Tidal flat macrofaunal communities and their associated environments in estuaries of southern California and northern Baja California, Mexico |
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| Authors: | Theresa Sinicrope Talley Paul K Dayton Silvia E Ibarra-Obando |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Biology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA;(2) Present address: Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA |
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| Abstract: | Several tidal flats in both Estero de Punta Banda and Bahia de San Quintín, Baja California, and one in Mission Bay, southern California, were sampled for macrofaunal properties (taxonomic composition, density, species richness, and functional groups for animals ≥0.3 mm) and associated environmental variables (sediment properties, salinity, plant belowground biomass, and cover ofZostera marina) in order to establish a benchmark data set for these areas. The grouping of macrofauna into higher taxonomic or functional groups for these comparisons reduced variability and revealed stronger relationships. Each estuary had a fairly distinct macrofaunal assemblage, with that of Estero de Punta Banda being different from Bahia de San Quintín and Mission Bay primarily due to dominance by a capitellid polychaete, lower proportions of surface deposit feeders, and higher proportions of fauna with a planktonic stage. The flats in Mission Bay and Bahia de San Quintín were dominated by peracarid crustaceans, oligochaetes and polychaetes and had higher proportions of direct developers and macrofauna with mobile adult stages than did Estero de Punta Banda. There was an overlap of the environmental characteristics among estuaries, with more variability of sediment and vegetation properties within than among estuaries. Within Bahia de San Quintín, there was an oceanic to back-bay distribution gradient of macrofauna that was similar to that found in estuaries in wetter climates, despite the lack of a salinity gradient in San Quintín. A decoupling of the benthos and the assumed anthropogenic stresses was observed with the degraded site, Mission Bay, being most similar to the relatively pristine Bahia de San Quintín. Selection of reference sites and sampling variables should be made cautiously because effects of disturbance factors on the benthos may be site-dependent, scale-dependent, or negligible. |
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