Comparing the severity of disturbance: a metaanalysis of marine macrobenthic community data
Year: 1993
Type: article
Study design: Systematic Review
Abstract: A multivariate method of comparing the severity of disturbance to subtidal macrobenthic communities on a common scale is described. Data on species abundances and biomasses from a variety of stations on the NE Atlantic shelf at which the pollution/disturbance status is known have been aggregated to phylum level and the abundance and biomass data merged using an allometric equation to form a 'production' matrix. An ordination (non-metric Multi-Dimensional Scaling, MDS) of all these data, combined in a single meta-analysis, produces a configuration with disturbance as its major axis. These 50 samples can be used as a training data-set against which the status of communities from new studies can be assessed.
Source: Marine Ecology Progress Series
DOI: 10.3354/meps092221
Authors: RM Warwick, KR Clarke
Institution: Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Language: English
Subfield: Oceanography
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Life below water
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2031320989