Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary
To quantify the ecological impacts of organic sediments and environmental dredging, benthic mollusks were chosen as bioindicators of environmental change, measured as sediment organic content and associated parameters. Data on species richness, ecological diversity (which was measured as biodiversit...
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| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/1/13 |
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| author | Rachael H. Stark Kevin B. Johnson |
| author_facet | Rachael H. Stark Kevin B. Johnson |
| author_sort | Rachael H. Stark |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | To quantify the ecological impacts of organic sediments and environmental dredging, benthic mollusks were chosen as bioindicators of environmental change, measured as sediment organic content and associated parameters. Data on species richness, ecological diversity (which was measured as biodiversity), and abundances were collected alongside sediment and near-bottom water quality data before, during, and after environmental dredging. Organic sediment content was found to have an inverse logarithmic relationship with benthic mollusk biodiversity, species richness, and abundance. Post hoc analyses found that percent dissolved oxygen, which correlates with sediment organic content, was responsible for 29.31–34.12% of the benthic mollusk community variation. Sediments with lower organic content had higher biodiversity (organism densities up to 1 organism m<sup>−2</sup>), abundance (over 2.0 × 10<sup>5</sup> organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), and species richness (organism densities up to 4 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>). In comparison, sediments with higher organic content had low biodiversity (organism densities 0–1 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), abundance (as low as 0 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), and species richness (organism densities as low as 0 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>). |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-dfb48421205047d6bab60d9d6343807b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2077-1312 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| spelling | doaj-art-dfb48421205047d6bab60d9d6343807b2025-01-24T13:36:32ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122024-12-011311310.3390/jmse13010013Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical EstuaryRachael H. Stark0Kevin B. Johnson1Department of Ocean Engineering and Marine Science, College of Engineering and Science, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL 32901, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics, Tarleton State University, Stephenville, TX 76401, USATo quantify the ecological impacts of organic sediments and environmental dredging, benthic mollusks were chosen as bioindicators of environmental change, measured as sediment organic content and associated parameters. Data on species richness, ecological diversity (which was measured as biodiversity), and abundances were collected alongside sediment and near-bottom water quality data before, during, and after environmental dredging. Organic sediment content was found to have an inverse logarithmic relationship with benthic mollusk biodiversity, species richness, and abundance. Post hoc analyses found that percent dissolved oxygen, which correlates with sediment organic content, was responsible for 29.31–34.12% of the benthic mollusk community variation. Sediments with lower organic content had higher biodiversity (organism densities up to 1 organism m<sup>−2</sup>), abundance (over 2.0 × 10<sup>5</sup> organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), and species richness (organism densities up to 4 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>). In comparison, sediments with higher organic content had low biodiversity (organism densities 0–1 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), abundance (as low as 0 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>), and species richness (organism densities as low as 0 organisms m<sup>−2</sup>).https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/1/13molluskmuckeutrophicationabundancesedimentpollution |
| spellingShingle | Rachael H. Stark Kevin B. Johnson Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary Journal of Marine Science and Engineering mollusk muck eutrophication abundance sediment pollution |
| title | Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary |
| title_full | Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary |
| title_fullStr | Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary |
| title_full_unstemmed | Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary |
| title_short | Benthic Mollusk Biodiversity Correlates with Polluted Sediment Conditions in a Shallow Subtropical Estuary |
| title_sort | benthic mollusk biodiversity correlates with polluted sediment conditions in a shallow subtropical estuary |
| topic | mollusk muck eutrophication abundance sediment pollution |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/1/13 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT rachaelhstark benthicmolluskbiodiversitycorrelateswithpollutedsedimentconditionsinashallowsubtropicalestuary AT kevinbjohnson benthicmolluskbiodiversitycorrelateswithpollutedsedimentconditionsinashallowsubtropicalestuary |