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Latitudinal patterns of diversity and abundance in North Atlantic intertidal boulder-fields

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Abstract

In order to study taxon richness, biodiversity and abundance patterns in the North Atlantic from temperate latitudes through Arctic to high Arctic latitudes, we recorded the faunas (at ELWS level) colonizing 20 cobbles from three sites at each of seven boulder-field localities (south-west England, 50°N; Wales, 51°N; west Scotland, 56°N; Iceland, 64°N; Tromsø, 70°N; Svalbard, 77°N, 79°N). Inverse correlations were found between latitude and all measures of richness (species, orders, and phyla numbers) and biodiversity (S–W, P). However, these correlations were driven mostly by the consistently impoverished Arctic sites; an even cline of decreasing diversity from south to north did not exist. Multidimensional scaling revealed two communities, temperate–subarctic species-rich and high arctic species-poor. Evenness as measured by Pielou’s index was similar across all latitudes. Abundance data exhibited a similar trend to the species richness and diversity data with a significant negative correlation with latitude, but when Arctic data were excluded the correlation vanished.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank several people without whom this study would not have been possible: Jan Marcin Weslawski, Wojtek Walkusz, Kit Kovac, Haakon Hop, Joanne Porter and Adam Hughes. We also grateful to two anonymous reviewers for comments leading to an improved manuscript. The study has been completed thanks to the financial support to one of us (PK) from the EU Marie Curie programme BRYOARC.

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Author notes

  1. P. Kuklinski

    Present address: Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, ul.Powstancow Warszawy 55, Sopot, 81-712, Poland

    P. Kuklinski

  2. Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, UK

    P. D. Taylor

  3. British Antarctic Survey N.E.R.C, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, UK

    D. K. A. Barnes

Authors
  1. P. Kuklinski
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  2. D. K. A. Barnes
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  3. P. D. Taylor
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Correspondence to P. Kuklinski.

Additional information

Communicated by J.P. Thorpe, Port Erin

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Kuklinski, P., Barnes, D.K.A. & Taylor, P.D. Latitudinal patterns of diversity and abundance in North Atlantic intertidal boulder-fields . Mar Biol 149, 1577–1583 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0311-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0311-7

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