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  • Ecology And Behaviour
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Comparative characteristics of some ecosystems of the upper regions of the shelf in tropical, temperate and Arctic waters

Vergleichende Charakterisierungen einiger Ökosysteme der oberen Schelfregionen in tropischen, gemäßigten und arktischen Gewässern

Kurzfassung

Die Verteilung der Biozönosen in den oberen Schelfzonen des westlichen Pazifik, der boralen Regionen des Atlantik und arktischer Gewässer wurde unter vergleichenden Gesichtspunkten mit Hilfe der Methode des Schwimmtauchens untersucht. In kalten und gemäßigten Zonen der nördlichen Hemisphäre spielen stets verwandte Arten eine dominierende Rolle in den in ähnlicher Tiefe und auf ähnlichem Substrat lebenden Lebensgemeinschaften. Sie erweisen sich teilweise auch als konvergent gegenüber tropischen Biozönosen, doch stehen deren Charakterarten in keinem näheren Verwandtschaftsverhältnis zu jenen der in der nördlichen Hemisphäre vorkommenden Biozönosen. Die Biomasseproduktion am Boden steigt in Richtung von arktischen zu tropischen Regionen an; die Populationsdichte der Organismen ist in den gemäßigten Breiten am größten und verringert sich in etwa gleicher Weise zu den tropischen und arktischen Zonen hin. Das Verhältnis der Artenzahl zur Populationsdichte pro Flächeneinheit erreicht in tropischen und arktischen Lebensgemeinschaften ein Maximum; es verringert sich beträchtlich in gemäßigten Breiten. Die geographische Verbreitung der Biozönosen in gleichen Wassertiefen wird in tropischen Gebieten in erster Linie von Strömungen, in borealen Zonen von den Temperaturverhältnissen des Oberflächenwassers und in arktischen Regionen von der Eisbedeckung bestimmt. In tropischen und gemäßigten Zonen findet sich die größte Mannigfaltigkeit an Organismen und die höchste Biomasseproduktion in 0–10 m Wassertiefe, in arktischen Meeren dagegen in einer Tiefe von ca. 18–25 m. In allen untersuchten Gebieten wird eine vertikale Zonierung der Biozönosen deutlich, die im tropischen Bereich vom Lichteinfall und von den hydrodynamischen Besonderheiten der oberen Wasserschichten abhängen, in borealen Zonen von den Oberflächentemperaturen und in den arktischen Gewässern von dem Grad des Lichteinfalls und der Eisbedeckung.

Summary

1. The distribution of biocoenoses in the upper shelf parts of temperate and tropical regions in the western part of the Pacific Ocean, in upper boreal Atlantic waters and in the high latitudes near Franz Josef Land has been investigated employing the quantitative diving method.

2. In bionomically analogous parts of temperate and cold waters of the Northern hemisphere, parallelism in the distribution of biocoenoses can be observed. The leading (dominant) forms are substituted by vicarious species. A series of biocoenoses in these waters corresponds to tropical biocoenoses located at similar depths and on similar grounds. Reef-forming corals, dominant in many tropical biocoenoses, are replaced by macrophytes, especially in cold and temperate waters (convergency on a larger scale).

3. The biomass of bottom biocoenoses attains maximum values in tropical waters and decreases regularly towards the high latitudes of the Arctic Ocean.

4. Population density is maximum in biocoenoses of temperate latitudes; it decreases more or less equally in tropical and Arctic waters. The ratio of the quantity of species to population density per 1 m2 of bottom surface area is maximum in tropical and Arctic biocoenoses and diminishes considerably in temperate waters.

5. The geographical distribution of biocoenoses on similar grounds and at equal depths depends (a) in tropical waters upon the direction of prevalent currents and upon the degree of isolation of island shelves from the ancient continental shelf areas with diverse and abundant populations; (b) in temperate waters, upon the temperature regime of the surface waters (heat exchange between sea and atmosphere; influence of the prevalent water currents); (c) in Arctic waters, upon the solidity and constancy of the ice cover.

6. In tropical and temperate waters, maximum biomass, maximum population density and greatest species diversity are observed at depths ranging from 0 to 10 m, in Arctic waters from about 18 to 25 m, due to ice conditions in the shoals which are unfavourable for life.

7. In all areas investigated, the distribution of biocoenoses reveals a distinct vertical zonation. The zonation is caused in tropical waters (on identical grounds), by the degree of light penetration and by hydrodynamic peculiarities of different layers of the surface water mass; in temperate waters by differences in the thermal regime of the layers of the surface water masses; in the Arctic waters by the degree of light penetration, by the mechanical influence of ice, especially of icebergs, and by the mode of ice conditions prevailing over different depths.

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Golikov, A.N., Scarlato, O.A. Comparative characteristics of some ecosystems of the upper regions of the shelf in tropical, temperate and Arctic waters. Helgolander Wiss. Meeresunters 24, 219–234 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01609513

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