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Patterns of distribution and composition of sea urchin assemblages on Brazilian subtropical rocky reefs

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Abstract

Sea urchins are a key group of herbivores in both temperate and tropical food webs because they control macroalgal cover, and consequently influence primary productivity and phase shifts on reefs. Despite being abundant on southwestern Atlantic reefs, sea urchin distributions, and their association with abiotic and biotic variables, are poorly known. In this study, sea urchin assemblages were surveyed in 2011 at multiple depths at eight sites in Arraial do Cabo (Brazil, 22°57′S/41°01′W), with sites split between a colder, more wave-exposed location, and a warmer, more sheltered location. The influence of this large-scale physical gradient, along with changes in depth and substrate complexity, on sea urchin densities was then investigated. Predator biomass was low and did not vary significantly among sites. Among the seven species recorded, Paracentrotus gaimardi, Echinometra lucunter and Arbacia lixula were dominant. Linear mixed-effects models indicated that location was important, with mid-sized P. gaimardi individuals and A. lixula more common at cooler, exposed sites and E. lucunter more abundant at warmer, sheltered sites. Sea urchin densities typically decreased with increasing depth, probably caused by changes in factors such as light, wave exposure, and sedimentation. Substrate complexity had a positive effect on the abundance of all species, presumably because of the increased availability of refuges. Physical gradients have important consequences for urchin distributions and their ecological functions at relatively small spatial scales on these reefs, and should be incorporated into herbivore monitoring programmes. Research is also required to examine how differential sea urchin distributions affect benthic dynamics.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank T.C. Mendes, R. Mazzei, G.O. Correal, M.B. Cavichiolli, J.P. Quimbayo, and R. M. Araújo who provided assistance in the field, and G.E. Cassola who helped in manuscript revision. We are grateful to C.J. Brown for help with statistical analyses. We thank FAPERJ – Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Rio de Janeiro (grant #111.711/2012) and Fundação O Boticário de Proteção à Natureza (grant #0898/20111) for the financial support and to CAPES – Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior for a scholarship grant (CAMMC). ARH was funded by Australian Research Council DECRA fellowship DE120102459. ICMBio provided research permits (#27475-1), and ECOHUB provides ongoing financial support to LECAR lab activities.

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  1. Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação de Ambientes Recifais, Departamento de Biologia Marinha, Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Caixa Postal 100644, Niterói, RJ, CEP 24001-970, Brazil

    C. A. M. M. Cordeiro & C. E. L. Ferreira

  2. Marine Spatial Ecology Laboratory and Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, School of Biological Sciences, Goddard Building, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia

    A. R. Harborne

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  1. C. A. M. M. Cordeiro
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  2. A. R. Harborne
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Communicated by F. Bulleri.

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Cordeiro, C.A.M.M., Harborne, A.R. & Ferreira, C.E.L. Patterns of distribution and composition of sea urchin assemblages on Brazilian subtropical rocky reefs. Mar Biol 161, 2221–2232 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-014-2500-0

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