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| Titel |
Interannual variation in the epibenthic megafauna at the shallowest station of the HAUSGARTEN observatory (79° N, 6° E) |
| VerfasserIn |
K. S. Meyer, M. Bergmann, T. Soltwedel |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
1726-4170
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: Biogeosciences ; 10, no. 6 ; Nr. 10, no. 6 (2013-06-03), S.3479-3492 |
| Datensatznummer |
250018264
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/bg-10-3479-2013.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
| Epibenthic megafauna play an important role in the deep-sea environment and
contribute significantly to benthic biomass, but their population dynamics
are still understudied. We used a towed deep-sea camera system to assess the
population densities of epibenthic megafauna in 2002, 2007, and 2012 at the
shallowest station (HG I, ∼1300 m) of the deep-sea observatory
HAUSGARTEN, in the eastern Fram Strait. Our results indicate that the overall
density of megafauna was significantly lower in 2007 than in 2002, but was
significantly higher in 2012, resulting in overall greater megafaunal density
in 2012. Different species showed different patterns in population density,
but the relative proportions of predator/scavengers and suspension-feeding
individuals were both higher in 2012. Variations in megafaunal densities and
proportions are likely due to variation in food input to the sea floor, which
decreased slightly in the years preceding 2007 and was greatly elevated in
the years preceding 2012. Both average evenness and diversity increased over
the time period studied, which indicates that HG I may be food-limited and
subject to bottom-up control. The community of HG I may be unique in its
response to elevated food input, which resulted in higher evenness and
diversity in 2012. |
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