Abstract
On sandy tidal flats at the Island of Sylt (North Sea) ephemeral mats of green algae covered wide areas in the vicinity of sewage outflows. Algae became anchored in the feeding funnels of lugworms (Arenicola marina) and thus were able to resist displacement by tidal currents. Below the algal mats anoxic conditions extend to the sediment surface. After about one month a rough sea removed all algae. Polychaetes endured this short-term environmental deterioration, while the more sensitive Turbellaria decreased in abundance and species richness. Diatom-feeders were affected most, predators to a medium extent, and bacteria-feeders the least affected. Rare and very abundant species were more affected than moderately abundant ones. None of the turbellarian species increased in abundance and none colonized the algal mats above the sediment. In a semicontrolled experiment with daily hand-removal of drift algae from a 100-m2 plot within an extensive field of algal mats, this cleaned "island" served as a refuge to Turbellaria escaping from their algal covered habitat. Here abundance doubled relative to initial conditions and was 5-times higher than below algal mats.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Alatalo, R. V., 1981. Problems in the measurement of evenness in ecology. — Oikos37, 199–204.
Gray, J. S. & Pearson, T. H., 1982. Objective selection of sensitive species indicative of pollution-induced change in benthic communities. I. Comparative methodology. — Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.9, 111–119.
Harlin, M. M. & Thorne-Miller, B., 1981. Nutrient enrichment of seagrass beds in a Rhode Island coastal lagoon. — Mar. Biol.65, 221–229.
Kornmann, P., 1952. Die Algenvegetation von List auf Sylt. — Helgoländer wiss. Meeresunters.4, 55–61.
Michaelis, H., 1978. Recent biological phenomena in the German Waddensea. — Rapp. P.-v. Réun. Cons. int. Explor. Mer.172, 276–277.
Nicholls, D. J., Tubbs, C. R. & Haynes, F. N., 1981. The effect of green algal mats on intertidal macrobenthic communities and their predators. — Kieler Meeresforsch. (Sonderh.)5, 511–520.
Nienburg, W., 1927. Zur Ökologie der Flora des Wattenmeeres. I. Teil. Der Königshafen bei List auf Sylt. — Wiss. Meeresunters. (Abt. Kiel)20, 146–196.
Otte, G., 1979. Untersuchungen über die Auswirkung kommunaler Abwässer auf das benthische Ökosystem mariner Watten. — Helgoländer wiss. Meeresunters.32, 73–148.
Perkins, E. J. & Abbott, O. J., 1972. Nutrient enrichment and sand flat fauna. — Mar. Pollut. Bull.3, 70–72.
Reise, K., 1981. Ökologische Experimente zur Dynamik und Vielfalt der Bodenfauna in den Nordseewatten. — Verh. dt. zool. Ges.1981, 1–15.
Reise, K., 1983. Turbellaria of a marine sand flat: An ecological study. — Mikrofauna mar.1 (in press).
Reise, K. & Ax, P., 1979. A meiofaunal "thiobios" limited to the anaerobic sulfide system of marine sand does not exist. — Mar. Biol.54, 225–237.
Sullivan, M. J., 1976. Long-term effects of manipulating light intensity and nutrient enrichment on the structure of a salt marsh diatom community. — J. Phycol.12, 205–210.
Tubbs, C. R., 1977. Muddy foreshores. In: The coastline. Ed. by R. S. K. Barnes. Wiley, London, 83–92.
Wharfe, J. R., 1977. An ecological survey of the benthic invertebrate macrofauna of the lower Medway estuary, Kent. — J. Anim. Ecol.46, 93–110.
Wohlenberg, E., 1937. Die Wattenmeer-Lebensgemeinschaften im Königshafen von Sylt. — Helgoländer wiss. Meeresunters.1, 1–92.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This work was supported by a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Re 425/3).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Reise, K. Sewage, green algal mats anchored by lugworms, and the effects on Turbellaria and small Polychaeta. Helgolander Meeresunters 36, 151–162 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01983854
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01983854