Variations of the macrobenthic community in a seagrass transplanted area of the Lagoon of Venice

Autor: F. Pranovi, D. Curiel, A. Rismondo, M. Marzocchi, Mario Scattolin
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2000
Předmět:
Zdroj: Scientia Marina, Vol 64, Iss 3, Pp 303-310 (2000)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 0214-8358
1886-8134
DOI: 10.3989/scimar.2000.64n3303
Popis: Modifications in a benthic community, induced by an experimental transplant of seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa Ucria), were studied in an area located in the southern basin of the Lagoon of Venice. Two surveys, carried out in March and September 1996, indicated that species composition and numerical dominants changed with season, with increasing dissimilarity between the transplanted meadow and the surrounding area. The latter was used as a control area and was characterised by the presence of pleustophytic algae (Ulva rigida, Gracilaria verrucosa, Chaetomorpha linum). Comparison with a natural C. nodosa bed showed that, only two vegetative seasons after transplant, seagrass performance and the structure of the macrobenthic community were quite similar to those recorded in a natural meadow. The experiment demonstrated the importance of C. nodosa transplant in the Lagoon of Venice and the changes induced in the whole benthic community by the introduction of seagrass in an area previously lacking it.
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