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Land use effects on macrobenthic communities in southeastern United States tidal creeks

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Abstract

Runoff from impervious land cover has a major impact on headwater tidal creek ecosystems resulting from ever increasing development along the coastline. Tidal creek habitats can serve as “early warning systems” for anthropogenic stressors due to their proximity to the uplands. In this study, the macrobenthic community was sampled along the longitudinal gradient of tidal creeks (i.e., first order, second order, and third order) in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia which varied in their levels of watershed development (salt marsh, forested, suburban, and urban). This study was designed to assess the condition of macrobenthic communities in tidal creek ecosystems under varying levels of anthropogenic stressors and test whether the conclusions of a previous study in South Carolina (Holland et al., J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 298:151–178, 2004) could be generalized to the southeastern USA. Metrics of community-level and species-specific response within tidal creeks draining watersheds of varying degrees of impervious cover suggest the macrobenthic community may be a useful indicator of development in tidal creeks ecosystems. The differences observed when data from all three states were pooled was consistent with previous findings in South Carolina tidal creeks which illustrates that macrobenthic communities in tidal creeks may react to watershed development in similar patterns along the southeastern coast of the USA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Grice Marine Laboratory, College of Charleston, Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research, 219 Fort Johnson Road, Charleston, SC, 29412-9110, USA

    Travis Washburn

  2. South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium and Center of Excellence in Oceans and Human Health at Hollings Marine Laboratory, 287 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC, 29401, USA

    Denise Sanger

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  1. Travis Washburn
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  2. Denise Sanger
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Correspondence to Denise Sanger.

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Washburn, T., Sanger, D. Land use effects on macrobenthic communities in southeastern United States tidal creeks. Environ Monit Assess 180, 177–188 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-010-1780-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-010-1780-1

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