New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Effects of deposit-feeding bivalve (Macomona liliana) density on intertidal sediment stability

S. D. Lelieveld

Department of Earth Sciences
University of Waikato
Private Bag 3105
Hamilton, New Zealand

C. A. Pilditch†

Department of Biological Sciences
University of Waikato
Private Bag 3105
Hamilton, New Zealand
email: c.pilditch@waikato.ac.nz

M. O. Green

National Institute of Water and Atmospheric
Research Limited
P.O. Box 11 115
Hamilton, New Zealand

†Author for correspondence.

Abstract  Effects of macrofaunal feeding and bioturbation on intertidal sediment stability (u_*crit) were investigated by manipulating density (0-3 x ambient) of the facultative deposit-feeding wedge shell (Macomona liliana) on the Tuapiro sandflat in Tauranga Harbour, New Zealand. Sediment stability increased up to 200% with decreasing M. liliana density and this was correlated with greater sediment microalgal biomass and mucilage content. The change in stability occurred despite homogeneity of grain size amongst experimental treatments, highlighting the importance of macrofaunal-microbial relationships in determining estuarine sediment erodibility.

Keywords  intertidal sandflat; Macomona liliana; microbes; New Zealand; sediment transport; stability

M03044; Online publication date 15 March 2004; Received 5 August 2003; accepted 3 December 2003
New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2004, Vol. 38: 115-128
0028-8330/04/3801-0115 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2004

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