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Article: Structural characteristics of crab burrows in Hong Kong mangrove forests and their role in ecosystem engineering

TitleStructural characteristics of crab burrows in Hong Kong mangrove forests and their role in ecosystem engineering
Authors
KeywordsBioengineering
Burrowing organisms
Soil aeration
Bioturbation
Parasesarma bidens
Issue Date2020
PublisherAcademic Press. The Journal's web site is located at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecss
Citation
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 2020, Epub 2020-09-06, p. article no. 106973 How to Cite?
AbstractCrab burrowing activity impacts several important biogeochemical processes within mangrove forests. Burrow morphology has been shown to be variable between brachyuran families, hence the community structure and composition of burrowing crabs may have the potential to impact ecosystems differently. By increasing belowground surface area, volume and bacterial microhabitats, large and complex burrows may differ from smaller and simpler burrows in their impact to nutrient and organic matter distribution. The central aim of this work was to provide a detailed quantification of the scale to which different mangrove crab families impact Hong Kong mangrove ecosystem through their burrowing activities. To achieve this goal, we recorded burrow densities and described specie-specific burrow morphology, through casts and 3D scans, of eight crab species belonging to four families, across three mangrove forests. Where present, the large and complex burrows of Parasesarma bidens (Sesarmidae) increased the total below ground air-sediment surface area per m2 by ~190% and accounted for ~1.9% of excavated volume per m3 of mangrove sediment. On average, the burrows of Metaplax spp. (Varunidae) increased the surface area by ~55%, while the ocypodid and dotillid species accounted for a 10–25% increase across sites. Due to its densities and the complexity of its burrows, P. bidens showed to exert a wide impact on Hong Kong mangrove ecosystems unrivalled by other species. By incorporating species-specific burrow characteristics and actual burrow densities, we were able to accurately estimate the differential bioengineering role of the dominant mangrove crab species. Due to the functional role of crab bioengineering, our estimates are critical to assess Hong Kong mangrove ecosystem functioning and health.
Persistent Identifierhttp://hdl.handle.net/10722/288313
ISSN
2023 Impact Factor: 2.6
2023 SCImago Journal Rankings: 0.760

 

DC FieldValueLanguage
dc.contributor.authorAGUSTO, LE-
dc.contributor.authorFratini, S-
dc.contributor.authorJULIAO JIMENEZ, P-
dc.contributor.authorQuadros, A-
dc.contributor.authorCannicci, S-
dc.date.accessioned2020-10-05T12:11:01Z-
dc.date.available2020-10-05T12:11:01Z-
dc.date.issued2020-
dc.identifier.citationEstuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 2020, Epub 2020-09-06, p. article no. 106973-
dc.identifier.issn0272-7714-
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10722/288313-
dc.description.abstractCrab burrowing activity impacts several important biogeochemical processes within mangrove forests. Burrow morphology has been shown to be variable between brachyuran families, hence the community structure and composition of burrowing crabs may have the potential to impact ecosystems differently. By increasing belowground surface area, volume and bacterial microhabitats, large and complex burrows may differ from smaller and simpler burrows in their impact to nutrient and organic matter distribution. The central aim of this work was to provide a detailed quantification of the scale to which different mangrove crab families impact Hong Kong mangrove ecosystem through their burrowing activities. To achieve this goal, we recorded burrow densities and described specie-specific burrow morphology, through casts and 3D scans, of eight crab species belonging to four families, across three mangrove forests. Where present, the large and complex burrows of Parasesarma bidens (Sesarmidae) increased the total below ground air-sediment surface area per m2 by ~190% and accounted for ~1.9% of excavated volume per m3 of mangrove sediment. On average, the burrows of Metaplax spp. (Varunidae) increased the surface area by ~55%, while the ocypodid and dotillid species accounted for a 10–25% increase across sites. Due to its densities and the complexity of its burrows, P. bidens showed to exert a wide impact on Hong Kong mangrove ecosystems unrivalled by other species. By incorporating species-specific burrow characteristics and actual burrow densities, we were able to accurately estimate the differential bioengineering role of the dominant mangrove crab species. Due to the functional role of crab bioengineering, our estimates are critical to assess Hong Kong mangrove ecosystem functioning and health.-
dc.languageeng-
dc.publisherAcademic Press. The Journal's web site is located at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecss-
dc.relation.ispartofEstuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science-
dc.subjectBioengineering-
dc.subjectBurrowing organisms-
dc.subjectSoil aeration-
dc.subjectBioturbation-
dc.subjectParasesarma bidens-
dc.titleStructural characteristics of crab burrows in Hong Kong mangrove forests and their role in ecosystem engineering-
dc.typeArticle-
dc.identifier.emailCannicci, S: cannicci@hku.hk-
dc.identifier.authorityCannicci, S=rp02079-
dc.description.naturelink_to_subscribed_fulltext-
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.ecss.2020.106973-
dc.identifier.scopuseid_2-s2.0-85090740034-
dc.identifier.hkuros315272-
dc.identifier.volumeEpub 2020-09-06-
dc.identifier.spagearticle no. 106973-
dc.identifier.epagearticle no. 106973-
dc.publisher.placeUnited Kingdom-
dc.identifier.issnl0272-7714-

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