An Experimental Test of the Capacity of Food Web Interactions (Fish–Epiphytes–Seagrasses) to Offset the Negative Consequences of Eutrophication on Seagrass Communities

A mechanism of competition between epiphytes and seagrasses potentially modulated by grazers was studied in a high-nutrient Thalassia testudinum meadow in the Indian River Lagoon (Florida, U.S.A.). The effects of fish grazing on epiphytes, and likely enhancing T. testudinum growth, was tested through an exclusion experiment. Twelve (2×2m) independent experimental plots were selected within a shallow monospecific bed to which three randomized treatments (exclusion fences, open fences and controls) with four replicates each were assigned. The epiphyte load was monitored on T. testudinum leaves inside the plots from January 1995 to March 1996. Treatment effects occurred during a chlorophyte bloom in March 1995, when the epiphyte biomass was significantly higher inside the exclusion cages than in either of the controls. The composition of the epiphytic community in March 1995 was dominated by sheet-like Enteromorpha and filamentous algae such as Cladophora , which are less resistant to herbivory than the coarsely-branched forms of red algae (e.g. Hypnea , Chondria and Acanthophora) that bloomed subsequently. These results suggest that herbivory change seasonally depending on the availability of different prey species to fish-grazers, which preferentially utilize the fleshy green algae typical of bloom conditions over the thicker coarsely-branched red algae. In the nutrient-rich lagoon the role of top-down interactions in enhancing T. testudinum growth is limited to the reduction of shading by green macroalgae.     

Temporal and spatial zonation of macroepiphytes on Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile leaves in a meadow off Tunisia

The aim of this survey was to study the cover and the composition of macroepiphytic species on the leaves of Posidonia oceanica in the east of Tunisia. Surveys were conducted in December 2009 (winter period), March (spring period) and August 2010 (summer period) in a fringing reef located in Chebba. At each sampling date, 15 adult leaves were randomly collected and divided into basal and apical parts. The inner face of each part was examined with ocular glasses and microscope to estimate species cover by orthogonal projection. PERMANOVA and ANOSIM were used to test for differences of cover between sampling dates and leaf parts. SIMPER, cluster analysis, and PCA were used to ordinate species assemblages. Comparison of epiphytic cover along leaf blades showed significant differences for all groups, except cyanophycea, with high cover of hydrozoans and bryozoans in the basal part and high cover of algae in the apical part. The species composition and cover also vary with sampling date; minimum values were detected in December and the epiphytic community was composed of a few pioneer species, whereas maximum epiphytic cover values were registered in August, with the epiphytic community being composed of a more mature and more diverse community, termed ‘climax’. The main regulatory factors for this distribution are discussed.     

Diversity and temporal fluctuations of epiphytes and sessile invertebrates on the rhizomes Posidonia oceanica in a seagrass meadow off Tunisia

The aim of this work is to study the temporal dynamics of rhizome epiphytes and sessile animals living on the rhizomes of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica in the east of Tunisia. Surveys were conducted in October 2009, and in January, April and August 2010 on a fringing reef located in Chebba. Rhizomes were sampled by SCUBA diving at three stations. Samples were examined with a microscope to estimate the cover of macroinvertebrate and macroalgal organisms on the top 10 cm of each rhizome. Results revealed a high diversity of epiphytes on P. oceanica rhizomes with a dominance of red and brown algae, ascidians, and bryozoans. Distinct temporal changes were observed in Oued Lafrann, with a high January cover (winter period) for all groups. These winter increases can be attributed to: (i) the low phenological parameters of P. oceanica in winter that reduce the effects of shading, (ii) life cycles of the epiphytes and invertebrates, (iii) water motion and (iv) grazing.     

Periodic exposure to ambient solar irradiance benefits the growth of juvenile seedlings of Hizikia fusiformis

In our trials, from 2007 to 2008, of mass production of seedlings of Hizikia fusiformis using synchronization techniques, problems of a dark thalli phenomenon and epiphytes contamination severely threatened the health of juvenile seedlings. In this investigation, we optimized conditions for improving the growth of juvenile seedlings. Seven string collectors were seeded with zygotes and a series of experiments were conducted including direct exposure to solar irradiance, co-culture with Ulva spp. and treatme...     

Response of epiphytic foraminiferal communities to natural eutrophication in seagrass habitats off Man O'War Cay, Belize

Eutrophication from a variety of anthropogenic sources is an increasingly prevalent problem in coastal waters, and is one of the factors contributing to the decline of seagrass ecosystems worldwide. This study investigated the impact of natural nutrient enrichment derived from nesting seabird colonies on Man O'War Cay, Belize, on the epiphytic foraminiferal communities living on the seagrass Thalasssia testudinum. Man O'War Cay, a small mangrove island in the central region of the barrier reef complex, hosts nesting colonies of magnificent frigate birds and brown boobies. Epiphytic foraminiferans were surveyed from five stations spaced at 10‐m intervals along a 40‐m transect in a seagrass meadow located off the eastern end of the island (March 2004). Low species diversity and high dominance of the encrusting, dendritic species Cornuspiramia antillarum characterized the epiphytic foraminiferal biota. Species diversity, as measured by the Shannon's H, and evenness, as measured by Buzas–Gibson's E, decreased in an offshore direction. The density of individuals per square centimeter of blade, however, increased in an offshore direction, with the lowest values observed at the station closest to the island, and the highest values recorded at the station farthest from the shore. The results obtained in this study indicate that epiphytic foraminiferal populations respond to nutrient enrichment, and thus may be useful indicators of ecosystem decline in subtropical–tropical, oligotrophic marine habitats.     

A Study in Ultra-Ecology: Microorganisms on the Seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) DELILE

Abstract. Microbial colonization on the leaves of a shoot of the mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) DELILE was studied using Scanning Electron Microscopy. Methods of field ecology such as transect, random plot and stratified sampling survey were applied to the microbial niveau to gain both qualitative and quantitative information on the microbial assemblage. While macro-epiphytic growth was significantly greater on the outer leaf sides, microbial colonization density was significantly higher on the inner leaf sides, both on leaf surface and epiphyte surface. Diatoms colonized the surface of incrusting algae and epiphytic animals in significantly lower numbers than the Posidonia leaf surface and were absent on erect epiphytic algae. Bacterial densities on epiphyte surfaces even exceeded values of the corresponding leaf surfaces on algal thalli near the leaf tips and on old leaves. Diatoms reach highest mean density on mature leaves and close to the leaf tips, while bacteria reach their greatest density on the oldest leaf and closer to the leaf base. Diatom density in general increases with exposure time of plant surface, while greatest bacterial density was observed at 7–10 weeks exposure. Basal leaf parts on younger leaves were dominated by rod-shaped bacteria, while distal leaf parts and old leaves were dominated by small coccoid bacteria. Surfaces of epiphytic algae were always distinctly dominated by small coccoid bacteria, and edges of thalli attracted high microbial densities. Microbial biomass (calculated from cell volumes using standard conversion factors) amounts to 2.3 g dry weight m-² in the Posidonia stand where the shoot was sampled. The observed patterns of epiphytic colonization are interpreted as the result of a complex, dynamically changing system of interactions both within the epiphytic community and between the epiphytic community, the host plant, and it's environment. A model of the organization of the epiphytic community on Posidonia leaves is presented. “Ultra-ecology” is a term introduced to denote a type of SEM research in the micro-environment which is analogous to in situ investigation in “macroscopic” ecological work.     

Rainfall interception in a lower montane forest in Ecuador: effects of canopy properties

Rainfall interception in forests is influenced by properties of the canopy that tend to vary over small distances. Our objectives were: (i) to determine the variables needed to model the interception loss of the canopy of a lower montane forest in south Ecuador, i.e. the storage capacity of the leaves S and of the trunks and branches S_t, and the fractions of direct throughfall p and stemflow p_t; (ii) to assess the influence of canopy density and epiphyte coverage of trees on the interception of rainfall and subsequent evaporation losses. The study site was located on the eastern slope of the eastern cordillera in the south Ecuadorian Andes at 1900–2000 m above sea level. We monitored incident rainfall, throughfall, and stemflow between April 1998 and April 2001. In 2001, the leaf area index (LAI), inferred from light transmission, and epiphyte coverage was determined. The mean annual incident rainfall at three gauging stations ranged between 2319 and 2561 mm. The mean annual interception loss at five study transects in the forest varied between 591 and 1321 mm, i.e. between 25 and 52% of the incident rainfall. Mean S was estimated at 1·91 mm for relatively dry weeks with a regression model and at 2·46 mm for all weeks with the analytical Gash model; the respective estimates of mean S_t were 0·04 mm and 0·09 mm, of mean p were 0·42 and 0·63, and of mean p_t were 0·003 and 0·012. The LAI ranged from 5·19 to 9·32. Epiphytes, mostly bryophytes, covered up to 80% of the trunk and branch surfaces. The fraction of direct throughfall p and the LAI correlated significantly with interception loss (Pearson's correlation coefficient r = −0·77 and 0·35 respectively, n = 40). Bryophyte and lichen coverage tended to decrease S_t and vascular epiphytes tended to increase it, although there was no significant correlation between epiphyte coverage and interception loss. Our results demonstrate that canopy density influences interception loss but only explains part of the total variation in interception loss. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fog interception by non‐vascular epiphytes in tropical montane cloud forests: dependencies on gauge type and meteorological conditions

Precipitation is the most fundamental input of water for terrestrial ecosystems. Most precipitation inputs are vertical, via rain, but can be horizontal, via wind‐driven rain and snow, or, in some ecosystems such as tropical montane cloud forests (TMCFs), via fog interception. Fog interception can be particularly important in ecosystems where fog is frequently present and there are seasonal periods of lower rainfall. Epiphytes in trees are a major ecological component of TMCFs and are particularly dependent on fog interception during periods of lower rainfall because they lack access to soil water. But assessing fog interception by epiphytes remains problematic because: (i) a variety of field or laboratory methods have been used, yet comparisons of interception by epiphytes versus interception by various types of fog gauge are lacking; (ii) previous studies have not accounted for potential interactions between meteorological factors. We compared fog interception by epiphytes with two kinds of commonly used fog gauges and developed relations between fog interception and meteorological variables by conducting laboratory experiments that manipulated key fog characteristics and from field measurements of fog interception by epiphytes. Fog interception measured on epiphytes was correlated with that measured from fog gauges but was more than an order of magnitude smaller than the actual measurements from fog gauges, highlighting a key measurement issue. Our laboratory measurements spanned a broad range of liquid water content (LWC) values for fog and indicate how fog interception is sensitive to an interaction between wind speed and LWC. Based on our results, considered in concert with those from other studies, we hypothesize that fog interception is constrained when LWC is low or high, and that fog interception increases with wind speed for intermediate values of LWC—a net result of deposition, impaction, and evaporation processes—until interception begins to decrease with further increases in wind speed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison between epiphyte assemblages of leaves and rhizomes of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica subjected to different levels of anthropogenic eutrophication

This paper aimed to compare epiphyte assemblages of leaves and rhizomes of Posidonia oceanica exposed to different levels of concentration of nutrients. The same design including a potentially impacted meadow and two reference meadows was used in each of two locations, characterized by the presence of a city or of suspended cages of a fish farm, respectively. This allowed to test for the consistency of responses of epiphytic assemblages to different sources of eutrophication. In both studies, results documented differences in patterns of composition and abundance of epiphytic assemblages on leaves between disturbed and reference meadows, while assemblages on rhizomes did not appear sensitive to this kind of disturbance. Moreover, in potentially impacted meadows, both assemblages showed different patterns of spatial variability compared to reference assemblages. Species composition and abundance of epiphyte assemblages seemed suitable for detecting moderate nutrient increases, even if adequate sampling designs are needed to separate patterns related to the large natural spatial variability of these systems from those related to changes in environmental conditions.