Structure of bryozoan communities in an Antarctic glacial fjord (Admiralty Bay, South Shetlands)

Krzysztof Pabis,Piotr Presler,Jacek Sicinski,Urszula Hara

doi:10.1007/s00300-014-1474-1

Krzysztof Pabis, Piotr Presler + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-014-1474-1

Copy DOI

Journal: Polar Biology	Publication Date: Mar 8, 2014
Citations: 12	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Łódź, Polish Geological Institute

Abstract

The study was supported by a grant of Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education No. 51/N-IPY/2007/0 as well as Census of Antarctic Marine Life Project. Krzysztof Pabis was also partially supported by University of Lodz internal funds. This research was also supported by the Polish Geological Institute-National Research Institute during the realization of the project numbered 40.2900.0903.18.0 titled “Bryozoan assemblage of Admiralty Bay—richness, diversity and abundance.” Urszula Hara is deeply grateful to Leszek Giro (Micro-area Analyses Laboratory at the Polish Geological Institute-National Research Institute, Warsaw), for providing SEM assistance during the project. We also want to thank two anonymous reviewers for their suggestions that helped us improve this article. Thanks are also due to Magdalena Blazewicz-Paszkowycz for language correction and polishing the final version of the manuscript.

Highlights

Antarctic sessile suspension feeding communities are characterized by a high species richness and diversity (Gili et al 2006)
This study is the first analysis of the bryozoan community of the Antarctic glacial fjord based on the large set of quantitative samples
It demonstrates that depth is important in shaping the bryozoan community in this basin

Summary

Introduction

Antarctic sessile suspension feeding communities are characterized by a high species richness and diversity (Gili et al 2006). Ascidians and sponges are a key element of energy transfer from the pelagic zone into the benthic realm of the Southern Ocean (Gili et al 2001). Distribution of bryozoan aggregations is shaped by mineral suspension inflow and iceberg scouring, resulting in lower diversity and abundance, especially in the shallow sublittoral zone (Gutt 2001; Pabis et al 2011). At greater depths their reduced abundance is explained mostly by lower organic matter supply (Saiz-Salinas et al 1998)

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion