Honeycomb worm bioconstructions persist under combined human and wave-related disturbances.

Marine bioconstructions and their ecological functions are increasingly threatened by compounded natural disturbances and direct and indirect impacts of anthropogenic activities. Through a manipulative experiment in the field, we assessed the response of intertidal biogenic patches built by the honeycomb worm, Sabellaria alveolata, to combined disturbances. Repeated battering events, simulating those associated with waves, were applied on intact or previously damaged bioconstructions, mimicking those impacted by harvesting of infaunal organisms.