Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats

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dc.contributor.authorIken, Katrinen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorKonar, Brendaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorBenedetti-Cecchi, Lisandroen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorCruz-Motta, Juan Joséen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorKnowlton, Annen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorPohle, Gerharden_ZA
dc.contributor.authorMead, Angelaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorMiloslavich, Patriciaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorWong, Melisaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorTrott, Thomasen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2015-11-23T12:38:43Z
dc.date.available2015-11-23T12:38:43Z
dc.date.issued2010en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThis study examined echinoderm assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats for large-scale distribution patterns with specific emphasis on identifying latitudinal trends and large regional hotspots. Echinoderms were sampled from 76 globally-distributed sites within 12 ecoregions, following the standardized sampling protocol of the Census of Marine Life NaGISA project ( www.nagisa.coml.org ). Sample-based species richness was overall low (<1-5 species per site), with a total of 32 asteroid, 18 echinoid, 21 ophiuroid, and 15 holothuroid species. Abundance and species richness in intertidal assemblages sampled with visual methods (organisms >2 cm in 1 m 2 quadrats) was highest in the Caribbean ecoregions and echinoids dominated these assemblages with an average of 5 ind m −2 . In contrast, intertidal echinoderm assemblages collected from clearings of 0.0625 m 2 quadrats had the highest abundance and richness in the Northeast Pacific ecoregions where asteroids and holothurians dominated with an average of 14 ind 0.0625 m −2 . Distinct latitudinal trends existed for abundance and richness in intertidal assemblages with declines from peaks at high northern latitudes. No latitudinal trends were found for subtidal echinoderm assemblages with either sampling technique. Latitudinal gradients appear to be superseded by regional diversity hotspots. In these hotspots echinoderm assemblages may be driven by local and regional processes, such as overall productivity and evolutionary history. We also tested a set of 14 environmental variables (six natural and eight anthropogenic) as potential drivers of echinoderm assemblages by ecoregions. The natural variables of salinity, sea-surface temperature, chlorophyll a , and primary productivity were strongly correlated with echinoderm assemblages; the anthropogenic variables of inorganic pollution and nutrient contamination also contributed to correlations. Our results indicate that nearshore echinoderm assemblages appear to be shaped by a network of environmental and ecological processes, and by the differing responses of various echinoderm taxa, making generalizations about the patterns of nearshore rocky habitat echinoderm assemblages difficult.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationIken, K., Konar, B., Benedetti-Cecchi, L., Cruz-Motta, J. J., Knowlton, A., Pohle, G., ... Trott, T. (2010). Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats. <i>PLoS One</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15363en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationIken, Katrin, Brenda Konar, Lisandro Benedetti-Cecchi, Juan José Cruz-Motta, Ann Knowlton, Gerhard Pohle, Angela Mead, Patricia Miloslavich, Melisa Wong, and Thomas Trott "Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats." <i>PLoS One</i> (2010) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15363en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationIken, K., Konar, B., Benedetti-Cecchi, L., Cruz-Motta, J. J., Knowlton, A., Pohle, G., ... & Silva, A. (2010). Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats. PloS one, 5(11), e13845. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013845en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Journal Article AU - Iken, Katrin AU - Konar, Brenda AU - Benedetti-Cecchi, Lisandro AU - Cruz-Motta, Juan José AU - Knowlton, Ann AU - Pohle, Gerhard AU - Mead, Angela AU - Miloslavich, Patricia AU - Wong, Melisa AU - Trott, Thomas AB - This study examined echinoderm assemblages from nearshore rocky habitats for large-scale distribution patterns with specific emphasis on identifying latitudinal trends and large regional hotspots. Echinoderms were sampled from 76 globally-distributed sites within 12 ecoregions, following the standardized sampling protocol of the Census of Marine Life NaGISA project ( www.nagisa.coml.org ). Sample-based species richness was overall low (<1-5 species per site), with a total of 32 asteroid, 18 echinoid, 21 ophiuroid, and 15 holothuroid species. Abundance and species richness in intertidal assemblages sampled with visual methods (organisms >2 cm in 1 m 2 quadrats) was highest in the Caribbean ecoregions and echinoids dominated these assemblages with an average of 5 ind m −2 . In contrast, intertidal echinoderm assemblages collected from clearings of 0.0625 m 2 quadrats had the highest abundance and richness in the Northeast Pacific ecoregions where asteroids and holothurians dominated with an average of 14 ind 0.0625 m −2 . Distinct latitudinal trends existed for abundance and richness in intertidal assemblages with declines from peaks at high northern latitudes. No latitudinal trends were found for subtidal echinoderm assemblages with either sampling technique. Latitudinal gradients appear to be superseded by regional diversity hotspots. In these hotspots echinoderm assemblages may be driven by local and regional processes, such as overall productivity and evolutionary history. We also tested a set of 14 environmental variables (six natural and eight anthropogenic) as potential drivers of echinoderm assemblages by ecoregions. The natural variables of salinity, sea-surface temperature, chlorophyll a , and primary productivity were strongly correlated with echinoderm assemblages; the anthropogenic variables of inorganic pollution and nutrient contamination also contributed to correlations. Our results indicate that nearshore echinoderm assemblages appear to be shaped by a network of environmental and ecological processes, and by the differing responses of various echinoderm taxa, making generalizations about the patterns of nearshore rocky habitat echinoderm assemblages difficult. DA - 2010 DB - OpenUCT DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0013845 DP - University of Cape Town J1 - PLoS One LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2010 T1 - Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats TI - Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15363 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/15363
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0013845
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationIken K, Konar B, Benedetti-Cecchi L, Cruz-Motta JJ, Knowlton A, Pohle G, et al. Large-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitats. PLoS One. 2010; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15363.en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisherPublic Library of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.rightsThis is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.en_ZA
dc.rights.holder© 2010 Iken et alen_ZA
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0en_ZA
dc.sourcePLoS Oneen_ZA
dc.source.urihttp://journals.plos.org/plosoneen_ZA
dc.subject.otherEchinodermsen_ZA
dc.subject.otherLatitudeen_ZA
dc.subject.otherSpecies diversityen_ZA
dc.subject.otherStarfishen_ZA
dc.subject.otherHabitatsen_ZA
dc.subject.otherSalinityen_ZA
dc.subject.otherBiodiversityen_ZA
dc.subject.otherPollutionen_ZA
dc.titleLarge-scale spatial distribution patterns of echinoderms in nearshore rocky habitatsen_ZA
dc.typeJournal Articleen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceArticleen_ZA
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