Influence of submersion season on the development of test panel biofouling communities in a tropical coast

Abstract

The effect of test panel submersion season on the colonization of biofouling communities in a tropical coast revealed that the effects of panel submersion time should be taken into consideration for modelling fouling community recruitment dynamics in coastal systems or during the field trials of antifouling coatings. Wooden test panels fitted onto a raft were submerged during pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons for the development of the biofouling community. Results showed considerable variation in the colonization of fouling communities on test panels submerged during different seasons. Barnacles, tubeworms, ascidians and seaweeds were the major fouling communities that colonized the test panels. The total biomass of the fouling communities that settled on the post-monsoon season panels varied from the initial value of 2.72 g dm −2 to a maximum of 44.5 g dm −2. On the panels submerged during monsoon season, the total biomass of fouling communities varied between 0.78 g dm −2 and 69.9 g dm −2. The total fouling biomass on the pre-monsoon season panels varied between 2.95 and 33.5 g dm −2. Barnacles were the initial colonizers on the panels submerged during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons. Soft-bodied organisms such as ascidians dominated the monsoon season-initiated panel series during the initial period.