Epilithic Bacterial Assemblages on Subtidal Rocky Reefs: Variation Among Alternative Habitats at Ambient and Enhanced Nutrient Levels.

ABSTRACT: Temperate rocky reefs often support mosaics of alternative habitats such as macroalgal forests, algal turfs and sea urchin barrens. Although the composition of epilithic microbial biofilms (EMBs) is recognized as a major determinant of macroalgal recruitment, their role in regulating the stability of alternative habitats on temperate rocky reefs remains unexplored. On shallow rocky reefs of the Island of Capraia (NW Mediterranean), we compared EMB structure among canopy stands formed by the fucoid Ericaria brachycarpa, algal turfs, and urchin barrens under ambient versus experimentally enhanced nutrient levels. The three habitats shared a core microbial community consisting of 21.6 and 25.3% of total ASVs under ambient and enhanced nutrient conditions, respectively. Although Gammaproteobac

SUBMITTER: Elsherbini J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10497455 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature