Abstract
The invasion record for the estuarine bivalve Mytilopsis leucophaeata in Brazil is in Rio de Janeiro city, including the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, where high densities of this invader were registered. This work aimed to (1) assess the composition and structure of the benthic macrofauna associated with this invader in Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, (2) analyze the spatiotemporal variation of richness, density and diversity of the associated benthic community, and (3) correlate changes on the density of the associated benthic species with some water quality variables and the density of M. leucophaeata. Clusters of M. leucophaeata were collected monthly (two years) in four sites. Nine taxa associated with M. leucophaeata were found; Heleobia sp. (Gastropoda) and Melita mangrovi (Amphipoda) showed the highest densities. The structure of the benthic macrofauna slightly differed among sampling sites, but not between dry and wet seasons. The water quality parameters, specific patterns of each taxon and high densities of M. leucophaeata contribute to variations in density of the associated species. Oscillations in the densities of M. leucophaeata and the native bivalve Brachidontes darwinianus suggest some agonistic relationship between them, such as a competition for space.
Highlights
Ecosystem engineers are species that may lead to considerable changes in the availability of resources for other species; such modifications may be biotic or abiotic, and the most common ones are related to the expansion or creation of new habitats (Jones et al 1994, Sousa et al 2009, Darrigran & Damborenea 2011)
This work aims to assess the composition and structure of the benthic macrofauna associated to M. leucophaeata in Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, an urban, estuarine and multiimpacted coastal system located in Rio de Janeiro city to which high densities of this nonnative bivalve were recorded (Rizzo et al 2014)
The benthic macrofauna samples associated to the invasive bivalve M. leucophaeata were composed of 95,396 individuals belonging to nine taxa: Cassidinidea fluminensis (MañeGarzón, 1944) (Isopoda), Melita mangrovi Oliveira, 1953 (Amphipoda), Sinelobus stanfordi (Richardson, 1901) (Tanaidacea), Eurypanopeus dissimilis (Benedict & Rathbun, 1891) (Decapoda), Amphibalanus spp. (Cirripedia), Heleobia sp. (Gastropoda), Brachidontes darwinianus (Bivalvia), Alitta succinea (Leuckart, 1847) (Polychaeta) and Chironomidae larvae (Diptera) (Fig. 2)
Summary
Ecosystem engineers are species that may lead to considerable changes in the availability of resources for other species; such modifications may be biotic or abiotic, and the most common ones are related to the expansion or creation of new habitats (Jones et al 1994, Sousa et al 2009, Darrigran & Damborenea 2011). Some bivalves are regarded as engineer species owing to their typical gregarious behavior and high biomass production, affecting ecosystems and communities at various levels, i.e., increasing species richness and environment heterogeneity (Gutiérrez et al 2003, Prado & Castilla 2006, Linares et al 2017). Filter-feeding of massive populations of invasive bivalves may interfere with local biodiversity, and adverse effects are recurrently recorded on the concentration of suspended particles and over the composition and structure of plankton communities (Karatayev et al 2007, Sousa et al 2013, Modesto et al 2019).
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