Correlative studies of the ecophysiology and community structure of benthic macrofauna
Correlative studies of the ecophysiology and community structure of benthic macrofauna
The use of biochemical measurements in ecological studies are described that quantify the effects on individual organisms of environmental disturbance and to predict subsequent changes at the population or community level. Validation of the methodologies was performed using animals from two sites in the Baie de Somme estuary, France. The population dynamics and biochemistry of two representative species, Cerastoderma edule (Linnaeus) and Nereis diversicolor (O.F. Müller), were studied between September 1990 and September 1992, in addition to the macrofaunal community structure at both sites. The biochemical variables measured were adenosine tri-, di- and monophosphate, arginine or creatine phosphate, succinate, lactate, pyruvate, glucose, glycogen and total carbohydrates, proteins and lipids.
Correlations between the biochemistry and environmental factors revealed detectable differences in the biochemical cycles of both species between the two sites attributable to their differing levels of environmental disturbance. This approach involved the novel application of multivariate analyses to describe the metabolic patterns. The metabolite glycogen was isolated as a representative index which responds to long term environmental disturbance. As such, it could be applied to animals collected from the deep-sea, where the stresses of capture and removal to the surface cause extreme physiological changes and alter levels of short term response metabolites.
The glycogen assay was modified so that it could be applied to formaldehyde-preserved material. Experiments revealed no effects on tissue glycogen levels caused by the preservation procedure or long term storage. The application of this new method to an archive of formaldehyde-preserved specimens showed a potential ability to predict subsequent population changes. Preliminary studies on chemically preserved deep-sea organisms revealed that ecological information can be gained with this index.
University of Southampton
Batten, Sonia Dawn
b842008f-8507-4abc-a930-eeaa1607c741
1994
Batten, Sonia Dawn
b842008f-8507-4abc-a930-eeaa1607c741
Batten, Sonia Dawn
(1994)
Correlative studies of the ecophysiology and community structure of benthic macrofauna.
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
The use of biochemical measurements in ecological studies are described that quantify the effects on individual organisms of environmental disturbance and to predict subsequent changes at the population or community level. Validation of the methodologies was performed using animals from two sites in the Baie de Somme estuary, France. The population dynamics and biochemistry of two representative species, Cerastoderma edule (Linnaeus) and Nereis diversicolor (O.F. Müller), were studied between September 1990 and September 1992, in addition to the macrofaunal community structure at both sites. The biochemical variables measured were adenosine tri-, di- and monophosphate, arginine or creatine phosphate, succinate, lactate, pyruvate, glucose, glycogen and total carbohydrates, proteins and lipids.
Correlations between the biochemistry and environmental factors revealed detectable differences in the biochemical cycles of both species between the two sites attributable to their differing levels of environmental disturbance. This approach involved the novel application of multivariate analyses to describe the metabolic patterns. The metabolite glycogen was isolated as a representative index which responds to long term environmental disturbance. As such, it could be applied to animals collected from the deep-sea, where the stresses of capture and removal to the surface cause extreme physiological changes and alter levels of short term response metabolites.
The glycogen assay was modified so that it could be applied to formaldehyde-preserved material. Experiments revealed no effects on tissue glycogen levels caused by the preservation procedure or long term storage. The application of this new method to an archive of formaldehyde-preserved specimens showed a potential ability to predict subsequent population changes. Preliminary studies on chemically preserved deep-sea organisms revealed that ecological information can be gained with this index.
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Published date: 1994
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Local EPrints ID: 462831
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/462831
PURE UUID: d490c788-f485-4137-b498-3533a8bb9d48
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Date deposited: 04 Jul 2022 20:12
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 18:59
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Author:
Sonia Dawn Batten
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