Effects of combined dredging-related stressors on sponges: a laboratory approach using realistic scenarios.

ABSTRACT: Dredging can cause increased suspended sediment concentrations (SSCs), light attenuation and sedimentation in marine communities. In order to determine the combined effects of dredging-related pressures on adult sponges, three species spanning different nutritional modes and morphologies were exposed to 5 treatment levels representing realistic dredging scenarios. Most sponges survived under low to moderate turbidity scenarios (SSCs of ≤ 33 mg L^-1, and a daily light integral of ≥0.5 mol photons m^-2 d^-1) for up to 28 d. However, under the highest turbidity scenario (76 mg L^-1, 0.1 mol photons m^-2 d^-1) there was 20% and 90% mortality of the phototrophic sponges Cliona orientalis and Carteriospongia foliascens respectively, and

SUBMITTER: Pineda MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5507900 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature