Effect of a physical disturbance event on deep-sea nematode community structure and ecosystem function

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dc.contributor.authorLeduc, Daniel
dc.contributor.authorPilditch, Conrad A.
dc.date.accessioned2013-04-15T03:02:21Z
dc.date.available2013-04-15T03:02:21Z
dc.date.copyright2013-02
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractNumerous studies have been conducted on the effect of physical disturbance on shallow water benthic communities, but there is a paucity of data from deep-sea environments. We conducted a laboratory experiment using undisturbed sediment cores from Chatham Rise (water depth =345 m), Southwest Pacific, to investigate the effects of a physical disturbance event (resuspension of surface sediments) on sediment characteristics (sediment grain size, pigment content), nematode community attributes (abundance, diversity, community structure) and ecosystem function (sediment community oxygen consumption (SCOC)) over a period of 9 days. Disturbance did not have any noticeable impact on sediment characteristics, SCOC, or nematode species richness, but led to changes in vertical distribution patterns and shifts in nematode community structure. The magnitude of disturbance-related effects was, however, much smaller than the effect of sediment depth (0-1, 1-3, and 3-5 cm), and the main impact of disturbance on nematode vertical distribution patterns and community structure appeared to be related to a vertical re-shuffling of nematodes in the sediments rather than mortality. We did not observe substantial increases in the abundance of nematode genera generally regarded as disturbance-tolerant, such as Sabatieria. The worst-affected species belongs to the Stilbonematinae, a group of typically long and slender nematodes that may be easily damaged by physical disturbance. The limited impact of physical disturbance on benthic community structure and function suggests that the Chatham Rise nematode community is relatively resilient to sediment resuspension. This resilience may have arisen from frequent exposure to disturbance in the field (e.g., from strong currents), or may be a more widespread feature of nematode communities.en_NZ
dc.identifier.citationLeduc, D., & Pilditch, C. A. (2013). Effect of a physical disturbance event on deep-sea nematode community structure and ecosystem function. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 440, 35-41.en_NZ
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.jembe.2012.11.015en_NZ
dc.identifier.issn0022-0981
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10289/7458
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElsevieren_NZ
dc.relation.isPartOfJournal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecologyen_NZ
dc.relation.ispartofJournal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology
dc.subjectbiodiversityen_NZ
dc.subjectChatham riseen_NZ
dc.subjectcontinental slopeen_NZ
dc.subjectlaboratory experimenten_NZ
dc.subjectmeiofaunaen_NZ
dc.subjectresilienceen_NZ
dc.titleEffect of a physical disturbance event on deep-sea nematode community structure and ecosystem functionen_NZ
dc.typeJournal Articleen_NZ
pubs.begin-page35en_NZ
pubs.elements-id38353
pubs.end-page41en_NZ
pubs.volume440en_NZ
uow.identifier.article-noCen_NZ
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