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1.
Nitrogen and phosphorus content ofSpartina alterniflora Loisel and soil nitrogen were measured along a transect perpendicular to a stream in a Louisiana salt marsh in order to provide information on differences between the so-called streamside and inland regions. Total plant nitrogen and phosphorus levels in June and September tended to be greater at streamside than inland sites. Total soil nitrogen on a dry soil weight basis increased with distance inland from a natural stream toward an interdistributary basin in the marsh. Soil extractable ammonium-nitrogen levels measured in June were very low in vegetated streamside and inland areas, but they were much higher in inland areas devoid of plants. Nitrogen and phosphorus utilization byS. alterniflora was also investigated at an inland location in the salt marsh. Labelled ammonium-nitrogen and phosphate-phosphorus were added in May at a rate of 200 kg/ha to the soil of replicated plots. Added nitrogen significantly increased total above-ground plant biomass and plant height by 28 and 25%, respectively, 4 months after application. The ratio of belowground macro-organic matter to total aboveground biomass was decreased from 5.7 to 4.7 by the additional nitrogen. Added phosphorus did not significantly affect plant height and biomass. The use of15N-depleted nitrogen tracers showed that about half of the nitrogen in the aboveground portion ofS. alterniflora from 1 to 4 months after the nitrogen addition was derived from the added ammonium-nitrogen. After 4 months, 28 and 29% of the added labelled nitrogen was recovered in the aboverground and belowground biomass ofS. alterniflora, respectively. Recovery of added nitrogen was overestimated with a non-tracer method based on the difference in total nitrogen uptake between nitrogen-amended plots and untreated plots. Soil organic nitrogen comprised the majority of the nitrogen in the salt marsh. Nitrogen in the standing crop biomass ofS. alterniflora represented only about 2% of the total nitrogen in the plantsoil system of an inland marsh to a 20 cm soil depth.  相似文献   

2.
Primary production by algal epiphytes of dead Spartina alterniflora shoots in a Georgia salt marsh was measured using the 14C technique. A 23 factorial design was used to quantify the effects of light intensity and inundation frequency (stem height) on carbon fixation at two sites along a salt marsh creek. Algae inundated daily fixed carbon more rapidly than those which had dried for several days, but this may have been the results of greater biomass on more frequently immersed stems. This result corroborates studies showing desiccation is not always a severe stress for intertidal algae. Similarity of epiphyte algal productivity to that of salt marsh benthic diatoms suggests that, given adequate substrate, the epiphytes may be an important source of primary production during some seasons of the year.  相似文献   

3.
Despite excessive growth of macroalgae in estuarine systems, little research has been done to examine the impacts of increased algal biomass that drifts into nearby salt marshes and accumulates on intertidal flats. The accumulation of macroalgal mats and subsequent decomposition-related releases of limiting nutrients may potentially alter marsh communities and impact multiple trophic levels. We conducted a 2-year in situ study, as well as laboratory mesocosm experiments, to determine the fate of these nutrients and any bottom-up impacts from the blooms on the dominant salt marsh plant (Spartina alterniflora) and herbivores. Mesocosm results showed that macroalgal decomposition had a positive impact on sediment nitrogen concentrations, as well as S. alterniflora growth rates. In contrast, our in situ results suggested that S. alterniflora growth was hindered by the presence of macroalgal mats. From our results, we suggest that macroalgal accumulation and subsequent release of nitrogen during decomposition may be beneficial in nitrogen limited areas. However, as marshes are becoming increasingly eutrophic, releasing lower marsh plants from nitrogen limitation, this accumulation of macroalgal biomass may hinder S. alterniflora growth through smothering and breakage of culms. As macroalgal blooms are predicted to intensify with rising temperatures and increased eutrophication, the ecological impacts associated with these changes need to be continuously monitored in order to preserve these fragile ecosystems.  相似文献   

4.
Sea level rise is a major stressor on many salt marshes, and its impacts include creek widening, ponding, vegetation dieback, and drowning. Marsh vegetation changes have been associated with sea level rise across southern New England, but most of these studies pre-date the current period of rapidly accelerating sea level rise coupled with episodic events of extreme increases in water levels. Here, we combine data from two salt marsh monitoring and assessment programs in Rhode Island that were designed to assess marsh responses to sea level rise and use these data to document temporal and spatial patterns in marsh vegetation during the current period of extreme water level increases. Vegetation monitoring at two Narragansett Bay salt marshes confirms the ongoing decline of the salt meadow species Spartina patens during this period as it becomes replaced by Spartina alterniflora. Bare ground resulting from vegetation dieback was significantly related to mean high water levels and led to the rapid conversion of mixed Spartina assemblages to S. alterniflora monocultures. A broader spatial assessment of RI marshes shows that S. alterniflora dominance increases at lower elevation marshes toward the mouth of Narraganset Bay. Our data provide additional evidence that S. patens continues to decline in southern New England marshes and show that losses can accelerate during periods of extreme high water levels. Unless adaptive management actions are taken, we predict that marshes throughout RI will continue to lose salt meadow habitat and eventually resemble lower elevation marshes that are already dominated by S. alterniflora monocultures.  相似文献   

5.
Investigations into nematode density and species assemblages have been conducted in different types of mangroves worldwide, but these studies have typically been limited to one type of plant or tree species. The invasive salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora has successively invaded native mangroves along the southern coasts of China during the preceding two decades. However, few meiofauna studies on the impacts of S. alterniflora have been conducted, and the consequences of this invasion on ecosystem composition and function remain unclear. The hypothesis of this study was that the spatial and seasonal distribution of nematode assemblages vary significantly among three native mangrove habitats (Kandelia obovata, Aegiceras corniculatum, and Avicennia marina) and between these habitats and a fourth habitat that was colonized by S. alterniflora, in Zhangjiang Estuary, China. Our results demonstrated that different species dominated in different habitats seasonally. Highly significant differences in density, number of species, diversity index, and maturity index were present among the four habitats. ANOSIM results revealed that there were significant differences in nematode assemblages among the four habitats and seasons, with the S. alterniflora habitat exhibiting the lowest mean values of number of species, Shannon-Wiener diversity index, richness index, and maturity index in the four seasons. This suggests that the presence of S. alterniflora disrupted nematode assemblages.  相似文献   

6.
Coastal salt marshes represent an important coastal wetland system. In order to protect coastlines from erosion and rapid increase in accumulation rate, Spartina alterniflora (S. alterniflora) was introduced into the Chinese coast. Two study areas (Wanggang and Quanzhou Bay) were selected that represent the plain type and embayment type of the coastal salt marshes. In situ measurements show that the tidal current velocities are stronger on the intertidal mudflat without S. alterniflora than that with S. alterniflora, and the velocity above the canopy surface is larger than that in the salt marsh canopy. The existence of S. alterniflora also influences the velocity structure above the bare flat during ebb tide. With the decrease in current flow velocity when seawater enters into the S. alterniflora marsh, suspended sediments are largely entrapped on the marsh surface, leading to increase in sedimentation rates and change in physical evolution processes of the coastal salt marshes. The highly developed root systemof S. alterniflora induces sediment mixing and exchange between subsurface sediment strata and affects the vertical sediment distribution remarkably. The sedimentation rate of S. alterniflora marsh at the Wanggang area is much higher than the relative sea level rise rate, where rapid progradation of theWanggang saltmarshes that is protecting the coast from sea erosion is observed.  相似文献   

7.
Private docks are common in estuaries worldwide. Docks in Massachusetts (northeast USA) cumulatively overlie ~ 6 ha of salt marsh. Although regulations are designed to minimize dock impacts to salt marsh vegetation, few data exist to support the efficacy of these policies. To quantify impacts associated with different dock designs, we compared vegetation characteristics and light levels under docks with different heights, widths, orientations, decking types and spacing, pile spacing, and ages relative to adjacent control areas across the Massachusetts coastline (n = 212). We then evaluated proportional changes in stem density and biomass of the dominant vegetation (Spartina alterniflora and Spartina patens) in relation to dock and environmental (marsh zone and nitrogen loading) characteristics. Relative to adjacent, undeveloped habitat, Spartina spp. under docks had ~ 40% stem density, 60% stem biomass, greater stem height and nitrogen content, and a higher proportion of S. alterniflora. Light availability was greater under taller docks and docks set at a north-south orientation but did not differ between decking types. Dock height best predicted vegetation loss, but orientation, pile spacing, decking type, age, and marsh zone also affected marsh production. We combined our proportional biomass and stem elemental composition estimates to calculate a statewide annual loss of ~ 2200 kg dry weight of Spartina biomass (367 kg per ha of dock coverage). Managers can reduce impacts through design modifications that maximize dock height (> 150 cm) and pile spacing while maintaining a north-south orientation, but dock proliferation must also be addressed to limit cumulative impacts.  相似文献   

8.
Nitrogen inputs restructure ecosystems and can interact with other agents of ecological change and potentially intensify them. To examine the effects of nitrogen combined with those of elevation and competition, in 2005 we mapped vegetation and elevation within experimental plots that have been fertilized since 1970 in Great Sippewissett salt marsh, Cape Cod, MA, USA and compared the resulting effects on marsh vegetation. Decadal-scale chronic nutrient enrichment forced changes in cover and spatial distribution of different species. With increasing enrichment, there was a shift in species cover primarily involving loss of Spartina alterniflora and an increase in Distichlis spicata. Percent cover of near monocultures increased with nitrogen fertilization, owing mainly to the proliferation of D. spicata. The experimental fertilization prompted a shift from the short form of S. alterniflora to taller forms, hence increasing above-ground biomass, where this species managed to remain. Chronic enrichment increased upper and lower limits of the elevation range within which certain species occurred. The shift to increased cover of D. spicata was also associated with faster accretion of the marsh surface where this species was dominant, but not where S. alterniflora was dominant. Interactions among nutrient supply, elevation, and competition altered the direction of competitive success among different species of marsh plants, and forced changes in the spatial distribution and composition of the salt marsh plant communities. The results imply that there will be parallel changes in New England salt marshes owing to the widespread eutrophication of coastal waters and the increasing sea level rise. Knowing the mechanisms structuring marsh vegetative cover, and their role in modification of salt marsh accretion, may provide background with which to manage maintenance of affected coastal wetlands.  相似文献   

9.
An analysis of data relatingSpartina alterniflora Loisel. to tidal elevations along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts demonstrated that although this species is primarily confined to the intertidal zone, its elevational limits. of occurrence do not correspond to a consistent elevation relative to a tidal datum in all marsh locations. The variation in the vertical distribution of this species reported among marsh studies was attributed primarily to differences in mean tide range (MTR). A positive correlation between MTR and elevational growth range (r=0.91) demonstrated that theSpartina alterniflora zone expands with increasing tidal amplitude. Differences in MTR among marsh locations accounted for 70 and 68% of the statistical variation in the upper and lower limits, respectively, ofS. alterniflora growth. Among marshes of similar tidal amplitudes, the upper limit of occurrence ofS. alterniflora in northern marshes was significantly lower than that in marshes at lower latitudes. These results, in combination with regional differences in plant species distribution across the upper intertidal zone, suggested that some of the variation in the upper limit was due to latitudinal differences in growth conditions and/or differences in interspecific competition. Local and regional differences in other factors such as salinity, nutrients, or physical disturbance may have also contributed to the variation in the limits of growth relative to a tidal plane within and among marshes.  相似文献   

10.
Tidal salt marsh is a key defense against, yet is especially vulnerable to, the effects of accelerated sea level rise. To determine whether salt marshes in southern New England will be stable given increasing inundation over the coming decades, we examined current loss patterns, inundation-productivity feedbacks, and sustaining processes. A multi-decadal analysis of salt marsh aerial extent using historic imagery and maps revealed that salt marsh vegetation loss is both widespread and accelerating, with vegetation loss rates over the past four decades summing to 17.3 %. Landward retreat of the marsh edge, widening and headward expansion of tidal channel networks, loss of marsh islands, and the development and enlargement of interior depressions found on the marsh platform contributed to vegetation loss. Inundation due to sea level rise is strongly suggested as a primary driver: vegetation loss rates were significantly negatively correlated with marsh elevation (r 2?=?0.96; p?=?0.0038), with marshes situated below mean high water (MHW) experiencing greater declines than marshes sitting well above MHW. Growth experiments with Spartina alterniflora, the Atlantic salt marsh ecosystem dominant, across a range of elevations and inundation regimes further established that greater inundation decreases belowground biomass production of S. alterniflora and, thus, negatively impacts organic matter accumulation. These results suggest that southern New England salt marshes are already experiencing deterioration and fragmentation in response to sea level rise and may not be stable as tidal flooding increases in the future.  相似文献   

11.
To predict the impacts of climate change, a better understanding is needed of the foundation species that build and maintain biogenic ecosystems. Spartina alterniflora Loisel (smooth cordgrass) is the dominant salt marsh-building plant along the US Atlantic coast. It maintains salt marsh elevation relative to sea level by the accumulation of aboveground biomass, which promotes sediment deposition and belowground biomass, which accretes as peat. Peat accumulation is particularly important in elevation maintenance at high latitudes where sediment supply tends to be limited. Latitudinal variation in S. alterniflora growth was quantified in eight salt marshes from Massachusetts to South Carolina. The hypothesis that allocation to aboveground and belowground biomass is phenotypically plastic was tested with transplant experiments among a subset of salt marshes along this gradient. Reciprocal transplants revealed that northern S. alterniflora decreased allocation to belowground biomass when grown in the south. Some northern plants also died when moved south, suggesting that northern S. alterniflora may be stressed by future warming. Southern plants that were moved north showed phenotypic plasticity in biomass allocation, but no mortality. Belowground biomass also decomposed more quickly in southern marshes. Our results suggest that warming will lead northern S. alterniflora to decrease belowground allocation and that belowground biomass will decompose more quickly, thus decreasing peat accumulation. Gradual temperature increases may allow for adaptation and acclimation, but our results suggest that warming will lower the ability of salt marshes to withstand sea-level rise.  相似文献   

12.
Salt marsh fucoid algae are a conspicuous component of north temperate marshes, yet comparatively little research has been conducted to examine their ecological effects. We examined the influence of salt marsh fucoids on physical conditions and the biotic community in a manipulative experiment conducted in a southern Maine back-barrier salt marsh. The biomass of salt marsh fucoids was higher than that of aboveground Spartina alterniflora in the zone where we conducted the experiment. Average daytime temperatures at the sediment surface were significantly reduced by the presence of salt marsh fucoids. Density and biomass of standing-dead S. alterniflora was significantly higher when salt marsh fucoids were removed. In contrast, the abundance of various species of epifauna and infauna were significantly enhanced by the presence of salt marsh fucoids. A regional survey indicated that results from the study site may be conservative because the biomass of salt marsh fucoids was lowest among other back-barrier marshes. Salt marsh fucoids are little studied ecosystem engineers whose presence affects the microclimate and biotic community, especially the animals that constitute the basal components of the salt marsh trophic relay.  相似文献   

13.
The primary objective of this research was to determine if vesicular-arbuscular (VA) mycorrhizal fungi are associated with the roots of common plant species found in North Carolina salt marshes. Root samples of Spartina alterniflora, S. patents, S. cynosuroides, Distichlis spicata, and Juncus roemerianus were collected from eight salt marsh sites. With the exception of S. alterniflora, all plant species were mycorrhizal. A greenhouse experiment was conducted to determine whether unfavorable soil conditions or inherent resistance by the plant inhibited development of mycorrhizal infection in field-collected S. alterniflora. Spartina alterniflora and S. patens were grown from seeds in soil collected from a pure stand of S. alterniflora (soil A) or a mixed stand of S. patens and D. spicata (soil P). Seedlings were harvested weekly for 8 wk, and roots were evaluated for infection by mycorrhizal fungi. Seedlings of S. patens were infected when grown for 2 wk in either soil A or soil P, indicating that soil collected from stands of S. alterniflora did not inhibit mycorrhizal infection in a susceptible host. Percent root length infected in S. patens was always greater in soil P than in soil A. Seedlings of S. alterniflora were not infected by mycorrhizal fungi in either soil A or soil P. Results of the greenhouse study indicate that S. alterniflora may be resistant to infection by vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.  相似文献   

14.
Aboveground production and tissue element composition of Spartina alterniflora were compared in bareier island marshes of different age off the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The marshes were also characterized by physical and chemical parameters of the substrate. The results suggest that sediment nutrient stock do not directly control the spatial pattern of element content or production of S. alterniflora between these marshes. Elevated salinity likely limits the nitrogen uptake capability of S. alterniflora in the high marsh, which, in turn, controls leaf tissue nitrogen content of plants within individual sites. Low substrate redox potential may control the spatial pattern of nitrogen uptake between the different-age marsh sites, loading to more favorable growing conditions at the low stations of the young marsh sites where values of tissue nitrogen and production are highest. Tissue phosphorus did not differ between, or within the marsh sites. The result of a fertilization experiment suggest that nitrogen, and not phosphorus, is the primary limiting nutrient in this sytem. This indicates that nutrient limitation and other stresses work in conjunction to control tissue element content and macrophyte production at these marsh sites. Spatial variability of factors that control leaf tissue nitrogen and production is likely related to topography and grain size of an individual marsh, which is a function of marsh age. Most studies in different-age marshes have compared transplanted marshes to older, natural marshes. This work is one of few studies comparing developing and mature natural, marshes on barrier islands.  相似文献   

15.
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16.
Although top-down control of plant growth has been shown in a variety of marine systems, it is widely thought to be unimportant in salt marshes. Recent caging experiments in Virginia and Georgia have challenged this notion and shown that the dominant marsh grazer (the periwinkle,Littoraria irrorata) not only suppresses plant growth, but can denude marsh substrate at high densities. In these same marshes, our field observations suggest that the black-clawed mud crab,Panopeus herbstii, is an abundant and potentially important top-down determinant of periwinkle density. No studies have quantitatively examinedPanopeus distribution or trophic interactions in marsh systems, and its potential impacts on community structure remained unexplored. We investigated distribution and feeding habits ofPanopeus in eight salt marshes along the Mid-Atlantic seashore (Delaware-North Carolina). We found that mud crabs were abundant in tall (4–82 ind m?2), intermediate (0–15 ind m?2), and short-form (0–5 ind m?2)Spartina alterniflora zones in all marshes and that crab densities were negatively correlated with tidal height and positively correlated with bivalve density. Excavation of crab lairs r?utinely produced shells of plant-grazing snails (up to 36 lair?1) and bivalves. Lab experiments confirmed that mud crabs readily consume these abundant marsh molluscs. To experimentally examine potential community effects of observed predation patterns, we manipulated crab and periwinkle densities in a 1-mo field experiment. Results showed thatPanopeus can suppress gastropod abundance and that predation rates increase with increasing snail density. In turn, crab suppression of snail density reduces grazing intensity on salt marsh cordgrass, suggesting presence of a trophic cascade. These results indicate that this previously under-appreciated consumer is an important and indirect determinant of community structure and contribute to a growing body of evidence challenging the long-standing notion that consumers play a minor role in regulating marsh plant growth.  相似文献   

17.
Docks constructed over salt marsh can reduce vegetation production and associated ecosystem services. In Massachusetts, there is a 1:1 height-to-width ratio (H:W) dock design guideline to reduce such impacts, but this guideline’s efficacy is largely untested. To evaluate dock height effects on underlying marsh vegetation and light availability, we deployed 1.2-m-wide experimental docks set at three different heights (low (0.5:1 H:W), intermediate (1:1 H:W), and high (1.5:1 H:W)) in the high and low marsh zones in an estuary in Massachusetts, USA. We measured temperature, light, vegetation community composition, and stem characteristics under the docks and in unshaded control plots over three consecutive growing seasons. Temperature and light were lower under all docks compared with controls; both increased with dock height. Maximum stem height and nitrogen content decreased with available light. In the Spartina patens-dominated high marsh, stem density and biomass were significantly lower than controls under low and intermediate but not high docks. Spartina alterniflora, the dominant low marsh vegetation, expanded into the high marsh zone under docks. S. alterniflora aboveground biomass significantly differed among all treatments in the low marsh, while stem density was significantly reduced for low and intermediate docks relative to controls. Permit conditions and guidelines based on dock height can reduce dock impacts, but under the current guideline of 1:1 H:W, docks will still cause significant adverse impacts to vegetation. Such impacts may interfere with self-maintenance processes (by decreasing sediment capture) and make these marshes less resilient to other stressors (e.g., climate change).  相似文献   

18.
Salt marsh zonation patterns generate different abiotic and biotic conditions that can accentuate species inherent differences in primary production and biomass. In South West Atlantic marshes, there are two Spartina species: Spartina alterniflora in the low intertidal and Spartina densiflora in the high intertidal. These two species are generally found in all marshes but with different dominance: In some marshes, the S. densiflora zone occupies higher extents, and in others, the S. alterniflora zone is the one that prevails. We found through field sampling that, in six studied marshes, there is greater S. densiflora live and total (i.e., dead+live) aboveground biomass (g m?2) in the marshes dominated by S. densiflora than in the ones dominated by S. alterniflora. Spartina alterniflora had similar aboveground biomass in the six marshes, regardless of the dominance of each species. When comparing the two Spartina species within each marsh, S. densiflora had greater live and total biomass in the marshes it dominates. In the marshes dominated by S. alterniflora, both species had similar live and total biomass. In all marshes, there was greater dead S. densiflora biomass. A multivariate analysis using selected abiotic factors (i.e., salinity, latitude, and tidal amplitude) showed that S. alterniflora aboveground biomass patterns are mainly correlated with salinity, while S. densiflora live biomass is mainly correlated with salinity and latitude, dead biomass with salinity and tidal amplitude, and total biomass with salinity alone. We conclude that in S. densiflora dominated marshes, the main processes of that species zone (i.e., nutrient accumulation) will be accentuated because of its higher biomass. We also conclude that climatic conditions, in combination with specific Spartina biotic and ambient abiotic parameters, can affect marsh ecological functions.  相似文献   

19.
The supply of nutrients from surface and subsurface water flow into the root zone was measured in a developing barrier island marsh in Virginia. We hypothesize that high production of tall-formSpartina alterniflora in the lower intertidal zone is due to a greater nitrogen input supplied by a larger subsurface flux. Individual nitrogen inputs to the tall-form and short-formS. alterniflora root zones were calculated from water flow rates into the root zone and the nutrient concentration corresponding to the source of the flow. Total dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) input (as ammonium and nitrate) was then calculated using a summation of the hourly nutrient inputs to the root zone over the entire tidal cycle based on hydrologic and nutrient data collected throughout the growing season (April–August) of 1993 and 1994. Additionally, horizontal water flow into the lower intertidal marsh was reduced experimentally to determine its effects on nutrient input and plant growth. Total ammonium (NH4 +) input to the tall-formS. alterniflora root zone (168 μmoles 6 h?1) was significantly greater relative to the short-form (45 μmoles 6 h?1) during flood tide. Total NH4 + input was not significantly different between growth forms during ebb tide, and total nitrate (NO3 ?) and total DIN input were not significantly different between growth forms during either tidal stage. During tidal flooding, vertical flow from below the root zone accounted for 71% and horizontal flow from the adjacent mudflat accounted for 19% of the total NH4 + input to the tall-formS. alterniflora root zone. Infiltration of flooding water accounted for 15% more of the total NO3 ? input relative to the total NH4 + input at both zones on flood tide. During ebb tide, vertical flow from below the root zone still accounted for the majority of NH4 + and NO3 ? input to both growth forms. After vertical flow, horizontal subsurface flow from upgradient accounted for the next largest percentages of NH4 + and NO3 ? input to both growth forms during ebb tide. After 2 yr of interrupted subsurface horizontal flow to the tall-formS. alterniflora root zone, height and nitrogen content of leaf tissue of treatment plants were only slightly, but significantly, lower than control plants. The results suggest that a dynamic supply of DIN (as influenced by subsurface water flows) is a more accurate depiction of nutrient supply to macrophytes in this developing marsh, relative to standing stock nutrient concentrations. The dynamic subsurface supply of DIN may play a role in spatial patterns of abovegroundS. alterniflora production, but determination of additional nitrogen inputs and the role of belowground production on nitrogen demand need to also be considered.  相似文献   

20.
Forty-eight core and grab samples were taken from two impoundments and an adjacent tidal creek and salt marsh during each of six sampling periods (January, June and November 1983; and January, April and July 1984). Habitats sampled within the impoundments included the perimeter ditch and shallow vegeted areas dominated byRuppia maritima, Spartina alterniflora, andScirpus robustus. The adjacent tidal creek bottom and low marsh ofS. alterniflora were sampled for comparison with the impoundment sites. Major differences in faunal composition and density of macrobenthic invertebrates were observed between habitats in this study. Macrobenthic density was highest (475 individuals 0.05 m?2) at the impoundment site dominated byScripus robustus, where oligochaetes were abundant. The open marsh site had a density of 254 individuals 0.05 m?2. Among unvegetated sites, density for all sampling periods was higher in Chainey Creek than in the perimeter ditches of the impoundments. The total number of taxa was highest for the open marsh and tidal creek sites. The impoundments contained vegetated sites which were inhabited by fewer species than nonimpounded sites, while the perimeter ditch sites were comparatively depauperate. Cluster and nodal analyses identified four broad assemblages based on habitat: 1) an open marsh assemblage, 2) a creek assemblage, 3) a eurytopic assemblage, and 4) an impoundment assemblage. The separation of faunal assemblages by sampling site rather than sampling period suggests that physical differences between habitats were important factors determining distribution patterns.  相似文献   

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