Abstract
Benthic components and metabolic activity at two stations in the Darss-Zingst estuary (eastern German Baltic coast) were investigated over a seasonal cycle from April 1985 to August 1986. As has been established for temperate and boreal ecosystems, peaks in the biomass of benthic microphytes occurred in the spring and late autumn to winter, presumably caused by settling phytoplankton blooms. Metabolic activity of the benthos did not increase with rising ambient temperatures. Rather, the highest values of oxygen consumption were recorded during the cooler months (spring and winter), when increased numbers of organisms were also observed. This may be a response to a greater food supply to the sediment in the form of settling phytoplankton during these times of year.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Andersen, J. M. (1976). An ignition method for determination of total phosphorus in lake sediments. Wat. Res. 10: 329–331
Arlt, G. (1973). Vertical and horizontal microdistribution of the meiofauna in the Greifswalder Bodden. Oikos (Suppl.) 15: 105–111
Arlt, G. (1984). Taxonomische und ökologische Untersuchungen am Meiozoobenthos von Brackgewässern. Dissertation (B), University of Rostock, Germany
Bergstroem, I., Sarvala, J. (1986). Seasonal course of soft-bottom community respiration in a northern Baltic archipelago. Ophelia (Suppl.) 4: 17–26
Dale, T. (1978). Total, chemical and biological oxygen consumption of the sediments in Lindåspollene, western Norway. Mar. Biol. 49: 333–341
Ellery, W. N., Schleyer, M. H. (1984). Comparison of homogenization and ultrasonication as techniques in extracting attached sedimentary bacteria. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 15: 247–250
Finenko, Z. Z. (1978). Production in plant populations. In: Kinne, O. (ed.) Marine ecology, Vol. IV, Dynamics. Wiley, Chichester, p. 13–87
Graf, G., Bengtsson, W., Diesner, U., Schulz, R., Theede, H. (1982). Benthic response to sedimentation of a spring phytoplankton bloom: process and budget. Mar. Biol. 67: 201–208
Graf, G., Schulz, R., Peinert, R., Meyer-Reil, L. A. (1983). Benthic response to sedimentation events during autumn to spring at a shallow-water station in the western Kiel Bight. I. Analysis of processes on a community level. Mar. Biol. 77: 235–246
Grasshoff, K. (1976). Methods for seawater analysis. Verlag Chemie, Weinheim
Grebmeier, J. M., McRoy, C. P., Feder, H. M. (1988). Pelagic-benthic coupling on the shelf of the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas. I. Food supply source and biomass. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 48: 57–67
Hargrave, B. T. (1969). Epibenthic algal production and community respiration in the sediments of Marion Lake. J. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 26: 2003–2006
Hargrave, B. T. (1978). Seasonal changes in oxygen uptake by settled particulate matter and sediments in a marine bay. J. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 35: 1621–1628
Hargrave, B. T., Phillips, G. A. (1981). Annual in situ carbon dioxide and oxygen flux across a subtidal marine sediment. Estuar. cstl Shelf Sci. 12: 725–737
Herndl, G. J., Peduzzi, P., Fanuko, N. (1989). Benthic community metabolism and microbial dynamics in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea). Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 53: 169–178
Holme, N. A., McIntyre, A. D. (eds.) (1984). Methods for the study of marine benthos, 2nd edn. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford
Kremer, J. N., Nixon, S. W. (1978). A coastal marine ecosystem: simulation and analysis. Springer-Verlag, Berlin
Meyer-Reil, L. A. (1984). Seasonal variations in bacterial biomass and decomposition of particulate organic material in marine sediments. Arch. Hydrobiol. (Beih. Ergebn. Limnol.) 19: 201–205
Möller, R. (1984). Verbreitungsökologische Untersuchungen am Makrozoobenthos im Winterhalbjahr 1983/84 im Barther Bodden. Master's thesis, University of Rostock, Germany
Nausch-Stengl, M. (1980). Untersuchungen zur Sedimentation in der Darss-Zingster Boddenkette — ein Beitrag zur Aufstellung einer Energie- und Stoffbilanz im Ökosystem. Teil 2. Untersuchungen zur Sedimentation des Planktons. Acta hydrochim. hydrobiol. 8: 71–82
Oertzen, J. A. von (1984). Open and closed systems — their suitability for functional respiration measurements. Limnologica, Berlin 15: 541–545
Pamatmat, M. (1968). Ecology and metabolism of a benthic community on an intertidal sandflat. Int. Revue ges. Hydrobiol. 53: 211–298
Pamatmat, M. (1973). Benthic community metabolism on the continental terrace and in the deep sea in the north Pacific. Int. Revue ges. Hydrobiol. 58: 345–368
Parsons, T. R., Takahashi, M., Hargrave, B. (1984). Biological oceanographic processes, 3rd edn. Pergamon Press, Oxford
Scharf, E.-M. (1979). Die Bedeutung benthischer heterotropher Protozoen (Ciliaten) im Stoffkreislauf und Energiefluß eines mesohalinen Brackgewässers (Barther Bodden). Ph.D. dissertation (A), University of Rostock, Germany
Schwinghamer, P. (1981). Characteristic size distributions of integral benthic communities. Can. J. Fish. aquat. Sciences 38: 1255–1263
Schwinghamer, P., Hargrave, B., Peer, D., Hawkins, C. M. (1986). Partitioning of production and respiration among size groups of organisms in a intertidal benthic community. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 31: 131–142
Smith, K. L. Jr., Burns, K. A., Teal, J. M. (1972). In situ respiration of benthic communities in Castle Harbor, Bermuda. Mar. Biol. 12: 196–199
Sokal, R. R., Rohlf, F. J. (1981). Biometry. The principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 2nd edn. W. H. Freeman & Co., San Francisco
Sundbäck, K., Jönsson, B. (1988). Microphytobenthic productivity and biomass in sublittoral sediments of a stratified bay, southeastern Kattegat. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 122: 63–81
Wasmund, N. (1983). Produktionsbiologisch-ökologische Untersuchungen am Mikrophytobenthos der Darss-Zingster Boddengewässer. Ph.D. dissertation (A), University of Rostock, Germany
Wasmund, N. (1984). Probleme der spektrophotometrischen Chlorophyll-Bestimmung. Acta hydrochim. hydrobiol. 12: 255–272
Wassmann, P. (1986). Importance of vernal blooms in marine ecosystems. Paper presented at the 21st European Marine Biology Symposium, 14–19 September 1986, Gdańsk, Poland
Yap, H. T., Oertzen, J. A. von (1989). Benthic dynamics of an estuarine ecosystem on the Baltic coast of the GDR. Proc. 21st Eur. mar. Biol. Symp. [Klekowski, R. Z. et al. (eds.) Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Gdańsk], p. 491–497
Yap, H. T., Oertzen, J. A. von, Schiewer, U. (1987). Effects of turbidity caused by nutrient loading on benthic dynamics. Contin. Shelf Res. 7: 1439–1444
Zeitzschel, B. (1981). Field experiments on benthic ecosystems. In: Longhurst, A. R. (ed.) Analysis of marine ecosystems. Academic Press, London, p. 607–625
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by M. Anraku, Suva
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yap, H.T. Benthic energy dynamics in a southern Baltic ecosystem. Mar. Biol. 108, 477–484 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01313658
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01313658