Benthic Diversity and Substrate-Fauna Associations in Lake Superior

The benthic community of Lake Superior was dominated by Pontoporeia affinis, Stylodrilus heringianus, the Enchytraeidae and Pisidium conventus. Both total abundance and the low benthic diversity displayed an increase from west to east. The biomass diversity H’ weight ranged from 0.29 in the Duluth B...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Great Lakes research 1978, Vol.4 (3), p.505-512
Main Author: Dermott, R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Pontoporeia
Rhyacodrilus
Stylodrilus
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Summary:The benthic community of Lake Superior was dominated by Pontoporeia affinis, Stylodrilus heringianus, the Enchytraeidae and Pisidium conventus. Both total abundance and the low benthic diversity displayed an increase from west to east. The biomass diversity H’ weight ranged from 0.29 in the Duluth Basin to 1.22 near Whitefish Bay. Associations between the sediment variables and dominant species present indicated that the effects of depth, percent sand and mean particle size were prominent. The Sphaeriidae, Chironomini, Pontoporeia, and Rhyacodrilus were negatively associated with depth, while the Nematoda, Chironomini, and Rhyacodrilus were negatively associated with sand. Stylodrilus and Sphaeriidae were negatively associated with the sediment zinc levels.
ISSN:0380-1330
DOI:10.1016/S0380-1330(78)72218-5