Can Rock Composition Affect Sublittoral Epibenthic Communities? |
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Authors: | Riccardo Cattaneo-Vietti Giancarlo Albertelli Giorgio Bavestrello Carlo Nike Bianchi Carlo Cerrano Mariachiara Chiantore Laura Gaggero Carla Morri Stefano Schiaparelli |
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Affiliation: | Dipartimento per lo Studio del Territorio e delle sue Risorse, Universitàdi Genova, Corso Euro-pa 26, 1-16 132 Genova, Italy;Istituto di Scienze del Mare, Universitàd'Ancona, Via Brecce Bianche, I-60131 Ancona, Italy;Marine Environment Research Centre, ENEA Santa Teresa, P O Box 224, 1-19100 La Spezia, Italy |
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Abstract: | Abstract. Biomineralogy, as the complex of interactions at different levels (cell, organism, species, and community) between organisms and minerals, may play a significant role in the spatial distribution and structure of marine communities. For instance, a negative influence of quartz has been underlined on the Mediterranean benthic communities, which show a species-poorer structure in quartz-rich environments. Excluding the role of quartz, the aim of this work is to verify whether the composition of various mineralogical substrata can affect a hard-bottom benthic community. In the Ligurian Sea, the Levanto area shows an astonishing complex of substrata with different petrographic characters: in a few kilometres, sandstones, serpentinites, gabbros, and basalts occur in geometric association. Consequently, this area represents a suitable frame for this type of study. Herein, algal photophilic assemblages growing on the four mineralogical substrata show significant differences in number of species and percentage cover or abundance. This suggests a significant influence of rock mineral composition on the hard bottom community. Therefore, rock composition must be taken into account for a better understanding of the processes at the basis of hard-bottom community development and diversity. |
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Keywords: | Benthic communities mineral composition rock textures hard substrata biomineralogy |
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