Document of bibliographic reference 300638

BibliographicReference record

Type

Bibliographic resource

Type of document

Journal article

BibLvlCode

AS

Title

Assessment of structural and functional diversity of mollusc assemblages within vermetid bioconstructions

Abstract

Dendropoma lebeche is a prosobranch gastropod belonging to the family Vermetidae, which calcifies its shell on hard substrates in dense aggregates, forming biogenic constructions along the western Mediterranean intertidal habitat. It is an important ecosystem engineer and, due to its ecological value, is protected by international convention. The aim of this study is to investigate the mollusc composition and diversity occurring within Spanish vermetid bioconstructions. During the late summer 2013, three distant sites along the Mediterranean coast of Spain were sampled by scraping off the vermetid shells to study their associated assemblages. A total of 600 molluscs were identified within the classes of Polyplacophora (four species), Gastropoda (35 spp.) and Bivalvia (18 spp.). Multivariate analyses revealed significant differences in composition and trophic diversity of mollusc assemblages among the three sites, highlighting a clear geographical gradient. Overall, both herbivores (grazers and deposit feeders) and omnivores were the quantitatively dominant trophic groups, while carnivores (predators and ectoparasites) were very scarce. Our results point out that mollusc assemblages associated with vermetid bioconstructions are rich and diversified, both in populations structure and trophic diversity, confirming the important role of vermetid gastropods as ecosystem engineers and biodiversity enhancers in shallow coastal waters.

WebOfScience code

https://www.webofscience.com/wos/woscc/full-record/WOS:000448402500048

Bibliographic citation

Donnarumma, L.; Sandulli, R.; Appolloni, L.; Sánchez-Lizaso, J.L.; Russo, G.F. (2018). Assessment of structural and functional diversity of mollusc assemblages within vermetid bioconstructions. Diversity 10(3): 96. https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/d10030096

Is peer reviewed

true

Access rights

open access

Is accessible for free

true