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Trophic and functional organization of the benthic macrofauna in the lagoon of Boughrara – Tunisia (SW Mediterranean Sea)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2014

Ines Khedhri Open the ORCID record for Ines Khedhri [Opens in a new window] ,
Hanem Djabou  and
Ahmed Afli
Ines Khedhri*
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Biotechnologies Marines, Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 28 rue du 2 mars 1934, 2025 Salammbô, Tunisie
Hanem Djabou
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Biotechnologies Marines, Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 28 rue du 2 mars 1934, 2025 Salammbô, Tunisie
Ahmed Afli
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Biotechnologies Marines, Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 28 rue du 2 mars 1934, 2025 Salammbô, Tunisie
*
Correspondence should be addressed to:I. Khedhri, Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Biotechnologies Marines, Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 28 rue du 2 mars 1934, 2025 Salammbô, Tunisie email: [email protected]
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Abstract

The lagoon of Boughrara is the largest lagoon in Tunisia. For several decades it has been subject to the impact of increasing anthropogenic activities, and also to environmental stressors due to climate change and the low renewal of its waters. The present work is a contribution to the study of the functional organization of the benthic macrofauna of the lagoon of Boughrara 3 years after the extension of the channel ‘El Kantra’ which connects this lagoon to the open sea. In total, 13 stations facing the main prospective sources of disturbance and in areas likely to be more polluted were seasonally sampled during 2009–2010. Seasonal monitoring of the abiotic parameters shows a spatial heterogeneity linked to environmental and anthropogenic factors, including hydrodynamics, sedimentary texture and anthropogenic activities. The community of benthic macrofauna is generally poorly diversified at lagoonal-marine stations undergoing influences of both the marine and lagoon environment. The extreme seasons in terms of temperature and salinity seem to have an important role in the reduction of biodiversity in the lagoon of Boughrara. The trophic structure of the macrobenthic community is generally dominated by selective deposit feeders, and seems to be linked more to the availability of trophic resources than to disturbance.

Keywords

Lagoon of Boughrarabenthic macrofaunatrophic structuretemporal tracking
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 95 , Issue 4 , June 2015 , pp. 647 - 659
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2014 

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