Spatiotemporal variation of the epifaunal assemblages associated to Sargassum muticum on the NW Atlantic coast of Morocc
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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Spatiotemporal variation of the epifaunal assemblages associated to Sargassum muticum on the NW Atlantic coast of Morocco Zahira Belattmania 1 & Abdellatif Chaouti 1 & Aschwin H. Engelen 2 & Ester A. Serrao 2 & Margarida Machado 2 & Abdeltif Reani 1 & Brahim Sabour 1 Received: 28 October 2019 / Accepted: 22 June 2020 # Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Epifaunal assemblages inhabiting the non-indigenous macroalga Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt were investigated on two physically distinct intertidal rocky (S1) and sandy (S2) sites along the Atlantic coast of Morocco. The objective of this study was to test whether the habitat-forming marine alga S. muticum invasive in these sites supported different epifaunal assemblages under different environmental conditions and through time. The gastropods Steromphala umbilicalis, S. pennanti, and Rissoa parva and the isopod Dynamene bidentata were the most contributive species to the dissimilarity of epifaunal assemblage structure between both sites throughout seasons. SIMPER analysis showed a dissimilarity of 58.3–78.5% in the associated species composition of S. muticum between study sites with respect to sampling season. Species diversity and total abundance were significantly higher at the rocky site compared to the sandy site. PERMANOVA analyses showed significant differences of associated epifaunal assemblage structure for the season and site interaction. Accordingly, site and season were determinant factors conditioning the role of habitat in structuring epifaunal assemblages. Keywords Sargassum muticum . Associated epifauna . Variability . Interactions . Environmental conditions . Substrate . Intertidal . Atlantic shores . Morocco
Introduction Marine macroalgae can be relevant as biogenic structures. They are known among the true autigenic epibenthic ecosystem engineers and some species are referred to as “foundation species” that have strong effects on local community structure through the mechanisms of environment stabilization, provision of critical food resources, and/or creation of biogenic habitat (Ellison et al. 2005; Jones and Thornber 2010; Ramus et al. 2017; Metzger et al. 2019). Marine macroalgae perform various functions and have a major effect on the Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues * Zahira Belattmania [email protected] 1
Research Unit “Phycology, Blue Biodiversity and Biotechnology,” Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Chouaib Doukkali, El Jadida, Morocco
2
CCMAR – Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
structure of marine communities (Stachowicz 2001; Cacabelos et al. 2010). They offer refuge from predation and competition (Ware et al. 2019). They provide shelter and food (generating in situ detritus and nutrients after decomposition) and spawning and nursery grounds for many organisms, especially the earliest life stages (Buschmann 1990; Taylor 1998; Fredriksen et al. 2005). They increase space for settlement and protect the organism
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