Predatory infauna and trophic complexity in soft-bottom communities
Commito, J.A.; Ambrose Jr., W.G. (1985). Predatory infauna and trophic complexity in soft-bottom communities, in: Gibbs, P.E. (Ed.) Proceedings of the 19th European Marine Biology Symposium, Plymouth, Devon, UK, 16-21 September 1984. pp. 323-333 In: Gibbs, P.E. (Ed.) (1985). Proceedings of the Nineteenth European Marine Biology Symposium, Plymouth, Devon, UK, 16-21 September 1984. European Marine Biology Symposia, 19. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge. ISBN 0-521-30294-3. 541 pp., more In: European Marine Biology Symposia., more |
| Authors | | Top | - Commito, J.A.
- Ambrose Jr., W.G.
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| Abstract | The role that predatory infauna plays in controlling the structure of soft-bottom communities have not been extensively studied and remain poorly understood. Studies of predation by infaunal polychaetes, nemerteans, crustaceans and gastropods, including recent field manipulations of suspected predators, have demonstrated that predatory infauna constitute an ignored trophic level in amrine ecosystems and often regulate soft-bottom community structure. Predatory infauna prey upon other predators, thus adding even further trophic complexity to the benthos. Because they are selectively preyed upon by epibenthic predators, such as fish and crabs, predatory infauna also constitute an important link between the epibenthic and infaunal components of marine ecosystems. |
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