Abstract
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) measurements are used to determine vertical and seasonal distributions of microorganisms and meiofauna in sediments from a 14 m-deep mud bottom in central Long Island Sound on 12 sampling dates from April 1975 to October 1976. Below the topmost 1 cm of sediment, ATP measurements can be useful in estimating and comparing standing stocks of microorganisms and meiofauna. In the top 1 cm, however, large quantities of newly settled bivalves (Yoldia limatula, Nucula annulata, and Mulinia lateralis) and juvenile polychaetes (Owenia fusiformis) in summer and fall months account for total ATP concentrations. The ATP content of individual meiofauna ranges from 1.97 ng individual copepod nauplius-1 to 190.7±60 ng individual M. lateralis -1. In general, the total ATP content of individual polychaetes and bivalves is much higher than that of individuals of other groups. However, on a mg ATP per g wet or dry tissue basis, the ATP content of micro- and meiofaunal taxa are not significantly different. In addition to providing a means for comparing micro- and meiofaunal standing stocks, ATP measurements permit examination of the relative contribution of different meiofauna to the total living biomass of meiofauna in sediments. Total sediment ATP concentrations are greatest in the top 1 cm at all seasons, and decrease with increasing depth in the sediment. Annual concentrations in the topmost centimeter average 4.22 μg g dry sediment-1 and range seasonally from 1.09 to 7.64 μg g dry sediment-1. At a depth of 10 cm, values average 0.16 and range from 0.019 to 0.35 μg g dry sediment-1. High ATP concentrations in surface sediment reflect high concentrations of microorganisms and meiofauna at the sediment-water interface. The top 2 cm of sediment contain 71% of all meiofauna, with 41% occurring in the topmost cm. In general, densities are lowest in the winter and highest during the spring and summer, averaging 490 individuals 10 cm-2, and varying from 87 to 1366 individuals 10 cm-2. Because of wide variation in recruitment patterns of the benthos in Long Island Sound, the extremes of the range in meiofaunal densities can be observed in the same month in two different years. In order to monitor and compare standing stocks of organisms less than 1 mm in size in sediments, the ATP assay can save hours of processing time compared with alternate methods such as direct counts.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Aller, R.C. and J.K. Cochran: 234Th/238U disequilibrium in nearshore sediment: particle reworking and diagenetic time scales. Earth planet. Sci. Letters 29, 37–50 (1976)
Arlt, G.: Vertical and horizontal microdistribution of the meiofauna in the Griefswalder Boden. Oikos (Suppl.) 15, 105–111 (1973)
Ausmus, B.S.: The use of the ATP assay in terrestrial decomposition studies. Bull ecol. Res. Comm. Stockholm 17, 223–234 (1973)
Båmstedt, V. and H.R. Skjoldal: Studies on the deep-water pelagic community of Korsfjorden, Western Norway. Sarsia 60, 63–80 (1976)
Casida, L.E.: Methods for the isolation and estimation of activity of soil bacteria. In: The ecology of soil bacteria, pp 97–122. Ed. by T.R. Gray and D. Parkinson. Liverpool: Liverpool University 1968
Christian, R.R., K. Bancroft and W.J. Wiebe: Distribution of microbial adenosine triphosphate in slat marsh sediments at Sapelo Island, Georgia. Soil Sci. 119, 89–97 (1975)
Connell, J.H.: Territorial behavior and dispersion in some marine invertebrates. Researches Popul. Ecol. Kyoto Univ. 5, 87–101 (1963)
Coull, B.C.: Shallow water meiobenthos of the Bermuda platform, 189 pp. Ph.D. Thesis, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 1968
—, R.L. Ellison, J.W. Fleeger, R.P. Higgins, W.D. Hope, W.D. Hummon, R.M. Rieger, W.E. Sterrer, H. Thiel and J.H. Tietjen: Quantitative estimates of the meiofauna from the deep sea off North Carolina, USA. Mar. Biol. 39, 233–240 (1977)
Daley, R.J. and J.E. Hobbie: Direct counts of aquatic bacteria by a modified epifluorescence technique. Limnol. Oceanogr. 20, 875–882 (1975)
Ernst, W.: ATP als Indikator für die Biomasse mariner Sedimente. Oecologia (Berl.) 5, 56–60 (1970)
— und H. Goerke: Adenosin-5′-triphosphat (ATP) in Sedimenten und Nematoden der Nordostatlantischen Tiefsee. Meteor ForschErgebn. 18, 35–42 (1974)
Ferguson, R.L. and M.B. Murdoch: Microbial ATP and organic carbon in sediments of the Newport river estuary, North Carolina. In: Estuarine research, Vol. 1. pp 229–250. Ed. by L.E. Cronin. New York: Academic Press 1975
Francisco, D.E., R.A. Mah and A.C. Rabin: Acridine orange-epifluorescence technique for counting bacteria in natural waters. Trans. Am. microsc. Soc. 92, 416–421 (1973)
Gilbert, W.H.: Distribution and dispersal patterns of the dwarf tellin clam, Tellina agilis. Biol. Bull. mar. biol. Lab. 135, 419–420 (1968)
Goerke, H. and W. Ernst: ATP content of estuarine nematodes: contribution to the determination of meiofauna biomass by ATP measurements. In: Proceedings of the Ninth European Marine Biology Symposium, pp 683–691. Ed. by H. Barnes. Aberdeen, Scotland: Aberdeen University Press 1975
Gordon, R.B. and C.C. Pilbeam: Environmental consequences of dredge spoil disposal in Long Island Sound: geophysical studies, 1 October 1972–30 September 1973. Unpublished report submitted to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New England Division, Waltham, Massachusetts 1974
Hodson, R.E., O. Holm-Hansen, and F. Azam: Improved methodology for ATP determination in marine environments. Mar. Biol. 34, 143–149 (1976)
Holm-Hansen, O.: Determination of microbial biomass in ocean profiles. Limnol. Oceanogr. 14, 740–747 (1969)
—: The distribution and chemical composition of particulate material in marine fresh water. In: Detritus and its ecological role in aquatic ecosystems, pp 37–51. Ed. by U. Melchiorri. Pallanza: Istituto Italiano di Idrobiologia 1972
— and C.R. Booth: The measurement of adenosine triphosphate in the ocean and its ecological significance. Limnol. Oceanogr. 11, 510–519 (1966)
— and H.W. Paerl: The applicability of ATP determination for estimation of microbial biomass and metabolic activity. In: Detritus and its ecological role in aquatic ecosystems, pp 149–168. Ed. by U. Melchiorri, Pallanza: Istituto Italiano di Idrobiologia 1972
Holme, N.A.: Population dispersion in Tellina tenuis da Costa. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 29, 267–280 (1950)
Karl, D.M., P.A. LaRock, J.W. Morse and W. Sturges: Adenosine triphosphate in the North Atlantic Ocean and its relationship to the oxygen minimum. Deep-Sea Res. 23, 80–88 (1976)
Lee, C.C., R.F. Harris, J.D.H. Williams, J.K. Syers and D.E. Armstrong: Adenosine triphosphate in lake sediment: II. Origin and significance. Proc. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. 35, 86–91 (1971)
Levinton, J.S.: The ecology of shallow water deposit feeding communities, 284 pp. Ph.D. Thesis, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 1971
Mare, M.F.: A study of a marine benthic community with special reference to the microorganisms. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 25, 517–574 (1942)
McCall, P.L.: Community patterns and adaptive strategies of the infaunal benthos of Long Island Sound. J. mar. Res. 35, 221–266 (1977)
McIntyre, A.D.: Ecology of marine meiobenthos. Biol. Rev. 44, 245–290 (1969)
Moore, H.B.: The muds of the Clyde Sea Area, III. Chemical and physical conditions: rate and nature of sedimentation; and fauna. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 17, 325–358 (1931)
Muus, B.J.: The fauna of Danish estuaries and lagoons in the shallow reaches of the mesohaline zone. Meddr Danm. Fisk.-og Havunders. (N.S.) 5, 1–316 (1967)
Pamatmat, M. and H.R. Skjoldal: Dehydrogenase activity and adenosine triphosphate concentration of marine sediments in Lindapollene, Norway. Sarsia 56, 1–11 (1974)
Rees, C.B.: A preliminary study of the ecology of a mud flat. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 24, 185–199 (1940)
Rhoads, D.C., R.C. Aller and M. Goldhaber: The influence of colonizing benthos on physical properties and chemical diagnesis of the estuarine seafloor. In: Belle Baruch Symposium on the Ecology of Marine Benthos, pp 113–138. Ed. by B.C. Coull. Columbia, S. Carolina: University of S. Carolina Press 1977
Rhoads, D.C., P.L. McCall and J.Y. Yingst: The role of disturbance in the ecology of the estuarine seafloor. Am. Scient. (In press)
Rhoads, D.C., K. Tenore and M. Browne: The role of resuspended bottom mud in nutrient cycles of shallow embayments. In: Chemistry, biology and the estuarine system. Estuar. Res. 1, 563–579 (1975)
Sanders, H.L.: Benthic studies in Buzzards Bay. I. Animal-sediment relationships. Limnol. Oceanogr. 3, 245–258 (1958)
—: Benthic studies in Buzzards Bay. III. The structure of the soft bottom community. Limnol. Oceanogr. 5, 138–153 (1960)
Smidt, E.L.B.: Animal production in the Danish Waddensea. Meddr Lommn Danm. Fisk.-og Havunders. (Ser. Fisk.) 11 (6), 1–151 (1951)
Sokal, R.R. and F.J. Rohlf: Biometry, 776 pp. San Francisco, California: W.H. Freeman & Co. 1969
Tietjen, J.H.: The ecology of shallow water meiofauna in two New England estuaries. Oecologia (Berl.) 2, 251–291 (1969)
Wassman, E.R. and J. Ramus: Primary-production measurements for the green seaweed Codium fragile in Long Island Sound. Mar. Biol. 21, 289–297 (1973)
Watson, S.W., T.J. Novitsky, H.L. Quinby and F.W. Valois: Determination of bacterial number and biomass in the marine environment. Appl. envirl Microbiol. 33, 940–946 (1977)
Wiebe, W.J.: Perspectives in microbial ecology. In: Fundamentals of ecology, pp 484–497. Ed. by E.P. Odum. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co. 1971
Wieser, W.: Bentjic studies in Buzzards Bay. II. The meiofauna. Limnol. Oceanogr. 5, 121–137 (1960)
Yingst, J.Y. and D.C. Rhoads: Seafloor stability in central Long Island Sound. Part II. Biological interactions and their potential importance for seafloor erodibility. In: Fourth Biennial Estuarine Research Conference, Oct. 2–5, 1977. Mount Pocano, Pennsylvania: Academic Press (In press)
Zimmerman, R.L. and L. Meyer-Reil: A new method for fluorescence staining of bacterial populations on membrane filters. Kieler Meeresforsch. 30, 24–27 (1974)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by M.R. Tripp, Newark
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yingst, J.Y. Patterns of micro- and meiofaunal abundance in marine sediments, measured with the adenosine triphosphate assay. Mar. Biol. 47, 41–54 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00397017
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00397017