Effect of secondary substrate on associated small crustaceans in a brackish lagoon

• Published in: Journal of experimental marine biology and ecology Vol. 176; no. 2; pp. 245 - 256
• Main Author: Matsumasa, Masatoshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 29.03.1994; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Amphipod; Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Brackish; Crustacea; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Habitat structure; Japan; Sea water ecosystems; Sessile organism; Synecology; Tanaid; Asia; Japan; INW, Japan, Honshu, Miyagi Prefect., Gamo Lagoon; Tanaid; Amphipod; Sessile organism; Habitat structure; Japan; Crustacea; Substrate; Brackish water environment; Arthropoda; Sessile; Invertebrata; Epifauna; Colonization; Coastal lagoon; Amphipoda; Interspecific relation
• ISSN: 0022-0981; 1879-1697
• DOI: 10.1016/0022-0981(94)90187-2

The influence of substrate provided by sessile organisms on epifaunal small crustaceans was investigated in a brackish lagoon in Sendai, Japan. The relative abundances of small crustaceans were compared between two sites at the same tidal height on concrete structures where the species composition of sessile organisms was different. In addition, the species composition of small crustaceans was studied as a function of three experimental substrates. Finally, by manipulating settlement plates, the influences of some environmental factors on the sessile organisms as well as on species interactions were studied. The field investigation and experiment showed that the secondary substrate created by sessile organisms caused the spatial and temporal changes in the most abundant species of small crustaceans. Moreover, some environmental factors and earlier colonists have inhibitory and/or facilitative effects on the colonizations of barnacles and oysters which produced site differences of secondary substrate. In addition, oyster growth over barnacles indicated the competitive superiority of the oyster over barnacles after their colonization. These results indicate that the secondary substrate, especially its physical structure, is an important factor which directly determines the species composition of associated small crustaceans. Environmental factors and interactions among sessile species have an indirect effect on species composition of small crustaceans, because they produce changes in the secondary substrate.