Macrobenthos Community Structure and Its Relations With Environmental Factors in Three Reservoirs in Tianjin

[Objective] The aim was to research macrobenthos community structure and its relations with environmental factors in three reservoirs. [Method] Benthic diversity and water quality of Yuqiao Reservoir, Beidagang Reservoir and Er- wangzhuang Reservoir were investigated in May, July and September 2011, respec- tively. []Result] Of all the 14 sampling sites, 22 species of macroinvertebrates were collected, totally, which included 6 species of aquatic insects, 7 species of Mollusca, 2 species of Crustacean, 7 species of Oligochaeta. The species of macroinverte- brates during May, July and September in Yuqiao reservoir were 11, 8 and 10, respectively. The dominant species were Chironomus sinicus, and Monopylephorus limosus. The average density and biomass of the macrobenthos were 132.43 ind./m2 and 50.09 g/m2. Yuqiao reservoir was mostly at status of premediate polluted, according to the Margalef index, Shannon index and Pielou index. The species of during May, July and September in Beidagang reservoir were 5 5 and 5, respectively. The dominant species were Chironomus sinicus, Penaeus vannamei. The average density and biomass of the macrobenthos were 218 ind./m2 and 2.70 g/m2. Beidagang reservoir was mostly at status of heavy polluted, accord- ing to the Margalef index, Shannon-wiener index, Pielou index. The species of during May, July and September in Erwangzhuang reservoir were 3, 5 and 5, respectively. The dominant species were Monopylephorus limosus, Chi- ronomus sinicus. The average density and biomass of the macrobenthos were 104 ind/m2 and 0.20 g/m2. Erwangzhuang reservoir was mostly at status of intermediate polluted, according to the Margalef index, Shannon index, Pielou index. The density of zoobenthos in Yuqiao Reservoir was positively significantly correlated with TP （P〉 0.05）, negatively correlated with NH4＋-N （P〉0.05）, positively correlated with COD （P〈 0.01）, not significantly correlated with other environment factors （P〉0.05）. There was no significant correlation between biomass of zoobenthos and environment factors. The density of zoobenthos in Beidagang Reservoir with NH4＋-N was positively signif- icantly correlated （P〈0.05）, not significantly correlated with other aquatic environment factors （P〉0.05）. There was no significant correlation between biomass of zoobenthos and environment factors. The density of zoobenthos in Erwangzhuang Reser- voir with NO3-N was positively significantly correlated （P〈0.05）, not significant cor- related with other aquatic environment factors （F〉0.05）. The biomass of zoobenthos in Erwangzhuang Reservoir with NH4＋-N was positively significantly correlated （P〈 0.05）, not significant correlated with other aquatic environment factors （P〉0.05）. [Conclusion] It is indicated that this three reservoirs were all eutrophied and polluted, and the eurephication extent change of water in three reservoirs is as follows： Beidagang reservoir〉Erwangzhuang reservoir〉Yuqiao reservoir.

Community structure of macrobenthos in coastal water off Rushan, southern Shandong Peninsula, and the relationships with environmental factors

To understand the present actuality of the marine ecosystem in the southern coastal water region of the Shandong Peninsula and the impact of the global change and the human activities to the marine ecosystem of the region, the macrobenthic community structure was researched based on data from 26 sampling stations carried out on four seasonal cruises from December 2006 to November 2007. The data was analyzed using PRIMER 6.0 and SPSS 15.0 software packages. The results showed that 236 macrobenthic species in total were collected from the research region by the field works. Most of the species belong to Polychaeta （76 species）, Mollusca （75） and Crustacea （60）. Of which, 33 species were common species by the four cruises. The dominant species were different among the four seasons, however, the polychaete species Nephtys oligobranchia and Sternaspis scutata were always dominant in the four seasons. The abundances and biomasses of the macrobenthos from the research region were variable in the four seasons. The results of CLUSTER and MDS analysis showed that the similarities of macrobenthic structures among the stations were low, most of the similarities were at about 40% of similarity values, only that of two stations were up to 60%. In accordance with the similarity values of the macrobenthic structures, the 26 stations were clustered as six groups at arbitrary similarity level of 30%. The ABC curve indicated that the marcofauna communities in the research region had not been disturbed distinctly. The results of BIOENV and BVSTEP （Spearman） analysis implied that the concentrations of organic matter in bottom water and heavy metal copper in sediment, water depth and temperature of bottom were the most significant environmental factors to affect the macrobentic community.

Summertime community structure of intertidal macrobenthos in Changdao Archipelago,Shandong Province,China

The community structure of intertidal macrobenthos in Changdao Archipelago(north of Shandong Peninsula,between Bohai Bay and the northern Yellow Sea) was examined based on samples collected from 14 stations in five transects in June 2007.Three stations corresponding to high,medium and low tidal areas were set up for each transect.A total of 68 macrobenthic species were found in the research region,most of which belonged to Mollusca and Crustacea.The average abundance and biomass of the macrobenthos was 1 383 ind./m2 and 372.41 g/m2,respectively.The use of an arbitrary similarity level of 20% resulted in identification of five groups among the 14 stations in the research region.There were remarkable differences in the biomass,abundance and Shannon-Wiener diversity index of the different sediments.Specifically,the order of biomass was rocky shores > gravel > mud-sand > coarse sand > stiff mud,while the order of abundance was rocky shores > coarse sand > mud-sand > gravel > stiff mud,and that of the diversity index was mud-sand > gravel > stiff mud > rocky shores > coarse sand.The above results revealed that the sediment type was the most important factor affecting the structure of the macrobenthic community of the intertidal zone.

Spatial and seasonal distribution of intertidal macrobenthos with their biomass and functional feeding guilds in the Naf River estuary, Bangladesh

The Naf River estuary is one of the most productive ecological ecosystems in Bangladesh providing an important feeding area for fishes and other aquatic animals.However,detailed information on macrobenthic communities is rarely available in this area.Our study focused on the seasonal and spatial variability of macrobenthic community structure with their biomass and functional guilds.In total,fortyseven taxa were identified under nine major groups and seven functional feeding guilds.Among macrobenthic taxa,Polychaeta was dominant in both seasons and all over the estuary contributing 60%of total benthos.The mean abundance of macrobenthos was higher during the pre-monsoon(2 972±1 994 inds./m^2)than the monsoon(1 572±361 inds./m^2)being maximum at mid-estuary region and minimum at upper and lower estuary regions.Of the diversity indices,density(P=0.01,P=0.003),the number of taxa(P=0.000 3,P=0.000 9)and Margalef′s Index(P=0.000 4,P=0.001)of macrobenthos were significantly different among stations and seasons.Shannon-Weiner index(P=0.009,P=0.12)and Pielou’s evenness index(P=0.03,P=0.14)had significant differences among stations but not among seasons.Cluster analysis suggested that distribution of macrofauna is strongly influenced by seasonality.Among the feeding types,carnivorous were found to be dominant at the upper and mid-estuarine regions,and herbivorous were at lower estuarine regions.Carnivorous species were dominant in both seasons.Omnivores have shown to be the most abundant feeding type in terms of biomass though herbivores were highest during monsoon.

Investigation of Macrobenthos in the Intertidal Zone of Tianjin and Discussion on Bioremediation

An investigation of macrobenthos in the littoral zone was carried out in Tanggu District, Tianjin City in June 2003. This investigation was the only integrated one since 1983 there. Something about macrobenthos investigation was reported in this paper. The results showed that the biomass of macrobenthos of that area was almost at the same level as that of 1983, and the density of macrobenthos increased a little. The biomass of Mactra veneriformis has great effect on the average biomass of that area. The diversity of macrobenthos has changed obviously, and 5 or 6 kinds of macrobenthos have become extinct or decreased greatly. So the ecological structure of macrobenthos has become simpler and unstable. In addition, some ecological methods to remedy the area are discussed in this paper.

Community structure and spatial distribution of macrobenthos in the shelf area of the Bering Sea

Field investigations of marine macrobenthos were conducted at ten sites in the Bering Sea in July 2010. Altogether 90 species of macrobenthos belonging to 59 families and 78 genera were identified. Among them, 41 polychaetes, 16 mollusks, 23 crustaceans, three echinoderms, two cnidarians, one nemertean, one priapulid, two sipunculids, and one echiuran were identified. The average density and biomass of total macrobenthos were 984 ind./m2 and 1207.1 g/ma of wet weight, respectively. The predominant species in the study area were Scoloplos armiger, Eudorella pacifica, Ophiura sarsii, Heteromastus filiformis, Ennucula tenuis, and Harpiniopsis vadiculus by abundance, while the predominant species in this area was Echinarachnius parma by biomass. Hierarchical cluster analysis （Bray-Curtis similarity measure） revealed that two impor- tant benthic assemblages in the study area were CommunityA and Community B. CommunityA was stable and Community B was unstable, as shown by the Abundance/Biomass Comparisons （ABC） approach. The macrobenthic community structure in the shelf of the Bering Sea was characterized by its high abundance and biomass, high productivity but great heterogeneity.

Biodiversity and community structural characteristics of macrobenthos in the Chukchi Sea

Field sampling of the macrobenthos from 23 stations in the Chukchi Sea was conducted during the 4th CHI- NARE （Chinese National Arctic Research Expeditions, July-August, 2010）. We identified a total of 140 species of macrozoobenthos belonging to nine phyla, which were dominated by polychaetes （66）, crustaceans （30）, and mollusks （25）, followed by echinoderms （9） and others （ten others, including four cnidarians, one oligochaete, one sipuncula, one priapulida, two bryozoans, and one urochordata）. The dominant species were Aphelochaeta pacifica, Heteromastus filiformis, Nephtys ciliata, Nephtys caeca, Scoletoma fragilis, Golfingia margaritacea, Nuculana pernula, Macoma calcarea, Ennucula tenuis, Macoma inquinata, Musculus discors, Echinarachnius parma, and Ophiura sarsii, so there were more cold-eurythermal boreal immigrants than trulyArctic species （endemics）. The average density and biomass （mean ± SD across all stations） of the total macrozoobenthos were （916 ± 907） ind/m2 and （902.9 ± 1227.7） g/m2 （wet weight）, respectively. Relatively high density and biomass were observed in the samples from the northeastern and southern Chukchi Sea. The spatial variation of benthic communities in the study sea area was relatively large; this spatial heteroge- neity has led to high diversity and a patchy distribution pattern in the community structure. Compared to the 1st CHINARE （July-August, 1999）, this investigation revealed different degrees of decreases in the average taxa numbers and the average density, abundance, and biodiversity in the area over the recent decade, which might be associated with global warming, human activities, and sea ice variations.

Secondary Production of Macrobenthos in Mangrove Area of Tong'an Bay,China

Studies on secondary production lead to a better understanding of the functions of the macrobenthic ecosystem.Basedon the macrobenthic data obtained at 6 sampling stations from April 2006 to January 2007,Brey's(1990)empirical formula wasapplied to calculate the secondary production of macrobenthos in the mangrove area of Tong'an Bay.The results showed that themean annual secondary production of macrobenthos was 13.24 gAFDWm-2-a-1.The mean secondary production in the mangrovehabitat was 12.22 gAFDWm-2-a-1,lower than that in the non-mangrove habitat,which was 15.29 gAFDWm-2-a-1.Two possible rea-sons existed for this difference.First,mollusk and crustacean,which contribute more to the secondary production,probably benefitfrom longer inundation period in the non-mangrove habitat.Second,the higher organic matter in the mangrove habitat results in hy-poxia in the bottom sediment,which may decrease the secondary production.The annual mean production-to-biomass(P/B)ratio inTong'an Bay was 1.17,with a ratio of 1.27 in the mangrove habitat and 0.96 in the non-mangrove habitat,which was coincident withthe much higher density of Limnodriloides sp.and Corophium sp.in the mangrove habitat than in the non-mangrove habitat.Themaximum secondary production and P/B ratio of macrobenthos both appeared at sampling station FL2 in April,2006(namelyApril-FL2)with values of 31.38 gAFDWm-2-a-1and 2.20,respectively.The macrobenthic secondary production in Tong'an Bay islower than those in other intertidal studies except that in Haitan Strait,the reason being the different sediment properties.The P/Bratio in Tong'an Bay was the lowest due to the high proportion of crustaceans in the macrobenthic community.

Community characteristics of macrobenthos community in Changli Gold Coast National Nature Reserve of Hebei in China

Macrobenthic communities in the surrounding waters of Changli were investigated during spring and summer in2016.Differences in species quantity,abundance and biomass,the dominant species and species diversity index of macrobenthos were analyzed.The results showed that58macrobenthos species were identified in spring,and92macrobenthos species were identified in summer.The composition of dominant species seasonally varied;however,most of them were species belonging to Polychaeta.The abundance of macrobenthos in summer was slightly higher than that in spring,while the biomass in summer was significantly smaller than that in spring.Bray-Curtis cluster analysis and multi-dimentional scaling(MDS)analysis indicated that macrobenthic communities were divided into three communities in spring,and two in summer.The abundance-biomass comparison(ABC)curve method was used to monitor the disturbance of environmental pollution for macrobenthic community.The results showed that the macrobenthos in this area received serious disturbance from environmental pollution.

Seasonal distribution of macrobenthos and its relationship with environmental factors in Yellow Sea and East China Sea

Macrobenthos samples were collected from the Yellow and East China Seas in four seasons during 2011 to 2012. The seasonal distribution of macrobenthos and its relationship with environmental factors were analyzed. A total of 562 macrobenthic species were identified, with polychaetes and mollusks accounting for 67% of the total number of species. A similarity percentage(SIMPER) analysis showed that the dominant species were bivalve mollusks in the Yellow Sea and small-sized polychaetes in the East China Sea. A two-factor analysis of variance showed significant seasonal variations in species number, density and diversity index, and significant regional differences of biomass and density. Two-factor community similarity analysis also showed significant seasonal and regional differences in macrobenthic communities. Canonical correspondence analysis indicated that the main environmental factors af fecting the macrobenthic communities were water depth, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and inorganic nitrogen. The results demonstrate significant regional differences and seasonal variations in macrobenthos in the two seas. Sediment properties and water mass characteristics are speculated to be the causes of regional differences.

Species Composition and Diversity of Macrobenthos in the Intertidal Zone of Xiangshan Bay,China

Xiangshan bay is a narrow semi-closed bay and situated on the northwestern coast of the East China Sea. Over past decades, it has become to a major bay with intensive human activities, dense urbanized area, and poor water quality. The aim of this paper was to reveal the ecological status through the elucidation of the species composition, abundance, biomass and diversity of macrobenthos in this bay. Six intertidal sections were surveyed from January 2007 to November 2008 quarterly. Sections TG, HD and XH are located in the three inner bays, sections QJ and WS are located near the thermal power plants, and section XX is located at the outer part of Xiangshan Bay. Great variations in macrobenthos community were indentified, and the species composition of the community in the present study showed the dominance in the order of molluscs （bivalves and gastropods）, crustaceans and others, and only few Polychaeta were recorded. Only three dominant species, Littorina brevicula, llyplax tansuiensis, and Cerithidea cingu- lata were collected in all the sections, and a total of 19 dominant species were recorded only in one section. Two-way ANOVA analyses of abundance indicated that there were significant differences among sections or seasons. Shannon-Wiener diversity index （H＇） had its maximum （2.45） in section QJ, and minimum （1.76） in section TG Multiple irregular k-dominance plots clearly showed that the study area was polluted and the macrobenthos community was under stress. We conclude that the macrobenthos of Xiang- shan Bay have been disturbed by human activities, especially at the interior bay.

Macrobenthos monitoring in the Gulf of Suez,Egypt

The biogeography of macrobenthic communities with large-scale differences in species distribution and abundance was studied along the eastern and western coastal regions of the Gulf of Suez to indicate biodiversity of benthos in relation to the prevailing environmental conditions. In general, benthos have a wide variety of species of mainly polychaet worms, crustaceans, bivalves, and other bottom invertebrates living in burrows in/or on the sediment surface. Coastal development clearly affects the ecosystem after the construction of coastal projects. The highest values of benthic diversity, evenness, richness and dominance are found at the Gulf of Suez （WG 1, WG 3）, Ras Gharib （WG 7, WG 8） and Ras Shukier （WG 9a） by contrast to others. The abundance of macrobenthic organsims along the coasts of Gulf of Suez can be arranged in the following sequence： other groups （34%） greater than crustaceans （25%） greater than polychaetes （22%） greater than molluscs （17%） greater than echinoderms （2%）. The biomass of benthic assemblages at different sampling sites can also be ranked as follows： echinoderms （52%） greater than molluscs （27%） greater than crustaceans （16%） greater than polychaetes （2%） greater than other groups （3%）. Some benthic groups or species indicated a distinctive correlation to pollution sources in the marine ecosystem which obviously increased in the coastal areas due to the extension of the coastal development. These activities needed regular information to establish database for the biology and distribution of marine benthic communities. The density and diversity of benthos are significantly affected by eutrophication at Ain Sukhna, whereas the benthos in the open Gulf of Suez do not seem to be adversely affected by pollution.

Community characteristics of macrobenthos in the Huanghe(Yellow River) Estuary during water and sediment discharge regulation

The community characteristics of macrobenthos in the Huanghe（Yellow River） Estuary is influenced by a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors. Here, we investigated short-term changes（1-month） in macrobenthic community structure in response to water and sediment discharge regulation（WSDR） in 2011.Specifically, we sampled the macrobenthos at 18 sampling stations situated at four distances（5, 10, 20, and 40 km）from the mouth of the Huanghe Estuary before（mid-June）, during（early-July）, and after（mid-July） WSDR. The results showed that a total of 73, 72, and 85 species were collected before, during, and after WSDR, respectively.Then, 13, 1, and 16 dominant species were detected at this three periods. Four phyla were primarily detected at all three periods（Annelida, Mollusca, Arthropoda, and Echinodermata）. However, while Mollusca and Annelida were the most important phyla in our study, Echinodermata and Annelida were the most important phyla in 1982,demonstrating major changes to community structure over a 3-decadal period. All stations were of high quality BOPA index before WSDR, whereas two and three stations were of reduced quality BOPA index during and after WSDR, respectively. The results of ABC curves showed that had incurred disturbed conditions after human activities WSDR. Most important of all, multivariate analyses and RDA analysis indicated that the structure of the macrobenthic community was closely linked to environment factors, including that organic content factor caused the distribution of macrobenthic community mostly during WSDR, while water depth after WSDR affected the macro benthos community structure seriously, and during WSDR, the environment factor influencing it was not single, including organic content, sulfide content, Hg and As. These differences may have been due to changes in water transparency negatively impacting the growth and development of macrobenthos, due to specific lifehistory requirements. Our results demonstrate that anthropogenic activity is having both long-term（3 decadal）and short term（1-month） impacts on the structure of the macrobenthic community of the Huanghe Estuary. In conclusion, human activities WSDR influence the habitat environment of macro benthos, including the water temperature, nutrients, bioturbation, and so on. Therefore, we suggest the necessity to strengthen regulations of land-derived organic pollutant input to maintain the ecological balance of the Huanghe Estuary.

Gorgan Bay： a microcosm for study on macrobenthos speciesenvironment relationships in the southeastern Caspian Sea

The relationship between spatial patterns of macrobenthos community characteristics and environmental conditions（salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, organic matter content, sand, silt and clay） was investigated throughout the Gorgan Bay in June 2010. Principal components analysis（PCA） based on environmental data separated eastern and western stations. The maximum（4 500 ind./m2） and minimum（411 ind./m2） densities were observed at Stas 1 and 6, respectively. Polychaeta was the major group and Streblospio gynobranchiata was dominant species in the bay. According to Distance Based Linear Models results, macrofaunal total density was correlated with silt percentage and salinity and these two factors explaining 64% of the variability while macrofaunal community structure just correlated with salinity（22% total variation）. In general, western part of the bay showed the highest number of species and biodiversity while, the highest density was found at Sta. 1 and in the middle part of the bay. Furthermore, relationship between diversity indices and macrobenthic species with measured factors is also discussed. Our results confirm the effect of salinity as an important factor on distribution of macrobenthic fauna in south Caspian brackish waters.

Notes Ecological study of macrobenthos in Fuqing Bay

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Macrobenthic community structure in the Changjiang Estuary and its adjacent waters in summer

On the basis of data collected in the summer of 2006 from 27 sampling stations in the Changjiang Estuary and its adjacent waters, the ecological characteristics of macrobenthos and the relationship between the macrobenthos and the environmental factors were studied using hierarchical cluster and non-metric multidimensional scaling （MDS）. The biomass, abundance, Shannon -Wiener＇s and Margalef＇ s indices of the macrobenthos were presented. The results showed that a total of 253 macrobenthic species were found in the research region, and most of them belong to mollusks and polychaetes. The dominant species were Cossurella dimorpha, Eocylichna cylindrella, Episiphon kiaochowwanense, Nassarius semiplicatus, Ocstergrenia variabilis and Sternaspis scutata. The average abundance of the macrobenthos was （313. 15 ±233.4） ind./m^2, and the average biomass was （ 15. 2 ± 11.2 ）g/m^2. The distribution patterns of the abundance and biomass of the macrobenthos were similar. The abundance and biomass in the area close to the estuary were lower than those from the area more distant to the estuary; the central part of the research region had higher abundance and biomass than other parts of the research region. In accordance with the results, four macrobenthic communities with distinct spatial differences were identified. The low abundance and biomass in the area close to the estuary should be caused by the high sedimentation rate. The statistical analysis indicated that the depth is the most important factor affecting the distribution of macrobenthos.

Macrobenthic Community in the Xiaoqing River Estuary in Laizhou Bay,China

The macrobenthic community of the Xiaoqing River Estuary and the adjacent sea waters was investigated in May and November 2008,August 2009,and May and September 2010,respectively.A total of 95 species of macrobenthos were identified in the five cruises and most of them were polychaetes(46.39%),mollusks(28.86%) and crustaceans(20.62%).The Shannon-Wiener index of macrobenthos was lower than 2 in 67% sites.Along the stream channel,estuary and the coastal waters,the species of polychaetes reduced gradually,while the abundance increased at first and then decreased.The abundance was the biggest at regions with salinity of 5 20 in the estuary.The species and abundance of mollusks and crustaceans increased gradually.As for seasonal distribution,the species,abundance and biomass were higher in spring and lower in summer and autumn.Contemporaneously compared with Laizhou Bay and Yellow River Estuary,the species of macrobenthos appeared in the Xiaoqing River Estuary were much less,while the percentage of polychaetes was higher.Abundance and biomass were higher in Xiaoqing River estuary,then consequently followed by Laizhou Bay and Yellow River Estuary.The dominant species in Xiaoqing River Estuary was polychaete,and Layzhou Bay mollusk.The community structure characteristics of macrobenthos in the Xiaoqing River Estuary revealed a significant pollution status in this region.

Macrobenthic community structure and species composition in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea in jellyfi sh bloom

To understand the characteristics of macrobenthic structures and the relationship between environment and benthic assemblages in jellyfish bloom, we studied the macrobenthos and related environmental factors in the coastal waters of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. Data were collected during two seasonal cruises in April and August of 2011, and analyzed with multivariate statistical methods. Up to 306 macrobenthic species were registered from the research areas, including 115 species of Polychaeta, 78 of Crustacea, 61 of Mollusca, 30 of Echinodermata, and 22 of other groups. Nine polychaete species occurred at frequencies higher than 25% from the sampling stations： Lumbrineris longifolia, Notomastus latericeus, Nin6e palmata, Ophelina acuminata, Nephtys oligobranchia, Onuphis geophiliformis, Glycera chirori, Terebellides stroemii, and Aricidea fragilis. Both the average biomass and abundance of macrobenthos are higher in August （23.8 g/m^2 and 237.7 ind./m^2） than those in April （11.3 g/m^2 and 128 ind./m^2）; the dissimilarity ofmacrobenthic structures among stations is as high as 70%. In terms of the dissimilarity values, we divided the stations into four clusters in spring and eight in summer. The ABC curve shows that the macrofauna communities in high jellyfish abundance were not changed. Canonical correspondence analysis showed that depth, temperature, median grain size, total organic carbon of sediment and total nitrogen in sediment were important factors affecting the macrozoobenthic community in the study area.

A comparison of the applicability of the Shannon-Wiener index,AMBI and M-AMBI indices for assessing benthic habitat health in the Huanghe(Yellow River) Estuary and adjacent areas

From a dataset of macrobenthos obtained from 18 cruises from 2004 to 2013 in the Huanghe（Yellow River）Estuary and its adjacent areas,the composition and characteristics of macrobenthos were analyzed,and the applicability of the Shannon-Wiener Index（H′）,AZTI＇s Marine Biotic Index（AMBI） and multivariate AMBI（MAMBI） for assessing benthic habitat quality was compared.The results showed a total of 203 macrobenthos in the study area.The macrobenthos were dominated by polychaetes,followed by mollusks and crustaceans.The macrobenthic ecological groups were dominated by EGI,EGII and EGIII,which respectively accounted for 31.5%,36.0% and 21.2% of the total.There were significant differences between the evaluation results of the three indices.The ecological quality status（EQS） levels given by the AMBI were greater than those given by the H′ and M-AMBI.The AMBI could not reflect the differences between 11 sites but the H′ and M-AMBI could do.Moreover,the three indices responded well to the variations in salinity（S） and dissolved oxygen（DO） in the waters.The H′ and MAMBI also responded sensitively to the differences in physical parameters,such as water depth and sediment texture.The correlation between M-AMBI and environmental pressure gradient data was the strongest.The MAMBI could effectively distinguish degraded conditions from undegraded but the H′ and AMBI could not.Therefore,the M-AMBI reflected benthic habitat health well in the study areas.However,the objectivity of evaluation results of M-AMBI needs further verification by physical,chemical and biological methods.The thresholds also need further discussion.

Assessing benthic ecological status in coastal area near Changjiang River estuary using AMBI and M-AMBI

The Changjiang(Yangtze)River estuary has been subject to a variety of anthropogenic pressures in recent decades.To assess the ecological health of the coastal benthic ecosystem adjacent to the estuary,three surveys were conducted in 2005,2009,and 2010.The AZTI's Marine Biotic Index(AMBI)and multivariate-AMBI(M-AMBI)were used to analyse the benthic ecological status of this coast.The AMBI indicate that the ecological status of the coast adjacent to the Changjiang River estuary was only slightly degraded in all 3 years.In contrast,the M-AMBI indicated that the ecological status was seriously degraded,a result that is most likely due to pollution and eutrophication induced by human activities.The assessment of the coast's ecological status by the AMBI was not in agreement with that of the M-AMBI at some stations because of lower biodiversity values at those sites.The analysis of the two indices integrated with abiotic parameters showed that the M-AMBI could be used as a suitable bio-indicator index to assess the benthic ecological status of the coast adjacent to the Changjiang River estuary.The reference conditions proposed for the coast of the Changjiang River estuary should be further evaluated in future studies.Designation of local species could also provide an important reference for Chinese waters.To improve the reliability of AMBI and M-AMBI,further research into the ecology of local species is required to understand their arrangement in ecological groups.