatively with a suction sampler at regular intervals between June 1980 and August 1981. This area was inhabited by a dense population of the burrowing crustacean Upogebia deltaura, with a rich infaunal community, high in abundance and diversity throughout the study period. A total of 7297 individuals comprising 126 taxa were obtained from the 52 samples (4 replicates on each occasion). A total of 64 polychaete taxa were found, followed by 22 molluscs, 21 crustaceans, 7 echinoderms, and 12 species not belonging to any of these taxonomical groups (varia). Molluscs dominated in abundance throughout the study period except in November 1980, January 1981, and March 1981, when polychaetes dominated. Species abundance varied seasonally. The multivariate analyses of abundance data also demonstrated a limited temporal change, less pronounced during winter months. Bottom water salinity was negatively correlated to the number of taxa. Bottom water temperature was negatively correlated to polychaete abundance, and positively correlated to mollusc abundance. U. deltaura correlated positively with four taxa: Nereimyra sp., Spisula subtruncata, one species within the family Talitridae, and Mya truncata, and negatively to Scoloplos armiger.

Keywords:

• Benthos
• macrofauna
• sandy bottom
• western Sweden

Published in collaboration with the University of Bergen and the Institute of Marine Research, Norway, and the Marine Biological Laboratory, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Published in collaboration with the University of Bergen and the Institute of Marine Research, Norway, and the Marine Biological Laboratory, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Acknowledgements

The resources for this study were provided through the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Kristineberg Marine Research Station and the Smithsonian Marine Station. The sampling program was partially financed through a grant from the Nordic Council for Marine Biology. We are very grateful for the valuable comments and criticism on the manuscript by Sherry Reed (Smithsonian Marine Station). We thank Jarl-Ove Strömberg for the great support and valuable comments on the original manuscript. Special thanks are due to the anonymous reviewers whose comments and criticism greatly improved the quality of the manuscript. Smithsonian Marine Station at Fort Pierce contribution number 712.

Notes

Published in collaboration with the University of Bergen and the Institute of Marine Research, Norway, and the Marine Biological Laboratory, University of Copenhagen, Denmark