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Disturbance and organisms on boulders: II. Causes of patterns in diversity and abundance by K. A. McGuinness is a Environmental Science article available to read on EtoBox.

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The tops of intertidal boulders on the east coast of Australia may carry a half-dozen algae, while the undersides may support a dozen or more species of sessile animals; mobile forms such as molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms are also common. These organisms are disturbed when boulders are moved by waves or buried in sand. Experiments were done to test the hypothesis that these disturbances are responsible for the reduced diversity and abundance of the assemblages on the undersides of small boulders. Boulders on one shore were bolted to the substratum to prevent movement by waves. In two separate experiments on another shore, boulders with and without attached organisms were buried in a few centimetres of sand. All experiments included relevant controls and were done high and low on the shore using rocks of several sizes. The assemblages of algae developing on the tops of all stabilised boulders, regardless of size, were similar to those on boulders free to roll indicating that, in contrast to results elsewhere, disturbance by waves was too infrequent or slight to affect these species. The tops of rocks were also rarely buried in sand and the main influences on the community in

Who reads Disturbance and organisms on boulders: II. Causes of patterns in diversity and abundance?

Author

K. A. McGuinness

Publisher

Springer-Verlag; Springer Verlag; Springer Science and Business Media LLC (ISSN 0029-8549)

Published

1987

Language

EN

Field

Environmental Science (Physical Sciences)