Abstract

Pteropods (holoplanktonic gastropods) serve as crucial bioindicators of marine ecosystem health, yet our understanding of the environmental factors driving their community structure remains incomplete. This study investigated the relationship between pteropod assemblages and key environmental parameters across multiple coastal sites, analyzing twelve pteropod species and their responses to variations in water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and salinity. Through comprehensive field sampling and multivariate analyses, we examined the spatial and environmental patterns influencing pteropod distribution and abundance.

Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) revealed that environmental variables explained 4.88% of the total variation in pteropod community structure, with water temperature and pH emerging as the strongest drivers (p = 0.001). PERMANOVA results further confirmed significant differences in community composition across sites (R² = 0.09143, p = 0.001), indicating distinct spatial patterns in pteropod assemblages. Species-specific responses varied considerably, with Creseis showing notably high densities (11.95-38.89 individuals/m³) and marked variation across sites, while other genera displayed more constrained distributions.

The species-environment correlations demonstrated strong associations between community structure and environmental gradients, particularly along temperature-pH axes (correlation coefficients: 0.34 and 0.47, respectively) and salinity gradients (-0.41). These relationships suggest that pteropod communities respond predictably to environmental variation, though the high proportion of unexplained variance (95.12%) indicates the potential influence of unmeasured variables or complex ecological interactions.

This research provides valuable insights into the environmental factors structuring pteropod communities in coastal waters, contributing to our understanding of these important bioindicators and their potential responses to changing oceanic conditions. The findings highlight the need for continued monitoring of pteropod populations as indicators of marine ecosystem health and suggest directions for future research into additional factors influencing their distribution and abundance.

About the author 

Funding & support

This work was supported by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, the STRI Physical Monitoring Program and the Secretaría Nacional de Ciencia Tecnología e Innovación (SENACYT) thought a fellowship given to Alexandra De León.