Population Ecology - Mobility of benthic organisms
Population studies on benthic species in sedimentary environments have been performed since 1877 when Möbius studied oyster beds near Sylt island and thereby coined basic ecological terms such as ‘biocoenosis’ and ‘community’. Nevertheless, until today there is nearly no information about the spatial extension of single populations because the degree of individual mobility is widely unknown. Mobility is likely to affect both the population structure and the long-term stability of the populations.
Large homogeneous population
Mobility affects population structure
- Species with a low mobility are likely to form spatially isolated populations
- More mobile species may organise as metapopulations
- Highly mobile species may constitute populations distributed over hundreds of km with a patchy distribution within that area
- Large homogeneous populations are unlikely to exist in the highly dynamic coastal environment of the North Sea
Armonies W (2001) What an introduced species can tell us about the spatial extension of benthic populations. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 209:289-294
Armonies W (2000) On the spatial scale needed for benthos community monitoring in the coastal North Sea. J Sea Res 43:121-133
Armonies W (1999) Drifting benthos and long-term research: why community monitoring must cover a wide spatial scale. Senckenbergiana marit 29:13-18