Abstract
The infaunal polychaeteNephtys incisa is a dominant constituent of soft-bottom communities in nearshore New England waters. This study quantifies its population ecology under natural conditions and following disturbance (dredge material disposal). Five stations in central Long Island Sound (SREF, 1000E, 400E, 200E and CNTR) representing a gradient of increasing exposure to disposed materials were sampled quarterly for 26 months between May 1982 and June 1984. Population abundances declined continually for 2 years (from approximately 1,500 to 200 individuals m−2) following a peak of high recruitment. At CNTR, the population was decimated following disposal, and thereafter densities remained significantly below other stations. Population size-structure shifted from juvenile domination during the period of high abundance to adult domination as numbers declined. However, numbers of adults declined at 200E and CNTR following disturbance, relative to size-structure changes at other stations. Based on analyses of size-frequency distributions and tooth-rings in the jaws of individualN. incisa, eight cohorts (age-classes) were distinguished during the study period ranging from 3 months to 5 years in age. Growth was spatially and temporally variable; the average growth rate was approximately 15–20 mm (length) a year. Individual growth in most cohorts declined at 200E following disposal. Adults were reproductively active throughout the year, with two peaks in egg production, generally in the spring and fall. There were, however, spatial variations in the spawning cycle, which could influence larval recruitment. Results indicate that ambient population ofNephtys cicasa may go through several population “phases” resulting from temporal and spatial fluctuations in recruitment, individual growth and reproductive activity.Nephtys incisa's response to disturbance may depend on which phase the population is in at the time of disturbance (internal population conditions such as age/size structure) and factors external to the population (e.g., environmental influences on settlement and recruitment and/or the nature of the disturbance). Over 14 months of study, disposal of highly polluted dredge material had a negative impact on several population characteristics ofN. incisa at or near the disposal site (0 to 200 m away), but little or no effects on populations were detected 400 m to approximately 3 km away from the disposal area.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature Cited
Arntz, W. E., andH. Rumohr. 1982. An experimental study of macro-benthic colonization and succession, and the importance of seasonal variation in temperature latitudes.J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 64:17–45.
Carey, A. 1962. An ecologic study of two benthic animal populations in Long Island Sound. Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University, New Haven. 64 p.
Cassie, R. M. 1954. Some uses of probability paper in the analysis of size-frequency distributions.Aust. J. Mar. Freshw. Res. 5:513–522.
Clark, R. B. 1962. Observations on the food ofNephtys.Limnol. Oceanogr. 7:380–385.
Creaser, E. P., andD. A. Clifford. 1982. Life history studies of the sandwormNereis virens Sars, in the Sheepscot Estuary, Maine.Fish. Bull. 80:735–743.
Davis, W. R. 1979. The burrowing, feeding and respiratory activities ofNephtys incisa Malmgren 1865 (Polychaeta: Annelida). Ph.D. Dissertation, University South Carolina, Columbia. 103 p.
Estcourt, I. 1975. Population structure ofAglaophamus verrilli (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae) from Tasman Bay.N. Zeal. Oceanogr. Inst. Rec. 2:149–154.
Gentile, J. H., K. J. Scott, S. Lussier, and M. Redmond. 1985. Application of laboratory population responses for evaluating the effects of dredged materials. Tech. Rep. D-85-8, prepared by US EPA Narragansett, Rhode Island, for the U.S. Army Eng. WES, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 72 p.
Germano, J. D., and D. C. Rhoads. 1984. REMOTS® sediment profiling at the Field Verification Program (FVP) disposal site, p. 536–544.In Proc. Conf. Dredging '84. Waterway, Port, Coastal and Ocean Division, ASCE/Nov. 14–16, 1984. Clearwater Beach, Florida.
Gibbs, P. E. 1969. A quantitative study of the polychaete fauna of certain fine deposits in Plymouth Sound.J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K. 49:311–326.
Grassle, J. F., andJ. P. Grassle. 1974. Opportunistic life histories and genetic systems in marine benthic polychaetes.J. Mar. Res. 32:253–284.
Johns, D. M., R. Gutjahr-Gobell and P. Shauer. 1985. Use of bioenergetics to investigate the impact of dredged material on benthic species: A laboratory study with polychaetes and Black Rock Harbor material. Tech. Rep. D-85-7, prepared by U.S. EPA Environmental Research Lab., Narragansett, Rhode island, for the U.S. Army Eng. WES, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 75 p.
Kirkegaard, J. B. 1970. Age determination ofNephtys (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae).Ophelia 7:277–281.
Kirkegaard, J. B. 1978. Settling, growth and lifespan of some common polychaetes from Danish waters.Meddr. Dan. Fish. Havunders. 7:447–496.
Lake, J., G. L. Hoffman, and S. C. Shimmel, 1985. Bioaccumulation of contaminants from Black Rock Harbor dredged material. Tech. Rep. D-85-2, prepared by the U.S. EPA Environmental Research Lab., Narragansett, Rhode island for the U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 150 p.
Levin, L. A. 1986. Effects of enrichment on reproduction in the opportunistic polychaeteStreblospio benedicti (Webster): A mesocosm study.Biol. Bull. 171:143–160.
Macdonald, P. D. M., andT. J. Pitcher. 1979. Age-groups from size-frequency data: A versatile and efficient method of analyzing distribution mixtures.J. Fish. Res. Board Can. 36: 987–1001.
Macdonald, P. D. M., andP. E. J. Green. 1985. Users' Guide to Program MIX: An Interactive Program for Fitting Mixtures of Distributions Ichthus Data Systems, Hamilton, Ontario. 53 p.
McCall, P. L. 1977. Community patterns and adaptive strategies of the infaunal benthos of Long Island Sound.J. Mar. Res. 35:221–266.
McCall, P. L. 1978. Spatial-temporal distributions of Long Island Sound infauna: The role of bottom disturbance in a nearshore marine habitat, p. 191–219.In: M. L. Wiley (ed.), Estuarine Interactions. Academic Press, New York.
McCall, P. L., andM. J. S. Tevesz. 1983. Soft-bottom succession and the fossil record, p. 157–194.In M. J. S. Tevesz and P. L. McCall (eds.), Biotic Interactions in Recent and Fossil Benthic Communities. Plenum Press, New York.
Morton, R. W. 1983. Status Report, Disposal Operations at the Central Long Island Sound Disposal Site, p. 24–36 Contr. 25, Science Applications Inc. to U.S. Army Corps of Eng., New England Div., Waltham, Massachusetts. 36 p.
Olive, P. J. W. 1977. The life history and population structure of the polychaetesNephtys caeca andN. hombergii with special reference to the growth rings in the teeth.J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K. 57:133–150.
Olive, P. J. W. 1978. Reproduction and annual gametogenic cycle inNephtys hombergii andN. caeca (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae).Mar. Biol. 46:83–90.
Olive, P. J. W., andR. B. Clark. 1978. Physiology of reproduction, p. 271–368.In P. J. Mill (ed.), Physiology of Annelids. Academic Press, London.
Olive, P. J. W., and P. J. Morgan. 1983. A survey of the age structure of beach populations ofNephtys spp. in the British Isles. The basis of population fluctuations. Proc. 17 Eurp. Mar. Biol. Symp.Oceanol. Acta: 141–145.
Olive, P. J. W., P. R. Garwood, M. G. Bently, andN. Wright. 1981. Reproductive success, relative abundance and population structure of two species ofNephtys in an estuarine beach.Mar. Biol. 63:189–196.
Pearson, T. H., andR. Rosenberg. 1978. Macrobenthic succession in relation to organic enrichment and pollution of the marine environment.Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Ann. Rev. 16: 229–311.
Pesch, G. G., C. Mueller, C. E. Pesch, J. Heltshe, and P. S. Shauer. 1985. Application of sister chromatid exchange in marine polychaetes to Black Rock Harbor sediment. Tech. Rep. D-85-1, prepared by U.S. EPA Environmental Res. Lab., Narragansett, Rhode Island for the U.S. Army Eng. WES, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 38 p.
Price, R., andR. M. Warwick. 1980. Temporal variations in annual production and biomass in estuarine populations of two polychaetes,Nephtys hombergi andAmpharete acutifrons.J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K. 60:481–487.
Rachor, E., andS. A. Gerlach. 1978. Changes of macrobenthos in a sublittoral sand area of the German Bight, 1967 to 1975.Rapp. P.-V. Reun. Cons. Int. Explor. Mer. 172:418–431.
Rhoads, D. C., andL. F. Boyer. 1982. The effects of marine benthos on physical properties of sediments: A successional perspective, p. 3–52.In P. L. McCall and M. J. S. Tevesz (eds.), Animal-Sediment Relations. Plenum Publishing, New York.
Rhoads, D. C., andJ. D. Germano. 1986. Interpreting longterm changes in benthic community structure: A new protocol.Hydrobiologia 142:291–308.
Rhoads, D. C., R. C. Allen, andM. B. Goldhaber. 1977. The influence of colonizing benthos on physical properties and chemical diagenesis of the estuarine seafloor, p. 113–138.In B. C. Coull (ed.), Ecology of Marine Benthos. Univ. South Carolina Press, Columbia.
Rhoads, D. L., P. L. McCall, andJ. Y. Yingst. 1978. Disturbance and production on the estuarine seafloor.Am. Sci. 66:577–586.
Richter, W., andM. Sarnthein. 1977. Molluscan colonization of different sediments on submerged platforms in the western Baltic Sea, p. 531–539.In B. F. Keegan, P. O. Ceidigh, and P. S. S. Boaden (eds.), Biology of Benthic Organisms. Pergamon Press, New York.
Sanders, H. L. 1956. Oceanography of Long Island Sound. X. The biology of marine bottom communities.Bull. Bingham Oceanogr. Collect. Yale Univ. 15:345–414.
Sanders, H. L. 1958. Benthic studies in Buzzards Bay. I. Animal-sediment relationships.Limnol. Oceanogr. 3:245–258.
Sanders, H. L. 1960. Benthic studies in Buzzards Bay. III. The structure of the soft-bottom community.Limnol. Oceanogr. 5: 138–153.
Sanders, H. L., J. F. Grassle, G. R. Hampson, L. S. Morse, S. Garner-Price, andC. C. Jones. 1980. Anatomy of an oil spill: Long-term effects from the grounding of the bargeFlorida off West Falmouth, Massachusetts.J. Mar. Res. 38: 265–380.
Santos, S. L., andJ. L. Simon. 1980a Marine soft-bottom community establishment following annual defaunation: Larval or adult recruitment?Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 2:235–241.
Santos, S. L., andJ. L. Simon. 1980b. Response of soft-bottom benthos to annual catastrophic disturbance in a south Florida estuary.Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 3:347–355.
SAS. 1982. SAS Users' Guide: Statistics. SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, North Carolina. 584 p.
Scott, K. J., R. W. Morton, W. F. Bohlen, J. D. Germano, G. D. Paquette, D. C. Rhoads, and L. L. Stewart. 1985. Disposal Area Monitoring Systems (DAMOS) Annual Report, Volume III. Field Verification Program (FVP). DAMOS Contribution No. 46, to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England Division, Waltham, Massachusetts.
Simon, J. L., andD. M. Dauer. 1977. Reestablishment of a benthic community following natural defaunation, p. 139–154.In B. C. Coull (ed.), Ecology of Marine Benthos. Univ. South Carolina Press, Columbia.
Sokal, R. R., andF. J. Rohlf. 1981. Biometry. W.H. Freeman and Co., New York, 859 p.
Tomey, D. 1982. Environmental assessment section 404(b) evaluation and finding of no significant impact for the maintenance dredging of the Black Rock Harbor—Cedar Creek Federal Navigation Channel, Bridgeport, CT, p. 8–13. U.S. Army Corps of Eng., New England Division, Waltham, MA, July.
Wolff, W. J., A. J. J. Sandee, andL. Dewolf. 1977. The development of a benthic ecosystem.Hydrobiologia 52:107–115.
Woodin, S. A. 1981. Disturbance and community structure in a shallow water sand flat.Ecology 62:1052–1066.
Yevitch, P. P., C. A. Yevitch, K. J. Scott, M. Redmond, D. Black, P. S. Shauer, and C. E. Pesch. 1986. Histopathological effects of Black Rock Harbor dredged material on marine organisms; a laboratory investigation. Tech. Rep. D-86-1, prepared by U.S. EPA Environmental Research Lab., Narragansett, Rhode island for the US Army Eng. WES, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 44 p.
Yingst, J. Y., andD. C. Rhoads. 1978. Seafloor stability in central Long Island Sound. II. Biological interactions and their potential importance for seafloor erodibility, p. 245–260.In M. Wiley (ed.), Estuarine Interactions. Academic Press, New York.
Zajac, R. N. 1985. Population dynamics and life history variation inPolydora ligni (Annelida, Polychaeta). Ph.D. Dissertation, University Connecticut, Storrs, 209 p.
Zajac, R. N., andR. B. Whitlatch. 1982a. Responses of estuarine infauna to disturbance. I. Spatial and temporal variation of initial recolonization.Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 10:1–14.
Zajac, R. N., andR. B. Whitlatch. 1982b. Responses of estuarine infauna to disturbance. II. Spatial and temporal variation of succession.Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 10:15–27.
Zajac, R. N., andR. B. Whitlatch. 1985. A hierarchical approach to modelling soft-bottom succession, p. 265–275.In P. E. Gibbs (ed.), Proc. 19th European Mar. Biol. Symp. Cambridge Univ. Press, United Kingdom.
Zajac, R. N., and R. B. Whitlatch. 1987. Hazzard assessment of dredge spoil material disposal: Macrobenthic post-spill population and community responses. Final Rep. to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Research Laboratory, Narragansett, Rhode Island. 140 p.
Zaroogian, G. E., C. E. Pesch, P. Shauer, and D. Black. 1985. Laboratory evaluation of adenylate energy charge as a test for stress inMytilus edulis andNephtys incisa treated with dredged material. Tech. Rep. D-85-3, prepared by the U.S. EPA Environmental Research Lab., Narragansett, Rhode Island for the U.S. Army Eng., WES, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 54 p.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zajac, R.N., Whitlatch, R.B. Population ecology of the polychaeteNephtys incisa in Long Island sound and the effects of disturbance. Estuaries 11, 117–133 (1988). https://doi.org/10.2307/1351999
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1351999