Concordance degrees in macrozoobenthic monitoring programmes using different sampling methods and taxonomic resolution levels

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 63 - 70
• Main Authors: Pagola-Carte, S, Urkiaga-Alberdi, J, Bustamante, M, Saiz-Salinas, J.I
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 2002; Elsevier
• Subjects: Abra de Bilbao; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Classification; Conservation, protection and management of environment and wildlife; Ecology; Ecosystem; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Environmental degradation: ecosystems survey and restoration; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Geologic Sediments - analysis; Hard substrata; Macrozoobenthos; Marine and brackish environment; Measurement type; Monitoring; Population Dynamics; Taxonomic resolution; Water Pollutants - adverse effects; North Atlantic; Bay of Biscay; Europe; Atlantic Ocean; Spain; Spain, Abra de Bilbao; ANE, Spain, Pais Vasco, Vizcaya, Bilbao, Abra de Bilbao Bay; Taxonomic resolution; Measurement type; Macrozoobenthos; Hard substrata; Monitoring; Abra de Bilbao; Marine environment; Community structure; Littoral hard substrate; Zoobenthos; Water pollution; Biomass; Measurement method; Multivariate analysis; Population recovery; Intertidal hard substrate; Biological monitoring; Ecological abundance
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/S0025-326X(01)00187-4

In summer 1997, an intensive survey on the hard bottoms of the `Abra de Bilbao' (N. Iberian Peninsula) was carried out in the context of the macrozoobenthic monitoring programmes developed to assess the biological recovery of the area. Three types of measurements (abundance, biomass and cover) were used to describe and compare the structure and composition of the communities at three littoral zones: subtidal, lower intertidal and upper intertidal. In addition, several taxonomic aggregation levels of data were successfully applied. The main objective of this paper is to explore the relative effect caused on the results of such programmes by earlier decisions concerning the type of measurement and the taxonomic resolution level to be applied. A `second stage' multivariate procedure of analysis has been performed based on the previously obtained sampling site ordinations. The measurement type chosen has been found to have a greater effect on the results than the taxonomic resolution used. Moreover, it is suggested that analyses based on abundance data usually lose more information when taxonomic resolution decreases than those based on biomass or cover estimates. The highest concordance among the different analyses has been found in the subtidal zone, which is considered the most appropriate habitat for the development of benthic monitoring programmes.