The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities
This paper focuses on the interactive short and long-term effect of three different stressors on a macroalgal assemblage. Three stressors are considered: herbivory, nutrients and mucilage. The experiment was conducted in Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (Mediterranean Sea) during a...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PeerJ Inc.
2019-05-01
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| Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/6908.pdf |
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| author | Sarah Caronni Chiara Calabretti Sandra Citterio Maria Anna Delaria Rodolfo Gentili Giovanni Macri Chiara Montagnani Augusto Navone Pieraugusto Panzalis Giulia Piazza Giulia Ceccherelli |
| author_facet | Sarah Caronni Chiara Calabretti Sandra Citterio Maria Anna Delaria Rodolfo Gentili Giovanni Macri Chiara Montagnani Augusto Navone Pieraugusto Panzalis Giulia Piazza Giulia Ceccherelli |
| author_sort | Sarah Caronni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper focuses on the interactive short and long-term effect of three different stressors on a macroalgal assemblage. Three stressors are considered: herbivory, nutrients and mucilage. The experiment was conducted in Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (Mediterranean Sea) during a bloom of the benthic mucilage-producing microalga Chrysophaeum taylorii (Pelagophyceae); this microalga is recently spreading in the Mediterranean Sea. On a rocky substratum, 36 plots 20 × 20 cm in size were prepared. Factorial combinations of three experimental treatments were applied in triplicate, including three grazing levels crossed with two nutrient enrichment and two mucilage removal treatments. Significant differences were observed among treatments 8 weeks later, at the end of summer. In particular, dark filamentous algae were more abundant in all enriched plots, especially where mucilage and macroalgae had been removed; a higher percent cover of crustose coralline algae was instead observed where nutrients had been increased and no grazing pressure acted. Furthermore, the abundance of Dictyota spp. and Laurencia spp. was significantly higher in enriched mucilage-free plots where the grazing pressure was null or low. However, the effects of the treatments on the overall assemblage of the macroalgal community were not long persistent (36 weeks later). These results illustrate the capacity of a shallow-water macroalgal community to quickly recover from the simultaneous impacts of herbivory, nutrient enrichment, and mucilage. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T06:43:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1e192c64a14045a39a03299c6e94bd11 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T06:43:05Z |
| publishDate | 2019-05-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-1e192c64a14045a39a03299c6e94bd112023-12-03T10:42:00ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592019-05-017e690810.7717/peerj.6908The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communitiesSarah Caronni0Chiara Calabretti1Sandra Citterio2Maria Anna Delaria3Rodolfo Gentili4Giovanni Macri5Chiara Montagnani6Augusto Navone7Pieraugusto Panzalis8Giulia Piazza9Giulia Ceccherelli10Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyDepartment of Science for Nature and Environmental Resources, University of Sassari, Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyMac Pro e Gis, Pavia, ItalyDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyMarine Protected Area of Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo, Olbia, ItalyMarine Protected Area of Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo, Olbia, ItalyDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan—Bicocca, Milan, ItalyDepartment of Science for Nature and Environmental Resources, University of Sassari, Sassari, ItalyThis paper focuses on the interactive short and long-term effect of three different stressors on a macroalgal assemblage. Three stressors are considered: herbivory, nutrients and mucilage. The experiment was conducted in Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (Mediterranean Sea) during a bloom of the benthic mucilage-producing microalga Chrysophaeum taylorii (Pelagophyceae); this microalga is recently spreading in the Mediterranean Sea. On a rocky substratum, 36 plots 20 × 20 cm in size were prepared. Factorial combinations of three experimental treatments were applied in triplicate, including three grazing levels crossed with two nutrient enrichment and two mucilage removal treatments. Significant differences were observed among treatments 8 weeks later, at the end of summer. In particular, dark filamentous algae were more abundant in all enriched plots, especially where mucilage and macroalgae had been removed; a higher percent cover of crustose coralline algae was instead observed where nutrients had been increased and no grazing pressure acted. Furthermore, the abundance of Dictyota spp. and Laurencia spp. was significantly higher in enriched mucilage-free plots where the grazing pressure was null or low. However, the effects of the treatments on the overall assemblage of the macroalgal community were not long persistent (36 weeks later). These results illustrate the capacity of a shallow-water macroalgal community to quickly recover from the simultaneous impacts of herbivory, nutrient enrichment, and mucilage.https://peerj.com/articles/6908.pdfMultiple stressorsMediterranean SeaMacroalgaeInteractive effectsMucilage |
| spellingShingle | Sarah Caronni Chiara Calabretti Sandra Citterio Maria Anna Delaria Rodolfo Gentili Giovanni Macri Chiara Montagnani Augusto Navone Pieraugusto Panzalis Giulia Piazza Giulia Ceccherelli The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities PeerJ Multiple stressors Mediterranean Sea Macroalgae Interactive effects Mucilage |
| title | The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| title_full | The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| title_fullStr | The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| title_full_unstemmed | The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| title_short | The interactive effect of herbivory, nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| title_sort | interactive effect of herbivory nutrient enrichment and mucilage on shallow rocky macroalgal communities |
| topic | Multiple stressors Mediterranean Sea Macroalgae Interactive effects Mucilage |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/6908.pdf |
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