Animal associations with the dominant species of shallow water macrophytes along the coastline of the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica

Dhargalkar, V.K.; Burton, Harry R.; Kirkwood, John M.

doi:10.1007/978-94-009-3089-6_13

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Spatial variation in the diet of Weddell seals at the Vestfold Hills seemed to reflect different marine ecotypes within the fjords and bays, consistent with the findings of Dhargalkar et al (1988), who attributed distribution of macro-algae species to different degrees of exposure to ocean currents. Within each ecotype, the seals' diet was relatively consistent (Figs.…”

Section: Vestfold Hillssupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Benthic fish, particularly Trematomus bernacchii, were also relatively abundant in Long Fjord. High levels of secondary biomass have been described in these fjords due to complex bathymetry and active tidal regimes, resulting in areas of rapid water flow and thus enhanced plankton 'pass by' flux (Kirkwood & Burton 1988, Arntz & Gorny 1991. Rapid water flow sustains tubeworm reefs that are substrate for populations of benthic prawns.…”

Section: Vestfold Hillsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Regional, temporal and fine-scale spatial variation in Weddell seal diet at four coastal locations in east Antarctica

Lake

Burton²,

Hoff³

2003

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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This description of 905 scats from 4 locations in east Antarctica almost doubles the observations of Weddell seal diet reported to date. Regional, temporal and fine-scale spatial variation in diet was evaluated using both randomisation and parametric statistics. Even within the Vestfold Hills (68°33' S, 78°15' E) there were several different ecotypes. In the southern fjords the diet was benthic fish and prawns, whereas in the northern area the diet was dominated numerically by Pleuragramma antarcticum -a species of pelagic schooling fish. Along the Mawson coast (68°00' S, 63°00' E) the diet was spatially homogeneous but varied over time. Squid Psychroteuthis glacialis was an important prey type for a short time in spring, and octopus was also abundant in the Mawson diet. As higher order predators, cephalopods represent another layer of complexity in the food web at Mawson. Both Vestfold Hills and Mawson seemed to be good foraging areas compared with Commonwealth Bay (67°00' S, 142°30' E) and Larsemann Hills (69°24' S, 76°13' E), where seals appeared to have eaten less during the summer haul-out period. This investigation described inshore diets using scats from coastal haul-out sites; it also showed that small crustaceae (mysids) were an important prey type, thus revealing the capacity for Weddell seals to join the krill-feeding communities north of the continental shelf. The variety in diet composition demonstrated both flexibility in the Weddell seals' foraging response and the range of different prey species available to Weddell seals over the Antarctic continental shelf and slope. In all but the most southerly area reported to date (McMurdo Sound), the seals take multiple prey species, which may minimise the coupling between Weddell seal population dynamics and the dynamics of their prey.

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Section: Vestfold Hillssupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Vestfold Hillsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Regional, temporal and fine-scale spatial variation in Weddell seal diet at four coastal locations in east Antarctica

Lake

Burton²,

Hoff³

2003

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Moe and DeLaca (1976) hypothesized that the decreases in biomass and diversity in more southerly sites are largely due to increases in annual ice cover. This relative decrease in biomass and coverage is not unique to the southern Antarctic Peninsula since the same qualitative patterns are described at other locations of similar latitude throughout most of the coast of Antarctica (e.g., Zaneveld 1966;Dhargalkar et al 1988; Kirkwood and Burton 1988;Johnston et al 2007). However, even at these locations seaweeds can dominate their communities.…”

Section: Biomass Depth Distribution and Productivitymentioning

confidence: 71%

Seaweeds and Their Communities in Polar Regions

2012

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“…The importance of mae¨rl beds in the western Mediterranean on biodiversity and abundance of macro-faunal species have already been reported by Bordehore et al (2003) who stated that 'Mediterranean mae¨rl grounds are sites with a high diversity and also support a high macro-benthic secondary production, which may be important for species of commercial interest'. On the other hand, Phyllophora species and their accumulations have an important role in structuring soft sediment communities in northern latitudes, also increasing faunal diversity (Dhargalkar et al, 1988;Norkko et al, 2004). In the Black Sea, the Zernov's Phyllophora field, which had almost disappeared by the 1980s, was reported to have high faunal diversity, with a high number of associated invertebrate and fish species (Zaitsev, 1992).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationships between macro‐epibenthic communities and fish on the shelf grounds of the western Mediterranean

Ordines

Massutí

2008

Aquatic Conservation

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ABSTRACT1. The present study characterizes the macro-epibenthic assemblages, and the relationships between demersal species and benthic habitats on the shelf trawl fishing grounds off the Balearic Islands (western Mediterranean).2. The data used were collected during experimental bottom trawl surveys from 2002 to 2005. A total of 157 samples from 38-255 m depth were analysed.3. Three macro-epibenthic assemblages were identified in both the shallow (at 38-91 m) and deep shelf (90-255 m). Macroalgae bathymetric distribution was identified as the main factor explaining the segregation between shallow and deep shelf assemblages.4. Two especially sensitive habitats were identified: mae¨rl and crinoid beds; a third habitat was identified as Peyssonnelia beds, which represented the highest biomass on the whole shelf, with a similar species richness to the mae¨rl beds. On the deep shelf, crinoid beds represented the highest biomass.5. Habitat type had a significant effect on the distribution of demersal commercial species, most of them being more abundant in the two sensitive habitats mentioned and in the Peyssonnelia beds. Some species showed sizespecific habitat preferences.6. Fisheries management in the area should take into account the resilience of these benthic habitats, and their importance from both ecological and sustainable fisheries management perspectives.

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Animal associations with the dominant species of shallow water macrophytes along the coastline of the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica

Cited by 9 publications

References 14 publications

Regional, temporal and fine-scale spatial variation in Weddell seal diet at four coastal locations in east Antarctica

Regional, temporal and fine-scale spatial variation in Weddell seal diet at four coastal locations in east Antarctica

Seaweeds and Their Communities in Polar Regions

Relationships between macro‐epibenthic communities and fish on the shelf grounds of the western Mediterranean

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