The use of diversity indices for local assessment of marine sediment quality.

Diversity indices are commonly used to measure changes in marine benthic communities. However, the reliability (and therefore suitability) of these indices for detecting environmental change is often unclear because of small sample size and the inappropriate choice of communities for analysis. This study explored uncertainties in taxonomic density and two indices of community structure in our target region, Japan, and in two local areas within this region, and explored potential solutions.

Potential impacts of marine urbanization on benthic macrofaunal diversity.

Urbanization and associated human activities have caused numerous changes to natural environments, including the loss of natural habitats and replacement with artificial structures. How these changes impact coastal marine biodiversity and ecosystem functioning is not well known. In this study, we examined the potential impacts of habitat changes by comparing species commonality and community structure (i.

Limpet disturbance effects on barnacle recruitment are related to recruitment intensity but not recruit size.

Intertidal limpets are important grazers along rocky coastlines worldwide that not only control algae but also influence invertebrates such as common barnacles. For instance, grazing limpets ingest settling barnacle cyprid larvae (hereafter cyprids) and push cyprids and barnacle recruits off the substrate. Such limpet disturbance effects (LDEs) can limit barnacle recruitment, a key demographic variable affecting barnacle population establishment and persistence.

Influence of different types of sessile epibionts on the community structure of mobile invertebrates in an eelgrass bed.

Eelgrass () beds are known to have high ecological and economical values within coastal ecosystems of the temperate northern hemisphere although their biodiversity and functions varied greatly from sites to sites. The variation in the biomass, abundance and diversity of mobile invertebrates in eelgrass beds has been examined in relation to various abiotic and biotic factors, such as water temperature, salinity, eelgrass biomass and epiphytic microalgae presence. However, the importance of sessile epibionts, such as macroalgae and calcific spirorbid polychaetes attached to eelgrass blades, has not been the focus of previous studies.