Loading...
Publication
How nematode morphometric attributes integrate with taxonomy-based measures along an estuarine gradient
| Name: | Description: | Size: | Format: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.17 MB | Adobe PDF |
Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Nematodes are highly susceptible to environmental change and possess a wide array of morphological and
functional characteristics for the assessment of the “Good Environmental Status”, within Marine Strategy
Framework Directive. However, while the taxonomic sufficiency of nematodes in detecting spatial gradients and
related ecological niche conditions is well recognized, very little is known about nematodes functional morphometric attributes in response to environmental drivers. To explore this knowledge gap, we aimed to
assess the efficacy and efficiency of nematode morphometric attributes (length, width, length/width ratio,
biomass) in detecting spatial patterns along a Portuguese estuarine gradient, and compare it with the taxonomic approach. We hypothesized that abundance data weighted by the morphometric attributes will have a higher explanatory power in detecting spatial patterns than using abundance of morphometric data alone.
Based on the recent recommendations regarding the time and cost related efficacy of methods in biomonitoring
and ecological assessments we also hypothesized that a reduced dataset based on the most common
genera will suffice to capture the same distributional patterns displayed by the whole assemblage.
Our results demonstrated that dataset solely based on genera abundances had consistently better explanatory
power than combined datasets or morphometric datasets alone, however, combined dataset provided different
spatial patterns and performed better at discriminating estuary areas. The main gradients described by the
taxonomy-based dataset were related to the sediment particle size and water depth. Considering combined
datasets, spatial discrimination was mainly driven by the variation in dissolved oxygen % saturation, pointing
out to the importance of this variable in determining estuarine conditions substantial for nematodes morphometric distributional patterns.
The same analysis repeated for the most frequent genera resulted in similar distributional patterns as for the
whole assemblage dataset, clearly demonstrating that spatial estuarine gradients can be sufficiently described by using only the most frequent genera. Such information may substantially increase the efficiency of bioassessment surveys by reducing the cost and work associated with identification and measurements of all of
the individual nematode genera.
Description
This study had the funding support from the following projects: D4Ss
ALT20-03-0145-FEDER-029400; UIDB/04292/2020; NIPOGES (MAR01.03.02-FEAMP-0013); AQUASADO (MAR-02.01.01-FEAMP-0051);
COASTNET (PINFRA/22128/2016) and MINEPLAT ALT20030145FEDER000013. Anxo Conde wishes to acknowledge the Integrated
Programme of SR&TD “Smart Valorization of Endogenous Marine Biological Resources Under a Changing Climate” (reference Centro-01-
0145-FEDER-000018), co-funded by Centro 2020 program, Portugal
2020, European Union, through the European Regional Development
Fund. The authors also thank Sara Roman who helped with sample
processing and Sara Cabral for providing the GIS maps.
Keywords
Functional traits Nematode assemblages Spatial gradient Sado estuary Bio-assessment
Citation
Sroczyńska, K., Conde, A., Chainho, P. & Adão, H. (2021). How nematode morphometric attributes integrate with taxonomy-based measures along an estuarine gradient. Ecological Indicators, 124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.107384
Publisher
Elsevier