Abstract
Erosion problems in coastal zones are increasingly threatening Mediterranean shores. In tourist areas such as the Catalan coast, there has been an increasing demand for the construction of low crested structures (LCS) to maintain beaches for recreational purposes. We studied the composition of the biota from three LCS and compared it with that of nearby natural rocky shores. Our purpose was to assess the composition of the communities growing on the LCS at a regional scale and to explore potential patterns of community composition in LCS in relation to the nature of the surrounding coast (i.e. sand or rocky shore), distance from natural hard-bottom communities and orientation of the blocks within the structure. The communities growing on the LCS were similar to those from nearby natural shores but the diversity and the number of taxa was always lower. Sixty to 95% of the species present on natural rocky shores grew on LCS, and differences in the number of taxa between the natural and the artificial substrates increased with increasing distances between them. On the Catalan coast, LCS act as impoverished rocky shores that never become natural ‘climax’ communities.
Highlights
Mediterranean coastal areas are threatened by coastal development that modifies the coastline through the construction of buildings and infrastructures such as roads, railways, promenades and ports
In this study we explore patterns of community composition on LCS compared with natural rocky shores, representing different structures along the Catalan coast
Regional differences in the hard-bottom assemblages were more important than the nature of the substrate in the composition of the epibiota of the three systems
Summary
Mediterranean coastal areas are threatened by coastal development that modifies the coastline through the construction of buildings and infrastructures such as roads, railways, promenades and ports. On the Catalan coast, LCS are formed by single units protecting small beaches or systems formed by several units plus, in some cases, groins. Their presence has direct consequences on the hydrodynamics of the coastal cell, and on the sediment transport and composition (i.e. granulometry and organic content; Martin et al, 2005). Since the nature and structure of soft-bottom assemblages is directly related to sediment descriptors (Gray, 1974), significant changes in the infaunal communities are expected after the construction of sea defences. In this study we explore patterns of community composition on LCS compared with natural rocky shores, representing different structures along the Catalan coast. The final goal is to provide informative data to managers on how we expect the biota to evolve following the apparently inevitable construction of LCS on Mediterranean coasts
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