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A comparison of the applicability of the Shannon-Wiener index, AMBI and M-AMBI indices for assessing benthic habitat health in the Huanghe (Yellow River) Estuary and adjacent areas

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Abstract

From a dataset of macrobenthos obtained from 18 cruises from 2004 to 2013 in the Huanghe (Yellow River) Estuary and its adjacent areas, the composition and characteristics of macrobenthos were analyzed, and the applicability of the Shannon-Wiener Index (H′), AZTI’s Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) and multivariate AMBI (MAMBI) for assessing benthic habitat quality was compared. The results showed a total of 203 macrobenthos in the study area. The macrobenthos were dominated by polychaetes, followed by mollusks and crustaceans. The macrobenthic ecological groups were dominated by EGI, EGII and EGIII, which respectively accounted for 31.5%, 36.0% and 21.2% of the total. There were significant differences between the evaluation results of the three indices. The ecological quality status (EQS) levels given by the AMBI were greater than those given by the H′ and M-AMBI. The AMBI could not reflect the differences between 11 sites but the H′ and M-AMBI could do. Moreover, the three indices responded well to the variations in salinity (S) and dissolved oxygen (DO) in the waters. The H′ and M-AMBI also responded sensitively to the differences in physical parameters, such as water depth and sediment texture. The correlation between M-AMBI and environmental pressure gradient data was the strongest. The MAMBI could effectively distinguish degraded conditions from undegraded but the H′ and AMBI could not. Therefore, the M-AMBI reflected benthic habitat health well in the study areas. However, the objectivity of evaluation results of M-AMBI needs further verification by physical, chemical and biological methods. The thresholds also need further discussion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Marine Environment and Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, China

    Xianxiang Luo & Kaijing Sun

  2. North China Sea Branch of State Oceanic Administration, Qingdao, 266033, China

    Jianqiang Yang

  3. Laboratory of State Oceanic Administration for Marine Spill Oil Identification and Damage Assessment Technology, Qingdao, 266033, China

    Jianqiang Yang, Wenpeng Song & Wenlin Cui

  4. North China Sea Monitoring Center, North China Sea Branch of State Oceanic Administration, Qingdao, 266033, China

    Wenpeng Song & Wenlin Cui

Authors
  1. Xianxiang Luo
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  2. Kaijing Sun
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  3. Jianqiang Yang
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  4. Wenpeng Song
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  5. Wenlin Cui
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Correspondence to Xianxiang Luo.

Additional information

Foundation item: The National Natural Science Foundation of China—Shandong Joint Fund for Marine Science Research Centers under contract No. U1406403; the National Marine Public Welfare Research Project of China under contract No. 201405007; the Environmental Assessment Projects of State Oceanic Administration People's Republic of China under contract No. DOMEP (MEA)-01-01.

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Luo, X., Sun, K., Yang, J. et al. A comparison of the applicability of the Shannon-Wiener index, AMBI and M-AMBI indices for assessing benthic habitat health in the Huanghe (Yellow River) Estuary and adjacent areas. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 35, 50–58 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-016-0842-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-016-0842-9

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