Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica
The muddy bottoms of inner Potter Cove, King George Island (Isla 25 de Mayo), South Shetlands, Antarctica, show a high density and richness of macrobenthic species, particularly ascidians. In other areas, ascidians have been reported to play the role of ecosystem engineers, as they support a signifi...
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Norwegian Polar Institute
2015
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:61a4c8a9bb774222b89177a901349a4f 2023-05-15T13:40:34+02:00 Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica Clara Rimondino Luciana Torre Ricardo Sahade Marcos Tatián 2015-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v34.24338 https://doaj.org/article/61a4c8a9bb774222b89177a901349a4f EN eng Norwegian Polar Institute http://www.polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/24338/pdf_6 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.3402/polar.v34.24338 https://doaj.org/article/61a4c8a9bb774222b89177a901349a4f Polar Research, Vol 34, Iss 0, Pp 1-9 (2015) Sessile macro-epibiont ascidian Antarctica ecosystem- engineer Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 article 2015 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v34.24338 2022-12-30T22:48:48Z The muddy bottoms of inner Potter Cove, King George Island (Isla 25 de Mayo), South Shetlands, Antarctica, show a high density and richness of macrobenthic species, particularly ascidians. In other areas, ascidians have been reported to play the role of ecosystem engineers, as they support a significant number of epibionts, increasing benthic diversity. In this study, a total of 21 sessile macro-epibiotic taxa present on the ascidian species Corella antarctica Sluiter, 1905, Cnemidocarpa verrucosa (Lesson, 1830) and Molgula pedunculata Herdman, 1881 were identified, with Bryozoa being the most diverse. There were differences between the three ascidian species in terms of richness, percent cover and diversity of sessile macro-epibionts. The morphological characteristics of the tunic surface, the available area for colonization (and its relation with the age of the basibiont individuals) and the pH of the ascidian tunic seem to explain the observed differences. Recent environmental changes in the study area (increase of suspended particulate matter caused by glaciers retreat) have been related to observed shifts in the benthic community structure, negatively affecting the abundance and distribution of the studied ascidian species. Considering the diversity of sessile macro-epibionts found on these species, the impact of environmental shifts may be greater than that estimated so far. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica Isla 25 de Mayo King George Island Polar Research Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles King George Island Potter Cove 25 de Mayo ENVELOPE(-58.000,-58.000,-62.083,-62.083) isla 25 de Mayo ENVELOPE(-58.000,-58.000,-62.083,-62.083) Herdman ENVELOPE(-60.526,-60.526,-72.655,-72.655) Polar Research 34 1 24338 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Sessile macro-epibiont ascidian Antarctica ecosystem- engineer Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
spellingShingle |
Sessile macro-epibiont ascidian Antarctica ecosystem- engineer Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 Clara Rimondino Luciana Torre Ricardo Sahade Marcos Tatián Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
topic_facet |
Sessile macro-epibiont ascidian Antarctica ecosystem- engineer Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
description |
The muddy bottoms of inner Potter Cove, King George Island (Isla 25 de Mayo), South Shetlands, Antarctica, show a high density and richness of macrobenthic species, particularly ascidians. In other areas, ascidians have been reported to play the role of ecosystem engineers, as they support a significant number of epibionts, increasing benthic diversity. In this study, a total of 21 sessile macro-epibiotic taxa present on the ascidian species Corella antarctica Sluiter, 1905, Cnemidocarpa verrucosa (Lesson, 1830) and Molgula pedunculata Herdman, 1881 were identified, with Bryozoa being the most diverse. There were differences between the three ascidian species in terms of richness, percent cover and diversity of sessile macro-epibionts. The morphological characteristics of the tunic surface, the available area for colonization (and its relation with the age of the basibiont individuals) and the pH of the ascidian tunic seem to explain the observed differences. Recent environmental changes in the study area (increase of suspended particulate matter caused by glaciers retreat) have been related to observed shifts in the benthic community structure, negatively affecting the abundance and distribution of the studied ascidian species. Considering the diversity of sessile macro-epibionts found on these species, the impact of environmental shifts may be greater than that estimated so far. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Clara Rimondino Luciana Torre Ricardo Sahade Marcos Tatián |
author_facet |
Clara Rimondino Luciana Torre Ricardo Sahade Marcos Tatián |
author_sort |
Clara Rimondino |
title |
Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
title_short |
Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
title_full |
Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
title_fullStr |
Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of Potter Cove, Antarctica |
title_sort |
sessile macro-epibiotic community of solitary ascidians, ecosystem engineers in soft substrates of potter cove, antarctica |
publisher |
Norwegian Polar Institute |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v34.24338 https://doaj.org/article/61a4c8a9bb774222b89177a901349a4f |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-58.000,-58.000,-62.083,-62.083) ENVELOPE(-58.000,-58.000,-62.083,-62.083) ENVELOPE(-60.526,-60.526,-72.655,-72.655) |
geographic |
King George Island Potter Cove 25 de Mayo isla 25 de Mayo Herdman |
geographic_facet |
King George Island Potter Cove 25 de Mayo isla 25 de Mayo Herdman |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica Isla 25 de Mayo King George Island Polar Research |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica Isla 25 de Mayo King George Island Polar Research |
op_source |
Polar Research, Vol 34, Iss 0, Pp 1-9 (2015) |
op_relation |
http://www.polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/24338/pdf_6 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.3402/polar.v34.24338 https://doaj.org/article/61a4c8a9bb774222b89177a901349a4f |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v34.24338 |
container_title |
Polar Research |
container_volume |
34 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
24338 |
_version_ |
1766137017146540032 |