Scale-dependent impact on diversity of Antarctic benthos caused by grounding of icebergs

MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 253:77-83 (2003) - doi:10.3354/meps253077 Scale-dependent impact on diversity of Antarctic benthos caused by grounding of icebergs Julian Gutt1,*, Dieter Piepenburg2 1Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Columbusstraße, 27568 Bremerhaven, Germany 2Institute for Polar Ecology, Wischhofstraße 1-3, Gebäude 12, 24148 Kiel, Germany *Email: jgutt@awi-bremerhaven.de ABSTRACT: Analysis of seabed video-strips on the Weddell Sea shelf provided evidence that the effects of iceberg scouring on megabenthic assemblages differ, depending on spatial scale. At a local scale (1 to 100 m), undisturbed glass sponge-associated habitats were significantly more diverse than disturbed ones; at a regional scale (1 to 100 km), increased habitat heterogeneity caused by iceberg scouring enhanced species diversity. The pace and succession of the recolonization exhibits high variability and is difficult to predict. The results not only underpin the concept that disturbance events are essential factors in the regulation of ecosystem dynamics, but also emphasize the relevance of scale in the evaluation and explanation of diversity patterns. KEY WORDS: Biodiversity · Intermediate-disturbance hypothesis · Mosaic cycle Full text in pdf format PreviousNextExport citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 253. Online publication date: May 15, 2003 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2003 Inter-Research.