Abstract
Neohelice granulata inhabits estuarine and protected coastal areas in temperate regions, and is the most dominant decapod crustacean in the Bahía Blanca estuary. The population structure was studied during a year in a SW Atlantic salt marsh located in the Bahía Blanca estuary, Argentina. Crabs were sampled monthly from August 2010 to July 2011. The maximum observed density was 39 crabs/m2 in February and 70 burrows/m2 in May. The maximum carapace width (CW) in males was 32 mm and 27.5 mm in females. Medium size crabs were between 16 and 20 mm CW. Significantly smaller sized crabs were observed at the lower intertidal regions (p
Highlights
The salt marshes and mud flats are ecosystems which characterize the intertidal zone of estuarine and coastalCorresponding editor: Patricio Arana areas in temperate regions
The population structure was studied during a year in a SW Atlantic salt marsh located in the Bahía Blanca Estuary
The population structure of the most important macro-invertebrate is analyzed in the Bahía Blanca Estuary
Summary
The salt marshes and mud flats are ecosystems which characterize the intertidal zone of estuarine and coastalCorresponding editor: Patricio Arana areas in temperate regions. Dense populations of N. granulata inhabit almost all zones of the intertidal, the soft bare sediments flats and areas with the cordgrass Spartina densiflora, Spartina alterniflora and Sarcocornia perennis (formerly known as Salicornia ambigua) (Botto et al, 2005; Bortolus, 2006). This crab constructs vertical burrows of up to 10 cm of diameter that can reach up to 1 m depth in vegetated marshes. Burrowing activity may change sediment characteristics (Botto et al, 2006; Mendez-Casariego et al, 2011)
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