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Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary

We assessed how multi- and univariate models reflect marine environmental health based on macrobenthic community responses to three environmental stressor categories: hydrodynamics, organic enrichment and metal contamination. We then compared the models with the benthic index AMBI (AZTI Marine Bioti...

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Autores principales: Souza, Fernanda M., Gilbert, Eliandro R., Brauko, Kalina M., Lorenzi, Luciano, Machado, Eunice, Camargo, Mauricio G.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: PeerJ Inc. 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8663631/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34966574
http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12427
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author Souza, Fernanda M.
Gilbert, Eliandro R.
Brauko, Kalina M.
Lorenzi, Luciano
Machado, Eunice
Camargo, Mauricio G.
author_facet Souza, Fernanda M.
Gilbert, Eliandro R.
Brauko, Kalina M.
Lorenzi, Luciano
Machado, Eunice
Camargo, Mauricio G.
author_sort Souza, Fernanda M.
collection PubMed
description We assessed how multi- and univariate models reflect marine environmental health based on macrobenthic community responses to three environmental stressor categories: hydrodynamics, organic enrichment and metal contamination. We then compared the models with the benthic index AMBI (AZTI Marine Biotic Index). Macrobenthic community and physicochemical variables were sampled at 35 sites along Babitonga Bay, a subtropical estuary in Southern Brazil. Distance-based linear modelling identified depth, grain size and organic matter as well as Cu and Zn as key stressors affecting the macrobenthos. Using canonical analysis of principal coordinates (CAP), we developed three multivariate models based on the variability in community composition, creating stress gradients. The metal gradient showed better correlation with the benthic community. Sediment quality indices (Geoaccumulation Index and Contamination Factor) showed a low to moderate contamination status, with higher concentrations for Cr, Ni and Zn at the inner areas of the bay. According to AMBI, Babitonga Bay has a “good” environmental health status, and the AMBI values show stronger correlations with the hydrodynamic and organic enrichment gradients (r = 0.50 and r = 0.47) rather than the metal gradient (r = 0.29). Lumbrineridae polychaetes (not included in the AMBI list) and Scoloplos sp. were negatively related to the metal contamination gradient and were considered sensitive, while Sigambra sp., Magelona papillicornis, the gastropod Heleobia australis and species of the crustacean order Mysida were positively related to the gradient and considered tolerant to higher concentrations of metals in the sediment. Despite the inconsistency in the ecological classification provided by AMBI and its relationship with the metal gradient, our results suggest that the environmental quality was satisfactory for the studied gradients. The metal gradient showed the weakest correlation to AMBI. In such cases, the ecological classification of taxa by the index should be evaluated under the perspective of the action of inorganic genotoxic contaminants represented by metals.
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spelling pubmed-86636312021-12-28 Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary Souza, Fernanda M. Gilbert, Eliandro R. Brauko, Kalina M. Lorenzi, Luciano Machado, Eunice Camargo, Mauricio G. PeerJ Ecology We assessed how multi- and univariate models reflect marine environmental health based on macrobenthic community responses to three environmental stressor categories: hydrodynamics, organic enrichment and metal contamination. We then compared the models with the benthic index AMBI (AZTI Marine Biotic Index). Macrobenthic community and physicochemical variables were sampled at 35 sites along Babitonga Bay, a subtropical estuary in Southern Brazil. Distance-based linear modelling identified depth, grain size and organic matter as well as Cu and Zn as key stressors affecting the macrobenthos. Using canonical analysis of principal coordinates (CAP), we developed three multivariate models based on the variability in community composition, creating stress gradients. The metal gradient showed better correlation with the benthic community. Sediment quality indices (Geoaccumulation Index and Contamination Factor) showed a low to moderate contamination status, with higher concentrations for Cr, Ni and Zn at the inner areas of the bay. According to AMBI, Babitonga Bay has a “good” environmental health status, and the AMBI values show stronger correlations with the hydrodynamic and organic enrichment gradients (r = 0.50 and r = 0.47) rather than the metal gradient (r = 0.29). Lumbrineridae polychaetes (not included in the AMBI list) and Scoloplos sp. were negatively related to the metal contamination gradient and were considered sensitive, while Sigambra sp., Magelona papillicornis, the gastropod Heleobia australis and species of the crustacean order Mysida were positively related to the gradient and considered tolerant to higher concentrations of metals in the sediment. Despite the inconsistency in the ecological classification provided by AMBI and its relationship with the metal gradient, our results suggest that the environmental quality was satisfactory for the studied gradients. The metal gradient showed the weakest correlation to AMBI. In such cases, the ecological classification of taxa by the index should be evaluated under the perspective of the action of inorganic genotoxic contaminants represented by metals. PeerJ Inc. 2021-12-07 /pmc/articles/PMC8663631/ /pubmed/34966574 http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12427 Text en © 2021 Souza et al. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
spellingShingle Ecology
Souza, Fernanda M.
Gilbert, Eliandro R.
Brauko, Kalina M.
Lorenzi, Luciano
Machado, Eunice
Camargo, Mauricio G.
Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title_full Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title_fullStr Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title_full_unstemmed Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title_short Macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
title_sort macrobenthic community responses to multiple environmental stressors in a subtropical estuary
topic Ecology
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8663631/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34966574
http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12427
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