Skip to content
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
Large-Scale Spatial Distribution Patterns of Gastropod Assemblages in Rocky Shores
PLoS ONE, Volume 8, No. 8, Article e71396, Year 2013
Notification
URL copied to clipboard!
Description
Gastropod assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats were studied over large spatial scales to (1) describe broad-scale patterns in assemblage composition, including patterns by feeding modes, (2) identify latitudinal pattern of biodiversity, i.e., richness and abundance of gastropods and/or regional hotspots, and (3) identify potential environmental and anthropogenic drivers of these assemblages. Gastropods were sampled from 45 sites distributed within 12 Large Marine Ecosystem regions (LME) following the NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas) standard protocol (www.nagisa.coml.org). A total of 393 gastropod taxa from 87 families were collected. Eight of these families (9.2%) appeared in four or more different LMEs. Among these, the Littorinidae was the most widely distributed (8 LMEs) followed by the Trochidae and the Columbellidae (6 LMEs). In all regions, assemblages were dominated by few species, the most diverse and abundant of which were herbivores. No latitudinal gradients were evident in relation to species richness or densities among sampling sites. Highest diversity was found in the Mediterranean and in the Gulf of Alaska, while highest densities were found at different latitudes and represented by few species within one genus (e.g. Afrolittorina in the Agulhas Current, Littorina in the Scotian Shelf, and Lacuna in the Gulf of Alaska). No significant correlation was found between species composition and environmental variables (r≤0.355, p>0.05). Contributing variables to this low correlation included invasive species, inorganic pollution, SST anomalies, and chlorophyll-a anomalies. Despite data limitations in this study which restrict conclusions in a global context, this work represents the first effort to sample gastropod biodiversity on rocky shores using a standardized protocol across a wide scale. Our results will generate more work to build global databases allowing for large-scale diversity comparisons of rocky intertidal assemblages. © 2013 Miloslavich et al.
Available Materials
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3742765/bin/pone.0071396.s001.doc
https://efashare.b-cdn.net/share/pmc/articles/PMC3742765/bin/pone.0071396.s002.doc
Authors & Co-Authors
Miloslavich, Patricia
Venezuela, Caracas
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Cruz-Motta, Juan José
Venezuela, Caracas
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Klein, Eduardo
Venezuela, Caracas
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Iken, Katrin B.
United States, Fairbanks
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Weinberger, Vanessa
Chile, Santiago
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Konar, Brenda H.
United States, Fairbanks
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Trott, Tom James
United States, Boston
Suffolk University
Pohle, Gerhard W.
Canada, St Andrews
Huntsman Marine Science Centre
Bigatti, Gregorio
Argentina, Puerto Madryn
Centro Nacional Patagonico
Benedetti-Cecchi, L.
Italy, Pisa
Università Di Pisa
Shirayama, Yoshihisa
Japan, Kyoto
Field Science Education and Research Center
Mead, Angela
South Africa, Cape Town
University of Cape Town
Palomo, Gabriela
Argentina, Buenos Aires
Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia
Ortiz, Manuel
Cuba, Havana
Universidad de la Habana
Gobin, Judith
Trinidad and Tobago, St Augustine
The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus
Sardi, Adriana
Venezuela, Caracas
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Díaz, Juan Manuel
Colombia, Bogota
Universidad Nacional de Colombia
Knowlton, Ann L.
United States, Fairbanks
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Wong, Melisa C.
Canada, Dartmouth
Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Peralta, Ana C.
Venezuela, Caracas
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Statistics
Citations: 26
Authors: 20
Affiliations: 14
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1371/journal.pone.0071396
e-ISSN:
19326203
Research Areas
Environmental